Former Gonzaga All-American Dan Dickau breaks down each Gonzaga alum in the NBA heading into the 2023-24 season
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00:00 host Dan Dickow for Gonzaga Nation. We've been talking a ton, obviously, about the upcoming
00:05 college season with Gonzaga and their schedule, the predicted order of finish in the WCC,
00:13 the lay of the land in regards to the national landscape and where many analysts feel that
00:17 they will fall. But one of the things we haven't touched on is just how many pros from Gonzaga
00:22 are in the NBA. As we are deep into the NBA preseason now, there's been multiple games
00:29 being played. There are 10 players that should be in the NBA this season. DeMontis, Rabones,
00:36 Rui Hachimora, Brandon Clark, Corey Kispert, Jalen Suggs, Andrew Nembhardt, Julian Strother,
00:41 Chet Holmgren, Drew Timmy, and Zach Collins. You could also add in players that are fighting
00:50 for G League contracts that may be fitting into a 10-day at some point or a two-way contract.
00:56 A couple guys that are really on the cusp right there, namely Jeremy Pargo, David Stockton,
01:04 Edmond Gilder, all with the G League Ignite. And then one other player who's in training
01:09 camp currently with the Blazers would be Malachi Smith, who was with Gonzaga just a season
01:14 ago. But the first 10 that I mentioned will be playing. Drew Timmy is the one maybe that
01:22 doesn't make that final roster. I think he's going to make it, so I'm including him in
01:27 those 10 Zags right there. But when you look at it, you run the gamut of all-star level
01:34 players, players that are entrenched in the NBA. Kelly Olenek, that's the one name on
01:41 my list that I didn't mention. Sorry, there's 11, including Drew Timmy. So you run the gamut
01:48 from all-star and all-NBA level player in DeMontis Zabonis to entrenched veteran like
01:54 Kelly Olenek to rookie trying to find their way, such as Drew Timmy or the rookie who
02:01 is coming back from an injury that I think is going to compete for a Rookie of the Year
02:06 award in Chet Holmgren. But as mentioned, DeMontis Zabonis, one of the best in the NBA
02:10 at that interior. He can score on the inside, he can score on the outside, he can playmake,
02:16 he can be in durable handoffs, he can be in isos, tremendous passer. You know, kind of
02:22 right now, the gold standard for Gonzaga Bigs and their development. Rui Hachimura, he is
02:31 heading into his first full season with the Lakers. And the exciting part about that is
02:38 he's got a chance to compete for a title. Lakers, there's a lot of expectations and
02:43 hopes around that retooled roster. And the fact that Rui was kept as one of the core
02:49 guys to build around LeBron, to build around AD, shows a lot for what that front office
02:56 and the coaching staff thinks about Rui. So I look for a big year for him. He's looked
03:02 good in the preseason, in the games that I've watched. Brandon Clark just has to get healthy.
03:08 He's with Memphis still. Battled injury over the course of the end of last year. Had to
03:13 have surgery, lower leg injury. I believe it was in Achilles. So he's got to get right
03:18 when he is. He's a tremendous player at the NBA level using his athleticism and his creativeness
03:25 to find open areas on the floor. I mean, a lot of times people talk about creative scorers.
03:30 Many times it's just the understanding the timing and the cuts to get into those spots
03:36 to be able to catch a pass and finish in traveling. Corey Kispert, about to kick off his third
03:43 year in the league. I've always said that whether unless you're a complete outlier and
03:48 an outlier, meaning a guy like Chet Holmgren or LeBron James or one of those kind of top
03:55 couple picks in the NBA draft, it's going to take you a couple of years, whether it's
03:59 college or the NBA to adjust. And Corey Kispert, I think, falls into that category. And, you
04:06 know, he's poised for a big third year. I think Washington has high hopes and aspirations
04:12 for him because they traded Bradley Beal. So it looks like they're probably moving into
04:17 a little bit of a rebuild. But in the fact that they did bring another perimeter player
04:21 in Jordan Poole in, but very different than Corey Kispert. So I would imagine that that
04:27 bodes well for Corey being a major part of what the Wizards do in year three. Another
04:32 player in year three that I think, you know, has battled some injuries early in his NBA
04:38 career, has battled kind of some playing time, kind of having to share some minutes with
04:44 other guys in the backcourt, hasn't fully entrenched himself, although I think he will
04:48 have a long NBA career as Jalen Suggs with the Orlando Magic. This is a big year for
04:54 him to show growth. He can be signed. He can have his option picked up, I believe it was.
05:01 But this is the year where, you know, he would really kind of show that he's worthy of a
05:05 large extension. I think he would get an extension when he's eligible. But if he can show growth
05:12 in the IQ and the skill set, in addition to the impacting the game physically, which we
05:18 all know he can, there's a large extension in line for him. Andrew Nembhardt heading
05:26 into a second year with the Pacers. Maybe the biggest surprise as a rookie last year
05:32 is the fact that he started the majority of the games for Indiana at the point, paired
05:36 really well with Tyrese Halliburton, showed experience, wisdom, IQ beyond his years. And
05:43 with the pace that he plays and just the temperament that he has, you know, I think he's setting
05:49 himself up to have a eight, nine, 10 year career that's very impactful. So year two,
05:56 just about to get going for Andrew Nembhardt, look for big things there. The rookies. Well,
06:02 there's one other veteran and that would be Zach Collins. Unfortunately, many times when
06:07 people think about Gonzaga players, they forget about Zach Collins because he spent the one
06:11 year he was a one and done after being a McDonald's All-American was on that first Final Four
06:16 team of Gonzaga, but he didn't start. He was the sixth man many times because of that.
