Marvin Bagley III dominates Mohamed Bamba, Texas in PK80 matchup

Two of the top potential prospects in the 2018 NBA draft faced off for the first time in their college careers when Duke’s Marvin Bagley III and Texas’ Mohamed Bamba played against each other in the second round of the PK80 tournament. Duke managed to sneak away with a 85-78 overtime win after trailing by as many as 16 with Bagley’s hands all over the victory.

Bamba and Bagley are two of the top five prospects expected to participate in next year’s NBA draft. Any matchup between the two, especially since they’re both big men, could mean a rise or fall in draft stock respectively. Tonight it was Bagley who came out on top with 34 points and 15 rebounds. Bamba finished with nine points, 10 rebounds and two blocks but fouled out in the second half.

Both players had their moments, but ultimately Bagley showed us why he’s touted as highly as he is with his performance against elite competition in Bamba tonight. That’ll mean a lot when their names are called next June, but before we go that far ahead lets take a look at what they did tonight.

He isn’t a guard and won’t have the ball all the time, but Bagley is still a versatile player offensively. He can stretch the floor from deep, but more often than not this season you’ll see him using his agility and athleticism in the post like this.

He’s also a great finisher around the rim and showcased that tonight. He showcased great situational awareness against Texas, and even when plays broke down he was in the right places at the right time.

He does the little things well like setting good screens, running hard, and filling lanes in transition. He moves fluidly like a guard and can keep up with the ball while not running so hard that he erases the passing lane.

Here’s another example of him just making the right play at the right time. Not many players have the awareness or ability to deliver this pass, but Bagley does it with ease and accuracy.

This great versatility and awareness for such a young player is what makes Bagley such a good prospect. He does the right things on the court and is fundamentally sound. The best has yet to come for him.

His game didn’t go as well as Bagley’s, but Bamba was impressive on the defensive end and showcased his offensive package as well. He fouled out and only played 26 minutes, but had he gotten in maybe eight to 10 more minutes we may not be talking about these teams playing in overtime.

Early on, Duke played a 2-3 zone against the Longhorns and dared them to shoot. But they didn’t really have to because they have a 7’ center with a 7’9 wingspan in the middle of the court who can make plays.

But what makes Bamba truly special is his ability on the defensive end. Coming into the game, he was averaging four blocks and 12 rebounds per game. He only played 26 minutes, but still had two blocks — including this sick swat on Bagley.

While his offensive game is a bit limited, he does play hard. And no matter what level of basketball you play on, that’s always an effective strategy. Look at how hard he runs in transition here. He gets rewarded with an easy dunk because of it.

Bamba starts his run from the deepest regions of the paint, sprints past two Blue Devils and finishes with a dunk in transition. That’s hustle and, at that size, it’s going to be an incredible weapon for him on the next level.

Bagley got the best of Bamba in this matchup and will likely be rated higher early on because of it. But the season is young and these two have a lot more basketball to play. They may see each other again down the road and, if they do, you can be sure that matchup will be as fun as this first one was.