As the Oklahoma City Thunder prepare for the 2019 NBA Draft they continue to look at players who have declared for the league. While the focus remains on the Thunder’s first-round pick (21st overall), the team is also looking at players who won’t go in the opening round.
Among the players Oklahoma City intends to assess is St. John’s University’s Justin Simon, who will work out for the Thunder on Thursday, according to Adam Zagoria of The New York Times. The 6-foot-5 guard is coming off of his redshirt junior season for the Red Storm in which he was named Big East Defensive Player of the Year.
Simon also worked out for the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday. He spoke to Lauren Rosen of Sixers.com about how his game will translate to the NBA:
I bring a lot of versatility. With my defense, I was able to guard one through five [positions] this year in college. In the NBA, I think I’ll be able to guard one through three, maybe even a stretch four. Just bringing that versatility on the defensive end, making it contagious, constantly talking, bringing energy, having a motor out there, and then translating my defense into offense — making us play quicker in transition.
Offensively, Simon averaged 10.4 games as a senior on 46.2 percent shooting from the floor. He did most of his scoring inside the arc, only shooting 28.9 percent from deep.
