NBA draft combine: Olivier-Maxence Prosper among scrimmage standouts

Marquette junior Olivier-Maxence Prosper emerged as one of the standouts Wednesday on the first day of 5-on-5 scrimmages at the 2023 NBA draft combine in Chicago, Illinois.

The league announced last week that 78 players were expected to attend the festivities this year. In addition, eight more players were invited to compete after participating in the NBA G League Elite Camp over the weekend.

Of those prospects invited, many of them opted against playing in the scrimmages. It is often commonplace that the top prospects skip certain portions of the testing and competition and that was once again the case this year as only 44 players were a part of the scrimmages.

However, several prospects made a name for themselves.

With the first day of the scrimmages in the books, Rookie Wire took a look at those players that had some notable performances on the court and helped raise their draft stock.

Olivier-Maxence Prosper, Marquette

Prosper finished with 21 points, seven rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. He flashed his athleticism and overall skill set on both ends of the court during his 22 minutes of action. He flourished in getting into the paint and drawing contact, going 10-of-12 from the free-throw line, and looked comfortable, overall.

The Marquette junior declared for the draft with the option to return to school. He told ESPN that he hasn’t made a decision on his future yet and will likely do so after meeting with teams for interviews and workouts. However, his performance on Wednesday certainly helped his stock among teams.

Tristan Vukcevic, KK Partizan (Serbia)

Vukcevic produced 21 points and two rebounds in his first scrimmage game. He went 8-of-10 from the field, including 3-of-3 from 3-point range, in 16 minutes of action. He scored from all over the court, mixing in some mid-range shots and others inside the paint.

Overall, the 7-footer showed off his versatility and helped his case to be one of the most skilled big men in the draft this year. He has a great shooting stroke that will translate well to the NBA and it should be something teams covet.

Johni Broome, Auburn

Broome, who was one of the prospects invited from the G League Elite Camp, continued to perform well in front of teams in Chicago. He recorded 20 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots in 23 minutes, and even dropped in a 3-pointer for good measure.

The 20-year-old put up another all-around performance on Wednesday. It remains to be seen if his showing this week will be enough to stay in the draft or return to school, but it is fair to assume that Broome put his name on teams’ radars.

Jordan Miller, Miami

Miller registered just one of the three double-doubles on the day with 18 points, 10 rebounds and one assist. He hit a couple of 3-pointers and was very active in the paint. He had a couple of putback layups as he finished with three offensive rebounds.

The energy and effort Miller brought throughout his 18 minutes on the court stood out perhaps the most. That is certainly something Miller displayed quite a bit with the Hurricanes and the senior continued that trend in front of teams.

Amari Bailey, UCLA

Bailey had seemingly everything working on Wednesday, recording 17 points, eight assists and four rebounds. He was aggressive in getting to the rim and that led to some nice finishes and open looks for his teammates. He flashed his overall skill set throughout the game and that led to one of the top performances of the day.

Other Top Performances

Adama Sanogo, UConn: 18 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks

Dillon Jones, Weber State: 17 points, 3 assists, 3 steals

Isaiah Wong, Miami: 16 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds

Oscar Tshiebwe, Kentucky: 10 points, 16 rebounds, 2 blocks

Brandin Podziemski, Santa Clara: 10 points, 8 assists, 7 rebounds

Story originally appeared on Rookie Wire