2023 NBA Draft Player Profile: Cam Whitmore

Cam Whitmore is a 6’7” wing with elite potential under a proper development staff. He’s got the strength, athleticism and size to excel at the NBA level. He’s still just 18 years old, so there’s so much room for growth in this exciting 2024 NBA Draft prospect.

Stats

Age: 18

Height: 6’7”

Wingspan: 7’0”

Weight: 230 lbs.

Per Game: 12.5 PTS, 5.3 REB, 0.7 AST, 1.4 STL, 0.3 BLK

Per 40 Minutes: 18.4 PTS, 7.8 REB, 1.1 AST, 2.1 STL, 0.5 BLK

Shooting Splits: 47.8% FG / 34.3% 3P / 70.3% FT

Advanced Stats: 57.1 TS%, 6.2 BPM, .130 WS/40

Strengths

One of Whitmore’s greatest strengths is exactly that: strength. For an 18 year old, he’s got an NBA body already and is able to bully people in the dribble drive game. He’s very difficult to stop when he’s going downhill and doesn’t need much space to throw one down on a defender. He was definitely one of the best in-game dunkers in college basketball this year.

He plays with a great combination of speed and strength that lets him attack defenses with the ball in his hands. NBA spacing will open up that aspect of his game even more. He’ll be a problem once things slow down for him with his ability to finish around the basket through contact.

He’s also a great rebounder for his size and attacks the glass, as seen by his rebounding numbers as a freshman wing. His shooting numbers don’t jump off the page, but some of that is due to his shot difficulty. A free throw percentage of 70% doesn’t guarantee shooting success, but I feel confident his shooting will not be a problem in the NBA.

He’s exactly the type of wing the Utah Jazz have desperately needed the last few years. He’ll be a versatile offensive player that can score from all 3 levels and has the defensive upside to be a switchable defender. Some people have compared him to Miles Bridges & OG Anunoby.

Weaknesses

As mentioned previously, he’s not a proven shooter at this point in his career. He’s shown progress, but like many of his peers in this class that isn’t his strong suit. His form may also need a little adjusting because it’s not very smooth or rhythmic.

The level of difficulty on his shots was pretty high. Is that because he can make them, or because that’s all he can get off? That’s a major question at this stage in his development.

Villanova’s offensive approach did not ask a lot of him in the playmaking department. He seemed capable, but the evidence is lacking to date. It’s hard to tell what his ceiling would be initiating or running an offense.

Jazz fit

The Utah Jazz have made their roster-building intentions pretty clear. They want positional size everywhere possible. Whitmore’s positional flexibility would certainly allow him to play multiple positions very well, some of which would give him that coveted positional size. Assuming Agbaji, Markkanen, and Kessler are the long term building blocks on the roster, sliding Whitmore in at the 3-spot would be easy. Markkanen can play either forward spot so he’s extremely easy to build around.

How could Utah get him?

Currently, The Jazz are sitting at about the 9th draft position. Most mocks have Whitmore somewhere in the 5-7 range. It’s certainly possible that he could slide a spot or 2 on draft night, but it may require some lottery luck or moving up the board to guarantee selecting him if the Jazz fall in love.