Thursday marked another strong pre-select from Tamar Bates.
Missouri basketball standout and Kansas City, Kansas, the locals competed in his second trial at the NBA Draft Federation on Thursday, with 19 points on the week’s team with a near-perfect score, and the Williams won the game Thursday in the Chicago draft.
Bates made 7 of 8 shots from the field in Game 2, including a 4-point shooting percentage from three-pointers.
Only Nebraska graduate teammate Brice Williams scored more points in the game as he scored 7 of 12 from the field with a 24-pointer.
Bates also had two rebounds, two steals and one assist in the game. It's much better than his first match at United on Wednesday, when he scored three points in another five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on-five-on
The NBA Scout Federation will have 75 players participating, and the joint meeting took place more than a month before the 2025 NBA Draft on June 25.
Bates, 22, is 6-foot-5, the same height as his listing with Mizzou and checked in with a 6-10 wingspan.
The two-year Mizzou standout was invited based on his performance at the NBA G League elite training camp, and he scored 28 points in two games. He was one of five players in the G League training camp and invited the combine.
In April, Bates also competed in the Portsmouth Invitational Championship, where he averaged 16.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.7 rebounds in three games.
Despite his outstanding performance over the past month, Bates still seems to have heard his name long photos in the NBA Draft.
There will be 59 options for this year's event. In ESPN's best forecast, Bates checked in at No. 100, although that doesn't tell the story of his recent combine and camp appearances, tests and measurements. Bates' Mizzou teammate Caleb Grill ranked 87th on the ESPN roster but did not receive an invitation from the combine.
Missouri coach Dennis Gates has selected one player since taking over the Tigers but has sent two players to the NBA.
Kobe Brown is the 30th draft pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. D'Moi Hodge, currently playing professionally in Greece, signed a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2023. Sean East II signed a G-League contract with the South Bay Lakers after the 2023-24 season.