NBA Draft 2021: Micah Potter signs Summer League deal with Miami Heat

The 2021 NBA Draft took place on Thursday night and, as expected, Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham was the No. 1 pick. The Big Ten actually had a number of players drafted as well with Joe Wieskamp, Franz Wagner, Luka Garza and ::double checks notes:: Dalano Banton (?????) picked, among others.

While no Wisconsin Badgers were selected, a pair have signed deals to play in Summer League. Big man Micah Potter will join the Miami Heat, signing an Exhibit 10 deal (here’s an explainer of what that means, but it is basically a training camp/G-League contract) for Summer League and Vitto Brown will play with the Phoenix Suns in Summer League. For those not plugged into the NBA offseason schedule, NBA Summer League takes place August 8-17 in Las Vegas this year.

Potter averaged 11.6 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game and 1.0 assists per game over his two year career in Madison. He is an excellent shooter for a 6-foot-10 dude, with splits of 217-of-424 (.512) from the field, 62-of-152 (.408) from deep and 105-of-124 (.847) from the free throw line. Potter’s main issue when it comes to sticking on a G-League team will be his defense. He often looked lost in pick and roll coverage and also isn’t quick enough to stay with smaller, quicker players on the perimeter. It’s not due to lack of effort, however, so maybe he can work himself into a passable defender with some practice on an NBA team.

Former Badger Vitto Brown is also going to get another look in the NBA. Brown played last season in France’s top league for Le Mans, averaging 10 points per game, 3.5 rebounds per game and one assist per game while shooting 40.2% from deep. Brown also played well for the Erie BayHawks two years ago and has vastly improved his three point shot from his playing days in Madison.

It’ll be fun to see these two former Badgers playing basketball again and hopefully they impress some people and earn a full contract.