My pre-draft evaluation of Aleksej Pokusevski, whom the Thunder got with the No. 17 pick: “Pokusevski is an absolutely ridiculous prospect, and I mean that in both the best and worst ways.”
The 19-year-old is showing that in the NBA’s minor league.
In the Oklahoma City Blue’s win over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers yesterday, Pokusevski raised his arms while wide open in the corner and caught the pass. The problem: He was out of the game and standing in front of the bench:
In fairness to Pokusevski, he was probably prematurely celebrating a 3-pointer from Rob Edwards rather than calling for the ball. But it’s easy to see how he confused his teammate.
Pokusevski showed the other side of his game in the Blue’s win over the Iowa Wolves today.
This no-look, over-the-shoulder, save-the-ball-from-going-out-of-bounds assist is incredible:
Though still raw, Pokusevski is clearly learning the basics. Drawing a live ball out of bounds: bad. Keeping a live ball in bounds: good.