The Big East Rookie of the Year, Cam Whitmore had an up and down freshman year due to lingering injuries. Whitmore gave scouts a first glimpse last summer by playing in the FIBA U18 Americas, where he helped bring home the gold medal. As a freshman, Whitmore averaged 12.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 0.7 APG, 1.4 SPG, 0.3 BPG, and 1.6 TOPG on splits of 48/34/70. Below is his full scouting report:
Name: Cam Whitmore
Height/Weight: 6’7/235
Wingspan/ standing reach: 6’8.5/8’7.5
Hand size: 8.25
Position: SF
Pre-Draft team: Villanova
Tools: Athleticism, shooting
Pros:
- Above the rim finisher; great overall athlete
- Clean jump shooter
- Can create his own shot on the perimeter
- Shoots well over closeouts
- Great at using his strength against similarly/smaller sized players in the paint
- Good cutter
- Quick first step
- Comfortable using either hand
Cons:
- Needs to get better with decision making and processing speed as a ball handler
- Shot can be a bit slow at times
- Needs to get stronger for fighting through contact & screens; raw defensively
- P&R defending
- Small hands
- Low assist rate with negatively double assist:turnover ratio
Summary:
Defensively, Whitmore has good tools to become a positive defender: length, athleticism, and footspeed. However, he still struggles to win defensive possessions at this stage, losing pick & roll defenses, and being a step slow on stepback jumpers for example. However, he can handle post-ups against fellow forwards, but this is not something I expect him to be able to do much in the NBA. If he adds strength and continues to be a student of the game, his defense will, at minimum, be above average in the NBA.
On offense, Whitmore is more of a collection of tools more than a tangible role player right now. He can shoot over defenses with ease, he has a quick first step, and he knows how to use his combination of size + ball-handling ability to bully smaller defenders to the rim, where he finishes very well. However, right now his best role is as an off-ball player, with room to grow as an individual creator. His low assist numbers, as well as a negative 1:2 assist:turnover ratio are alarming for his upside as a creator for others. His advanced passing stats are alarming, which could be a significant limiter to him hitting his ceiling. Whitmore’s processing speed held him back as a passer, being late to recognize both open plays for himself and simple passes to open teammates.
One example below, taking an extra dribble and allowing for the defender to recover and contest his shot:
As Whitmore develops his passing and reacting to what he sees, the closer he gets to his upside. The appeal with Whitmore is easy to see: 3 level scoring upside, tools to be successful on defense, and high-level self-creation ability. Even if the passing never comes along to its full upside, Whitmore still amounts to a likely starting caliber player, so long as the mistakes are not detrimental and remain uncommon.
Similar to: Bennedict Mathurin, James Posey, Jason Richardson
Projected draft range: 5-10
Expected role: Scoring wing with defensive upside.
Unplayable if: Unlikely to be unplayable, but a worst-case scenario lies in Whitmore becoming a scorer that doesn’t distribute or defend, making him a candidate to become a black hole in this worst-case scenario.
Exceeds expectations if: Defense develops given his physical capablities, and he becomes an efficient three level scorer.
Videos:
Shot chart:
