NBA Draft: Player selected after Luka Garza going different path

Luka Garza was the No. 52 overall pick in the NBA Draft and worked hard to get a two-way contract from the Detroit Pistons. The player selected right after him, Charles Bassey, is going a much different route, holding out for a multi-year NBA contract.

Even though he was the consensus national college player of the year, Luka Garza made no demands when the Detroit Pistons selected him 52nd overall in this year’s draft. Being only eight slots away from not getting drafted at all, he knew he had to prove himself to Pistons management.

He was guaranteed nothing from Detroit, nor did he demand anything but a chance.

After Garza came off the board, at No. 53, the Philadelphia 76ers selected a center as well, Charles Bassey of Western Kentucky. While Bassey had a good season for the Hilltoppers, he was Conference USA’s Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, he was not rated the No. 1 player in college basketball; that was Garza.

Outside of being drafted next to each other, that is basically the only thing Garza and Bassey have in common in terms since draft night.

Garza after the draft emphasized how hard he was working and (with the help of his father), lost weight to gain quickness and worked on his outside shot.

Bassey’s agent decided on a different path for the 6-foot-11 native of Nigeria.

Luka Garza plays, Bassey does not in Summer League

The place where rookies prove themselves is the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.

• Garza played well, being named to the NBA All-Summer second team. Before the Pistons final summer league game, Garza signed a two-way contract with Detroit. That means he will be assigned to their G-League team but can spend up to 45 days with the NBA team.
• Bassey practiced with the 76ers summer league team but, on orders from his agent, sat out all of the Sixers games, because he did not have a contract yet

. While he has been seen working out at the 76ers practice facility, Bassey is still without a contract, just a couple of weeks before the start of training camp.

It seems like the 76ers are having a weird circumstances off-season. from star Ben Simmons demanding a trade, to now being in a contract dispute with the No. 53 draft pick.

The fly in the ointment, according to Derek Bodner of The Athletic (PAID SUBSCRIPTION REQUIRED), was that on draft night, as Bassey kept slipping, his agent told teams at the back end of the draft he would only accept a two-year guaranteed NBA deal.

Bassey apparently had an offer for a multi-year guaranteed deal with an NBA team if he went undrafted.

The Sixers took Bassey and offered him a three-year NBA deal but with only the first year guaranteed. The Sixers figure, for a guy who went 53rd, that was a pretty good offer. Considering the player selected right before Bassey, Garza, is on a two-way contract, the Sixers offer is seemingly not out of line.

If the contract situation is not resolved, Bassey will sign a one-year, non-guaranteed tender. If he plays that out, he will be an unrestricted free agent next year. Of course, with the 76ers already at center having Joel Embiid and old Pistons buddy Andre Drummond, how much playing time will Bassey get to impress other teams?

It is an interesting comparison between the No. 52 and 53 draft picks and how they are dealing with things.

One, who had the better college career, is pleased with a two-way contract on a  rebuilding team. He earned it as he had no guarantees going into summer league. The other, who some think has better upside in the NBA, is trying to maneuver for a little more commitment from a team that was the No. 1 seed in the East last season.

How Luka Garza and Charles Bassey end up in their NBA careers, with each employing different tactics, despite being picked back-to-back, will be interesting to follow in the coming years.