The Brooklyn Nets will give Prince Ibeh an opportunity to prove his worth during the Las Vegas Summer League. The former Texas Longhorn has had quite the relationship with the Nets organization.
Profile
Age: 23
Height/Weight: 6’11” / 260 lbs
Position: Center
Hometown: London, England
College: University of Texas
College Statistics: 4 years; 13 minutes/game, 3.0 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.6 BPG
Draft: Undrafted, current member of the Long Island Nets
Right off the bat, we must acknowledge the fact that the Brooklyn Nets must have a ‘thing’ for Texas centers. Prince Ibeh and Jarrett Allen have manned the center position for the Longhorns since 2012, even though Allen only provided one year of service.
Ibeh, a four-year collegiate player, never averaged more than 18 minutes per game in a single season. A highly coveted recruit coming out of high school, Prince garnered interest from Florida, Baylor, Maryland, Oklahoma and others before signing on with the Longhorns. So, what happened at Texas that caused him to never see significant minutes? Foul trouble.
At a Per 40 minute rate, Ibeh would have averaged 7.7 fouls per game throughout his collegiate career. That’s not legal. As a sophomore, he averaged 2.9 fouls/game in only 13 minutes of action. Wow.
So now the question is, how did this guy find a spot on a G-League roster? What has the Nets interested?
Lobs and blocks… blocks and lobs.
At 6’11”, Ibeh has a 7’5″ wingspan and a 9’4″ standing reach. As a senior for the Longhorns, he was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. He averaged 18 minutes per game. However, in those 18 minutes, Ibeh managed to average 2.0 blocks per game.
At a Per 40 minute rate, Ibeh would have averaged 4.8 blocks per game throughout his career. Now that is legal, and accepted amongst many teams.
The Nets have shown interest in ‘Lobs and Blocks’ players. They also promised Ibeh the opportunity to receive a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn team last year. Ibeh never got the call due to a number of injuries in the Brooklyn backcourt, which caused them to bring in other prospects besides Ibeh. However, Marks and company pulled a sly move to keep their promise to the big fella.
Before signing Archie Goodwin for the remainder of the season, the Nets signed and waived both Cliff Alexander and Prince Ibeh, all in a 24-hour window. As a result, Ibeh now has a full year of NBA service under his belt, which can pay off in the long-run when he signs other contracts. The full story can be found here.
So, the Nets wanted to honor their promise to Ibeh, but the more important tidbit is, they were going to give him a chance. They wanted to see what he could do in an NBA setting. Would he rack up fouls immediately? Would he become a defensive force? We never found out.
He’s still extremely raw and has trouble garnering any offensive production. He also struggles mightily from the free-throw line (43% in college). However, the Nets are interested in what he brings to the table from a defensive standpoint. If his shot-blocking abilities can translate to the NBA, the Nets may have themselves the next DeAndre Jordan.
I’m just kidding.
Or am I?
Next: Nets Summer League: Get to know Jarrett Allen
Lobs and blocks… blocks and lobs. That’s what Ibeh brings to the table. At this point, it’s hard not to have at least a little bit of faith in the prospects the Nets are interested in. Sean Marks has a wonderful eye for talent, and while this may feel like a stretch, we’ll have to wait and see.
Make sure to tune in on July 7th to see the big man in action. Here’s a couple of clips from his time with Long Island.