Potential Player for our 2nd Round Draft Pick: Thomas Welsh

Yay! You finally did a UCLA guy!

Who is Thomas Welsh?

Thomas Welsh is a 7 foot 250 pound stretch big who rebounds on both ends of the floor, plays within his lane on offense, and flashed some ability to protect the rim over his 4 year career. He just turned 22 years old and is a senior.

Where's he from?

Welsh is from Redondo Beach, California and plays his college ball at UCLA.

What makes him worth a second round pick?

Welsh has the potential to be one of the few bigs with the shooting ability, rebounding prowess, and shot blocking ability required to work beside Kuzma and Randle.

Welsh has gotten comfortable serving as a stretch big this year, shooting 38% from 3 on 93 attempts. At 7 feet, he has the height to shoot over most defenders. Has a high and quick release. He's had 10 games this year where he's made at least 1 three, 5 games where he's made at least 2, and 5 games where he's made 3 or 4. He's a good free throw shooter (82.8 FT% on the year; 79.8 FT% for his career) so it seems as though he's got the touch necessary to serve as a pick and pop threat from mid range and the NBA 3.

Welsh is a strong rebounder on both ends of the floor. He's 2nd in the Pac-12 in rebounds per game (10.6) behind Ayton and 4th in offensive rebounds. For his career, Welsh has averaged 11.3 rebounds per 36. He plays with a lot of energy on the glass and fights for missed shots. Can hold his ground inside and doesn't have the usual rebounding problems most stretch bigs have.

Welsh has flashed some ability to protect the rim and could be more consistent on a relatively good defensive team. He's averaged 1.7 blocks/36 for his career and has improved in staying out of foul trouble this season. With a reported 9'3" standing reach, Welsh has the length to deter players near the rim. In his better defensive seasons, Welsh averaged 1.9 blocks/36 in 2017 (Lonzo's freshman year) and 2.5 blocks/36 (his freshman year). He's averaged at least 1 block per game every year.

Welsh is a low usage player (career 17.2 USG%) who doesn't try to do much with the ball (career 7.5 TOV%). Tries to play the game the right way; doesn't go out there trying to play hero ball to prove his individual skill at the expense of the team. He sets hard screens and is a capable finisher near the basket. Good hands and good touch. Capable roll man. Has a positive effect while on the floor (career 125.4 offensive rating) and has been a productive player (21.4 PER this season, career 21.1 PER).

He can shoot and has the ability to be effective in areas most stretch bigs struggle in.

Final notes:

Welsh has been inconsistent on the defensive end. He can be a viable shot blocker when engaged, but hasn't been great at it this year (1.1 block/36). Not the most athletic of bigs.

He'd be a nice fit on our team. He's a good enough shooter to work with Randle, a good enough rebounder to work with Kuz, and a capable enough shot blocker to work with both. He's already got chemistry with Lonzo in the pick and roll and has expanded his range to be an effective pick and pop player from 3. He doesn't need the ball to be effective on offense and has improved as a decision maker on offense the past two years (2.29 AST/TO in 2017; 1.48 AST/TO this season). At 7 foot 250 pounds with a 9'3" standing reach, he's got good size for a big man and is about as big as Zubac and long as Thomas Bryant.

If he can shoot, rebound, protect the rim, set screens, and roll to the basket, Welsh will carve out a nice role within our team as a 15-20 minute big and possibly become a starter.