By Matt Weiner (@mattweiner20) – Basketball Beat Reporter / Photo via Titus Wilkinson of The Spear
Mark Tatum, the NBA’s Deputy Commissioner, leaned in and announced the final pick of the 2023 NBA Draft:
“With the 58th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, the Milwaukee Bucks select Chris Livingston from the University of Kentucky.”
To the delight of Livingston, but the chagrin of San Jose State’s Omari Moore and countless other undrafted NBA hopefuls. But 20 minutes after Tatum’s announcement, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski announced that Moore agreed on a two-way contract with the Bucks.
And with Moore’s name going unannounced, the Spartans’ draft drought now reaches a quarter-century.
But for Moore, who was labeled a second-round sleeper by some experts, going undrafted is a reroute rather than a career wrap-up.
As Moore swaps SJSU’s blue and gold for Milwaukee’s green and white, it’s time to dissect, prognosticate and explore his next endeavor.
Par for the course
For those that know Moore and know his story, going undrafted is par for the course.
Before Moore became the 2022-23 Mountain West Player of the Year and spearheaded SJSU to its first postseason win in program history, he was a no-star recruit coming out of Pasadena High School in 2018. Moreover, he wasn’t even a top-three scoring option.
Moore graduated without a single college offer. So came the dilemma of either walking on somewhere or stop playing basketball altogether. He excelled academically and could forge a life outside basketball.
But in July, former SJSU head coach Jean Prioleau solved Moore’s conundrum by presenting him an offer. After signing it, Moore spent the next year at Los Angeles’ Middlebrooks Academy. He got stronger and threw muscle on his long, wiry frame.
So Moore began his career at SJSU and after a stellar year he was on NBA scouts’ radar. His 13.2 points per game nearly doubled the 7.4 from a year earlier and he led SJSU in assists (4.6), rebounds (5.5) and blocks (1.1).
Following the season, his confidence shot up after doing a pre-draft workout for the Los Angeles Lakers. He decided decided to return to college, but then came another decision: Remain loyal to woebegone SJSU, that just finished 8-23 with one conference and trust second-year head coach Tim Miles lead a turnaround. Or, hit the transfer portal in hopes of a better opportunity.
Moore chose loyalty and became SJSU royalty.
He led SJSU to its most wins since 1981 (21), registered 15 points in SJSU’s first-ever postseason victory and notched a triple-double in SJSU’s first-ever Mountain West Tournament win over Nevada. He averaged 17.4 points, 4.8 assistants and 4.7 assistants. Departing SJSU fifth all-time in scoring (1,312), fifth in assists (429), fourth in blocks (90) and fourth in steals (120).
This is the same player that was glanced over by NAIA and Division III programs.
What’re Moore’s chances of cracking the roster?
Dozens of players go undrafted every year with hopes of becoming the NBA’s next rags-to-riches story.
Reality is there’s a lopsided amount of those who’re rich and those who never made a livable wage.
Which begs the question: Where does Moore end up?
The first step is finding playing time. Something Moore never struggled with at SJSU. Because it was, you know, SJSU. But with the Bucks, it’ll be an uphill battle.
Mainly because the Bucks aren’t in rebuild mode. They were the No. 1 seed in the East entering this year’s playoffs, but sustained an embarrassing first-round gentleman’s sweep courtesy of the Miami Heat. They even fired head coach Mike Budenholzer, who led them to a title just two summers ago.
The Bucks ‘title or bust’ mentality was further illustrated by their lack of aggression in the draft. Both draft picks – Connecticut’s Andre Jackson Jr. and Kentucky’s Chris Livingston – came in the second round. After the draft, the Bucks signed Drew Timme to an Exhibit 10 contract.
The Livingston situation doesn’t do any favors for Moore, too.
On a relative snoozer of a draft night, The Athletic’s Sham Charania reported Rich Paul, Livingston’s agent, called teams requesting them not to take Livingston. Implying he was going to the Bucks as the last pick of the NBA Draft. This comes two weeks after Charania reported Livingston, a former five-star, one-and-done from Kentucky, “canceled all seven of his remaining workouts for the 2023 NBA Draft.”
Clearly, Livingston and the Bucks are heavily committed to one another.
The Bucks already aren’t in a position to give fresh faces playing time. This pre-draft tying of the knot makes it far more difficult for Moore to climb up the roster.
But this is why there’s a Summer League in Las Vegas from July 7-17. Undrafted players like Moore have four regulars season games to compete with fellow young guns and display they can – or can’t – hang.
Even if Moore shows he can hang, he’ll likely find himself suiting up for the Bucks G-League affiliate the Wisconsin Herd.
Deciphering future role
One question that should be pondered is: What will Moore’s role be?
With the Spartans, Moore was the primary play-maker and points-producer. Much of SJSU’s offense revolved around his explosive driving qualities. But his role was a byproduct of SJSU lacking such qualities.
His future role might be adjacent, but not identical. What makes Moore a valuable asset is doing the simple, but required tasks at an elite level. Take his defense for example. Despite expending loads of energy on offense, he rarely took plays off.
In SJSU’s upset over Santa Clara, Moore limited SCU’s Brandon Podziemski – the No. 19 overall selection by the Warriors – to two points. In this same half, he totaled 19 of his 24 points.
Strong defense is always needed and tends to be a translatable quality. Plus, Moore’s 6’10 wingspan and elite quickness bode well for him to guard multiple positions.
Not to mention his sharp passing ability. He dished the second-most assists (4.8) in the conference, but he wasn’t boomeranging behind the look dimes or threading no-look passes in transition.
He simply made smart decisions and knew where to put the ball. Moreover, SJSU finished second to last in three-point percentage (32.6%) in the Mountain West, so he wasn’t stat padding off drives and kicks.
So yes, going undrafted is frustrating. Maybe even a gut punch. But uncharted territory? Hardly.