Nuggets snatch perfect prospect out of thin air with no draft picks to speak of

Entering the 2nd round of the NBA Draft on Thursday night, the Denver Nuggets still had no draft picks of any kind. While some thought that Denver and their brand new front office would look at trading into the 2nd round to select a player, it turns out that the Nuggets did not even need to, as they were able to sign Tamar Bates to a two-way deal immediately after the draft.

Tamar Bates was projected by some to be an NBA prospect who might go undrafted; however, many analysts did have him slated as a potential 2nd rounder in the 50s. A few mock drafts even had Bates being taken as early as the 36th overall pick, most notably NBADraft.net. Luckily for the Nuggets, the Missouri guard went undrafted, which opened up a chance for Denver.

Despite not being able to hear his name called during the draft, Bates was still able to deliver the good news to his apparent draft night party that he had with friends and family:

The 22-year-old already has a ton of traits that project well as an NBA rotation player and will join the Nuggets Summer League roster, presumably to start alongside DaRon Holmes II. That duo will be the players to watch for Denver fans in the coming weeks. The rest of the roster will still need to be rounded out, but Holmes and Bates will be a priority for the coaching staff.

Bates has the chance to develop into a true 3 and D wing for Denver

Standing at 6’5” and carrying a 6’10” wingspan, Bates has good size as a SG in the NBA and capable size to be a SF as well. While in college at Missouri, he showcased good athleticism and defensive instincts, and his experience and reps in college really showed in his final year at Mizzou. In a game against the #1 ranked Kansas Jayhawks, he even recorded 29 points and 5 steals:

Looking at the offensive side of the ball, Bates shows promise as well. Each year in college, he improved his FG%, 3FG%, and FT%, even flirting with the 50/40/90 club in his senior year at Missouri. Last season, Bates averaged 13.3 PPG and 1.3 SPG with shooting splits of 50.8% from the field, 39.7% from beyond the arc, and 94.6% from the free-throw line.

The most eye-popping stat of all of them is the FT%, as it was not just this year that he was insanely efficient, but his entire college career. Across his four years at college, Bates connected on 220 of his 238 free throws, which was good for a career percentage of 92.4%. Essentially, he was a dead-eye and reliable shooter from the charity stripe every year.

Free throws are one thing that many coaching staffs use as a realistic projection of how well a shot can translate to the NBA, as it proves that the players' shooting mechanics are very pure. With a good defensive upside and a great offensive upside, it looks like Bates could be a legitimate steal for the Nuggets.

Some players that could be used as player-comparisons for Bates are Norman Powell (ceiling) and Isaiah Joe (mid-range). Ironically, neither of these players had high-draft pedigrees either with Powell being selected 46th overall and Joe being drafted 49th overall. Time will tell if Bates can be as productive as these two NBA veterans.