06:22 You can kind of be lost in the shuffle of remembrance of how impactful you were, but
06:28 he's heading into another season. He's, he battled a number of injuries early, but you
06:34 got to give Zach Collins a ton of credit because he's just grinded through and worked through
06:40 all of these different injuries. And now he's, he's being rewarded by having an opportunity
06:45 to continue and extend his career. Started with Portland. It's been with San Antonio
06:51 and that's been, you know, that's worked wonders for him. It's been great. So Zach Collins
06:56 is poised for another year. Then we look at the three rookies that one is in their second
07:02 year in the NBA, but rookie as far as playing time, that would be Chet Holmgren. I think
07:06 he's, he looked great in summer league. I think he's looked good in the preseason. He's
07:11 one of those players to me where you just put them on the floor and he's going to figure
07:16 things out. He can block shots. He can guard on the perimeter. He can shoot it from deep.
07:21 He can put the ball on the deck as a seven footer. He can score on the interior. You
07:27 know, he's, he's coming in kind of a little bit as that unknown this year because he was
07:33 hurt all year, a season ago. Victor Wim Benyama comes in with all this hype and rightfully
07:39 so as the number one pick, possibly a generational talent. We'll have to see how that plays out.
07:44 But my pick for rookie of the year is Chet Holmgren. What I saw in his physicality and
07:49 his approach and his skillset in summer league and what I've seen in some clips early on
07:53 in preseason makes me pick the former Zag. And I'm not just saying that because he's
07:59 the former Zag. I really think that he's talented and he will be the rookie of the year. I think
08:05 he and Wim Benyama have a chance to have a tremendous rivalry going forward in the next
08:12 10, 12 years in the NBA. Similar size, similar skillset are starting their careers at the
08:18 right time. I think that's a great storyline for the NBA to track and follow. And hopefully
08:23 they come to fruition for both of them. The other two would be Julian Strother, picked
08:30 by the Denver Nuggets in the first round. He's, I think he's had a really nice preseason.
08:34 I talked to Denver Nugget video coordinator, former Zag, just the other day. And he said
08:45 he has been, Connor Griffin, he said he's been great in summer league, just getting
08:49 everything done. And that's translated to having a good preseason for a rookie. Now
08:54 what a lot of people have to understand is they're going to try every single combination
08:58 and get young guys game minutes in the preseason. So you might have an 18, 20 point game in
09:04 the preseason and you feel good about it. But once the regular season hits, those vets
09:09 are getting the minutes and then you're fighting for minutes. I use my third year in the NBA
09:14 as an example with Dallas, we had a loaded roster, Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Jerry
09:19 Stackhouse on down the list. Mike Finley. I had an unbelievable opportunity to play
09:26 minutes in the preseason, averaged in double figures in the preseason. But once you get
09:32 to regular season, I was the 12th man on the roster. I wasn't getting minutes. But what
09:38 Julian's doing by playing really well is letting the coaching staff know that if there's an
09:43 injury or there's foul trouble, or if a player has to take a day off due to load management,
09:49 that he's going to be ready to go and he's going to be able to take advantage of his
09:52 opportunity. And so I think it's been great to see how he's just kind of slid right in
09:58 and played with a lot of confidence, conviction, and he's been very, he's been very impactful
10:05 in the minutes that he's gotten. Last one would be Drew Timmy. Obviously, we've talked
10:09 about him on a number of different times because his contract status has switched. And it looks
10:15 like he's getting a chance in the preseason. And that's all you you ask for. He's got a
10:20 chance to play some minutes in the preseason, and they've been good so far. Had a game winner
10:26 down the stretch the other night. He's a player that when you look at the the the athletic
10:34 qualities or certain things about him at the NBA level, it might not excite you. And this
10:40 is in full honesty. But when you look at the total body of work and the skill set he has,
10:44 and what he can do to impact the game, and that he just wins, and he does things the
10:49 right way. That's the guy you want on your team. And so I think that part is going to
10:53 win out over the people that he's not athletic enough, maybe he's not as big enough as we
11:01 want at this interior position. Maybe he doesn't guard as well or rebound as well. I think
11:05 though, although or shoot it as well from the perimeter. I think those are all points
11:08 that you have to look at when you're evaluating a player at that level. But I think all the
11:14 positives of Drew Timmy will outweigh those potential perceived negatives. And he's done
11:20 that throughout his career. And I expect that to be the case again. So NBA season right
11:26 around the corner, college season right around the corner. And the beautiful thing is, they
11:30 kind of blend together now because there are so many Gonzaga players in the NBA. So for
11:35 Gonzaga Nation, thanks for listening. Don't forget to like, subscribe, review if you want
11:41 on YouTube, wherever you get your podcasts. And just know that we've got a ton of content
11:47 that is being planned. It will be coming out to cover your Gonzaga Bulldogs in the very
11:52 near future.
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