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NBA Draft 2019: 5 targets for the New Orleans Pelicans

By Ian Levy

ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 28: Killian Tillie #33 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs reacts during the game against the Florida State Seminoles in the third round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament held at Honda Center on March 28, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Justin Tafoya/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA - MARCH 28: Killian Tillie #33 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs reacts during the game against the Florida State Seminoles in the third round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament held at Honda Center on March 28, 2019 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Justin Tafoya/NCAA Photos via Getty Images) /
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PALO ALTO, CA – FEBRUARY 28:Stanford Cardinal forward KZ Okpala (0) at the top of the key before heading to the basket during the game between the Washington State Cougars and Stanford Cardinals on Thursday, February 28, 2019 at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Douglas Stringer/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
PALO ALTO, CA – FEBRUARY 28:Stanford Cardinal forward KZ Okpala (0) at the top of the key before heading to the basket during the game between the Washington State Cougars and Stanford Cardinals on Thursday, February 28, 2019 at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Douglas Stringer/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

4. KZ Okpala, Wing, Stanford

Okpala certainly looks the part of an impact player on the wing. He has impressive length, end-to-end speed and leaping ability. He’s a reasonably confident spot-up shooter and also flashed the kind of vision and control in the pick-and-roll that could make him useful as a secondary creator on offense. All his physical tools should make him an impact defender.

However, he’s still lacking a lot of the basic skills that would bind his strengths into a definitively positive package. On defense, he frequently gets lost off the ball and allows ball-handlers to put him in bad defensive positions where he’s forced to try and compensate with athleticism. On offense, his ability to finish and protect the ball in traffic are a concern and the fact that his pull-up jumper is a complete mess means there’s almost no chance of him turning into an efficient three-level scorer or primary creator. If anything about his spot-up shooting doesn’t translate to the NBA, something like Evan Turner might be his ceiling.

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