NBA

Can Chet Holmgren become the next great NBA unicorn?

Chet Holmgren, NBA

LAS VEGAS, NV – NOVEMBER 26: Chet Holmgren #34 of the Gonzaga Bulldogs reacts after being called for a foul against Paolo Banchero #5 of the Duke Blue Devils during the Continental Tire Challenge at T-Mobile Arena on November 26, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Duke won 84-81, Can Chet Holmgren become the next great NBA unicorn?. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)

The 2022 NBA Draft, which is set for Thursday, June 23, has its fair share of elite prospects at the top of the draft. This includes Duke forward Paolo Banchero, Auburn forward Jabari Smith Jr, and Gonzaga big man Chet Holmgren.

While it’s not as deep as what seems to be a historic 2021 NBA Draft class, that’s not really a fair comparison. 2021 saw Cade Cunningham, Jalen Green, Evan Mobley, Scottie Barnes, Josh Giddey, and others make a significant impact on their respective franchises, and they all look like future stars of the NBA.

Can Chet Holmgren become the next great NBA unicorn?

However, despite the 2022 NBA Draft not being quite as talented as its predecessor, it does have a unique, unicorn-type prospect who can potentially become the next highly-skilled big man. Joining the big man ranks alongside the new wave MVP candidates in Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo, can Holmgren be the next one?

Holmgren’s last performance as a Gonzaga Bulldog saw him foul out with 11 points,14 rebounds, and five blocks against Arkansas. Some of those fouls called against him were questionable, but at the NBA level, the officiating will be much better. Holmgren has shown he is an elite-level prospect all season and has shown why he can be the first overall selection in this year’s upcoming NBA Draft.

One performance that comes to mind is when he played the San Diego Toreros back on February 3 in a 92-62 win. He scored 23 points, grabbed 12 rebounds, and notched four blocks in 29 minutes of action.

In that game, Holmgren displayed the full, unique repertoire he has at a whopping seven feet tall. He has the ability to take it coast-to-coast on a fast break and finish at the rim, pull up from three, protect the rim at an elite level, and can even knock down his free throws.

Holmgren has drawn comparisons to guys like Anthony Davis, Kevin Garnett, Kevin Durant, Dirk Nowitzki, and Kristaps Porzingis. He’s a tall, lanky, wiry big who is highly skilled. His handle is great, he’s agile, he has gargantuan arms, and he can shoot the ball at a high level.

The 19-year-old is not without his warts though, as he weighs just a spindly 194 pounds. That is 20 pounds less than Cleveland Cavaliers star rookie Evan Mobley, who weighs just 215 pounds.

This became apparent against bigs with considerable body weight, such as Arkansas big man Jaylin Williams, who bodied and moved Holmgren around in the tournament, which played a part in him fouling out.

He has a frame that could make it hard to gain solid weight without hindering the fluidity in his game. Even though Holmgren is frighteningly skinny, he is as tough as they come mentally, not letting anyone talk trash to him. And he’s seemingly very durable for a guy who takes a good amount of punishment down low.

Ultimately, we have seen a lot of guys with similar body types such as Holmgren, a la Davis and Garnett. His posture does leave some concern about if he can handle the rigors of an 82-game NBA season, though.

One thing I will not doubt is Holmgren’s commitment to getting better and stronger, as he went from unranked in high school to the number one player in the Class of 2021. He burst onto the scene in 2019 at Stephen Curry’s camp after he crossed up the two-time MVP in fascinating fashion.

Can Holmgren become the next unicorn of the NBA in the same fashion players like Giannis, Embiid, Durant, and Jokic have? We will have to wait and see. But do not count him out of becoming the next great NBA unicorn.