As the July live periods begin, one of New England’s biggest stock risers is Philipe Ndong.
The 6-foot-9 wing from the Middlesex Magic and Newman has netted eight new Division 1 offers this spring and summer, including from Marquette and Creighton. He debuted in Rivals’ Class of 2027 national rankings at No. 97 this week. And get this: Ndong doesn’t even start for the Magic, one of the top grassroots teams in the country this season. He happily comes off the bench.
“I’m probably the only guy in the country that brings a Top 100 guy off the bench,” Middlesex Magic director Michael Crotty said. “Phil comes off the bench. The way it’s set up, we’re winning ball games, he doesn’t care. We have a Top 100 guy coming off our bench and he doesn’t care. Talk about the ability to have inner confidence and swagger while also having humility and being a team player.”
Before the Magic head out for the final two weekends of its Under Armour Association circuit season – first in Atlanta, Ga., this weekend before championship weekend in Louisville, Ky., from July 16-19 – we caught up with Crotty to go in-depth on Ndong’s game, strengths and potential. Here’s our latest prospect watch.
An elite shooter
“I think it’s difficult to ignore just how terrific of a shooter he is. His shotmaking, really from all over the court. He shoots it exceptionally well from 3, but he’s got a great mid-range game. If he catches in pockets against zones, he can just turn around from 15 feet and in and make shots. He’s got really good touch. I think it’s just his shotmaking from top to bottom. There’s an effortlessness about his shooting stroke that I think is catching the eyes of many people (who are saying), ‘Wow, that’s going to translate to an extremely high level,’ as he continues to fill out his body, gets stronger and plays more and more games at an extremely high level. The first glaring thing about Philipe when you watch him for 10 minutes is wow, what a shooter, what a shotmaker.”
High IQ
“For starters, he’s a really good passer; he’s a good ball handler. But even when he gets into tight spaces — sometimes you’ll see many guys who have great size but aren’t physically where they need to be, when they get into tight spaces, they’re getting bumped, they’re making turnovers (and) it’s inhibiting their ability to make decisions. Philipe is really calm in tight, physical spaces when he gets downhill to make the right decision, to play off two feet, make a shot and spray it out to a teammate. I really like his calm under fire and his IQ on the offensive end. Many coaches have said 'Hey man, he’s a good passer,' because obviously that happens (when) you drill shots, now you get downhill, now here comes two, here comes some physicality. Not everyone has the ability to make the pass, to see it, to play off two feet (and) to keep balanced, so I’ve been really impressed with his ability to make good decisions down in the second and third level of the defense.”
High-level coachability
“We had a championship game in the ZG Nationals (in June) and in the last three minutes of the game, he made a block where he came over from two players away and beat a shot off the glass and he made a steal on a baseline out of bounds play. I just love that he’s a guy that when I’ve challenged him, he’s answered the bell. I think that his athleticism (and) his strength really are growing. You can see it. When you pair that with his work ethic and how great of a teammate he is, that’s the recipe for putting something together potentially that’s really special. …
“Phil is so easy to engage. He’s got that other kind of 'it' factor about him because you’re like, wow, this kid is bright, he’s articulate, he’s got a million-dollar smile. He gives me a ton of Alex Wilkins (former Magic player now at Kentucky) vibes — like, a ton. He has since the day I met him, not just with his game, and 'oh my god, what might he become?' That’s an obvious area where they’re similar. But in his smile and his personality and his positive energy and his affability, that’s my comparison. Obviously Alex has had a hell of a three-year run. Philipe can only hope to emulate that kind of success. But I’ll tell you what, just like I thought about Alex, I think Philipe is going to play for an extremely long time and I think Philipe is quite capable of playing at the absolute highest level.”
NBA potential?
“I don’t have his measured standing reach, but he is 6-9. I don’t know if he’s done growing. It’s his ability to be a guard in that size body. That’s what everyone wants. There’s your prototypical 3-man who can stretch it and shoot the ball. I think he’s an NBA-level prospect. Like (yesterday), Tyler Kolek and Pat Connaughton (former Magic players now in the NBA) were at practice. I was talking to Pat and he said ;the kid Phil is really intriguing. He shoots it above his head, he’s about 6-10, you can’t really bother that.' It’s all going to depend on that work that he keeps putting in and the development of his body and his athleticism and strength. But when you got two NBA guys talking about him like that, that speaks more volumes than anyone else could. … There’s no crystal ball, but Phil works his tail off. His work ethic is elite, always in the gym early, always staying late. And then if you look at six-month patterns, what Phil has done in the last 12 months, six over six, like it’s incredible where he is today in July versus where he was in December when I started watching him. ..
“As someone who has coached and helped develop four guys who are currently in the NBA, I know it’s wild to say that an 18-year-old kid is going to play there, but I believe Phil has all the tools and I think some day he’s going to be in the NBA.”
Areas to grow
“I think the biggest area of improvement is going to be the strength development and physical explosivity and things of that nature. Now, in six months, he has gotten way stronger, he has gotten more explosive, he has added physicality to his game, so I love the track he’s on. But to continue to rise your level and play at the highest level, there’s just a remarkable amount that you need to accomplish in terms of explosion, twitch, physical stature, so that’s easily the most important thing for Philipe. His skillset is really, really good. I tell all my guys who are bigger wings, keep working on your stationary ball-handling and your movement ball-handling so you can be lower, play in pick-and-rolls, be that secondary or cursory playmaker. Phil is a really good ball-handler, he’s a really good passer, he’s an elite shooter.
“He’s working. He’s on a calorie intake, he’s lifting 4-5 times per week and you’ve seen the growth. But all it takes is to go watch a high school (game) and then go watch Purdue play Providence and be like, oh, those are different-looking human beings. Once these guys get to college and they’re buried in a weight room, they’re on a plan, they have professional strength trainers helping them and they get a year or two older, that stuff matters too. I guess the other area of improvement is to get a little older. I say that tongue in cheek but yeah, get a little older, work your tail off and get stronger. Because when that happens — and it’s a when, it’s not an if — when that happens, Philipe Ndong is going to be an extremely scary person for people to deal with at the college level.”
