Chansky's Notebook: Second Chances

Joel and Theo might be disheartened, but they shouldn’t be.

When the two rounds of the 2018 NBA draft — and all 60 picks — were over, neither Joel Berry nor Theo Pinson had heard their names called from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

According to most mock draft boards, Berry and Pinson were long shots to be selected in the second round. Berry was a great college player but was said to lack the size and quickness to be an NBA point guard. Pinson came on late as a senior playmaker which, together with his defense and scoring, made him a possible late pick.

Since most players selected in the second round do not get guaranteed contracts, Berry and Pinson may be better off having gone undrafted. The same might be said for Duke’s Trevon Duval, a projected first rounder before his freshman season who fell out of the draft with his uneven play.

These three will join the logjam of undrafted players who will try to make NBA teams as free agents. But they also have the advantage of having played for Hall of Fame coaches Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski. Williams has deep contacts throughout the NBA stemming from his days as a Dean Smith assistant. Coach K, of course, has his own after coaching NBA players to three Olympic gold medals.

What this means is that Williams and Krzyzewski can have heart-to-heart talks with various general managers who might not know the complete skill set and intangibles of their undrafted players. Using some salesmanship, plus calling in a few favors, they will likely get tryouts with several teams for their guys. Then it is up to the players to show why they should make NBA rosters.

Berry had the best college career of the three, All-ACC as a senior, Most Outstanding Player of the 2017 Final Four and MVP of the 2016 ACC tournament. But he will have to show more quickness to the basket and somehow the strength to score against and defend point guards as big as 6-8 in the NBA.

Pinson has a shot to make an NBA team after showing off new parts to his game as a facilitator, especially when Williams put him at the high post in the middle of a zone. And he is a great teammate and locker room guy, who most coaches would love to have as a reserve.

Duval has the most pure talent of all three, but after under-performing in his one season at Duke he’s almost starting from scratch.