With the NBA Draft quickly approaching, the L.A. Clippers continued their search Wednesday for the next wave of young talent, hosting six prospects from five universities around the country. The workout group included Miles Bridges (Michigan State), Matt Farrell (Notre Dame), Gyorgy (G.G.) Goloman (UCLA), Aaron Holiday (UCLA), Kevin Knox (Kentucky) and Doral Moore (Wake Forest). Holding the 12th and 13th picks in next week’s draft, the Clippers are in a unique position to select two prospects that will represent an infusion of young premier talent.
So, what exactly are these players being evaluated on? Director of Player Programs, Dee Brown, says the team wants to see prospects compete.
“The drills we do are a direct reflection of what we need to evaluate. We put them in situations where they need to think and feel uncomfortable at times.”
But that’s not all that Brown and the rest of the front office are looking for. As Brown states, “We are looking to evaluate guys on their ‘Clipper characteristics’, and that has to do with the way that they act on and off the court, and not just their skills. We want a [certain] type of player here. We don’t want just any player here.”
And given their track record, these prospects can certainly prove they belong here.
Under head coach Tom Izzo, Bridges left his mark at Michigan State. Bridges’ return to East Lansing proved to be beneficial for the wing. He grew into his frame and continued to lead the team and dominate the Big 10. In his second year, he led Michigan state in scoring, was a unanimous All-Big Ten First Team selection and a consensus Second Team All-American.
Miles Bridges
Michigan State - G/F
6'7" | 225lbs
Hometown: Flint, Mich
College Career Stats
Player Profile
Knox is one and done and onto the NBA. The likely lottery pick made the most out of his freshman year at Kentucky, averaging 15.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. He was named to the All-SEC First Team and SEC All-Freshman Team and recorded the eighth-most points in a season in school history.
Kevin Knox
Kentucky - F
6'9" | 215lbs
Hometown: Tampa, Fla
College Career Stats
Player Profile
As the third Holiday to enter in the NBA draft, Aaron has made a name for himself outside of the impressive shadows of his brothers. The junior guard, who averaged 14.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.7 assists while at UCLA, has proven to be a dependable scorer and will leave school ranked 25th on UCLA’s all-time scoring list.
Aaron Holiday
UCLA - G
6'1" | 185lbs
Hometown: Ruston, La
College Career Stats
Player Profile
Notre Dame’s starting point guard, Farrell finished the season averaging 16.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists his senior year. He was an offensive weapon and shot lights out from behind the arc, breaking both the school record for the most 3-pointers in a regular season game and in an ACC season. The New Jersey native was named All-ACC Third Team last year and Notre Dame Playmaker of the Year as a junior.
Matt Farrell
Notre Dame - G
6'1" | 175lbs
Hometown: Bridgewater, N.J.
College Career Stats
Player Profile
Goloman, who led the Bruins in blocked shots last year, has a strong defensive presence in the paint. Standing 6’10”, Goloman shot 52.3% from the field in his four years. One of his best games came against Arizona where he scored a career-high 16 points against projected top draft pick DeAndre Ayton.
György Golomán
UCLA - F
6'11" | 225lbs
Hometown: Kormend, Hungary
College Career Stats
Player Profile
Moore is intertwined with a little bit of Clippers history, having played at Wake Forest under former Clippers No. 1 overall pick, Danny Manning. Manning described Moore as having made the most progress he’s ever seen of any player in the offseason, and his junior year stats agree. This past season, he averaged 11.1 points and 9.4 rebounds, a step up from just 2.6 points and 2.2 rebounds the previous season.
Doral Moore
Wake Forest - C
7'1" | 280lbs
Hometown: Atlanta, Ga
College Career Stats
Player Profile
Wednesday’s workout left both the Clippers and prospects feeling good. Bridges thought the workout challenged the group, “Every workout I have done is a lot of competition. This is just a lot more up and down than most workouts, and that’s good for us, testing our conditioning, testing our heart and will.”
Frank echoed those sentiments and highlighted that the team’s objective was to utilize today’s workout to evaluate prospects in a fatigued state. Because toughness is one of the key ‘Clippers characteristics,’ it’s certainly helpful to, in Frank’s words, “see how mentally they can respond to a little adversity.”