NBA Draft Day Comes For Former New Zealand Breaker RJ Hampton

With a television production team in his home and 30 games arriving, the reality of the NBA Draft has dawned for RJ Hampton.

The 19-year-old American participated in the New Zealand Breakers last season as part of the Australian NBL’s Next Stars program, bypassing the traditional US college path.

Hampton will live a day he has always dreamed of on Thursday (New Zealand time) when he finds out which NBA team will select him and where his new home will be.

Point guard Hampton is one of the top 20 picks with the respected draft website, NBAdraft.net, projecting him to the New Orleans Pelicans with 13.

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Covid-19 pushed the draft to be postponed from June to November. Rather than being held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn as usual with prospects taking the stage to shake hands with Commissioner Adam Silver, the 2020 draft will take place virtually.

Fourteen of the best prospects, including Hampton, have an ESPN film crew set up in their living room and a satellite truck parked outside the house.

Hampton’s family and friends will gather at his home in Little Elm, Texas, outside of Dallas. About 30 minutes before the draft, he will don a suit he chose for the event and wait for a phone call from an NBA general manager, which will change his life.

Fellow NBL Next Stars program graduate LaMelo Ball, who was with the Illawarra Hawks, is a possible number one pick for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Ball shouldn’t go to Chicago at four.

“I am quite nervous. I feel confident in my work, ”Hampton said.

“Pretty nervous about where I’m going to go, where I’m going to live. It is a big step “.

Hampton had an inconsistent season with the Breakers, playing in just 15 games, during which he averaged 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists, primarily as a starting point guard.

He threw the ball just 40 percent off the ground, 30 from beyond the arc and 68 from the free throw line, and his assist numbers were low as well.

“I would never have thought of a million years ending up in New Zealand, but looking back and seeing how much progress I made as a player and as a person, I am so glad I did.

“I think the life experiences and the basketball that was played there in New Zealand are just going to benefit me so much.”

Since returning to the United States in February, Hampton has trained every day, getting stronger in the gym and working hard on his jump shot and his game in general.

He has worked closely with four-time NBA All Star point guard Penny Hardaway, the Memphis Tigers varsity head coach, and former 17-year NBA veteran Mike Miller.

They had been invaluable in sharpening areas of his game leading up to the draft.

“What we’ve been focusing on with Penny is being a smart point guard and getting the readings right. Those different IQ things.

“With Mike, we have focused on my jump shot. I want to be one of the best shooters in the NBA for years to come. There are a lot of great shooters out there, but Mike Miller is definitely a great resource to help you learn to shoot. “

Breakers CEO Matt Walsh predicted that Hampton would be selected in the top 10, and the Washington Wizards would take him at nine.

If that scenario played out, it would allow Hampton to develop alongside two of the NBA’s top guards, John Wall and Bradley Beal, pending off-season business developments.

Walsh believed that Hampton had the qualities of a future All-Star and described him as one of the top three or four talented players in the draft class.

“He’s got that special NBA level of speed and athleticism and that’s something you can’t teach.

“If he’s able to develop some parts of his game, I see him as that John Wall guard Russell Westbrook who can change the game in the blink of an eye. I think he’s a super talent. “

Hampton will become a millionaire overnight when called by his name. Last year’s No. 1 pick, Zion Williamson, earned $ 9,757,440 last season, while No. 10, Cam Reddish, made $ 4,245,720.

“He’s on his way to becoming a billionaire,” Walsh said.

“Back in the NBA, you make your money on those second and third contracts. You have to go out there and prove yourself.

“If he plays well and develops the way that I think he can, he will be one of those guys like [Pacers star] Victor Oladipo [who has joined the Breakers’ ownership group] earning between 3 and 400 million[overthelengthofhiscareer[andI’msurewe’lltalkaboutjoiningourgroupofownerssometimeinthenearfuture”[overhiscareer[andI’msurewe’llbetalkingabouthimjoiningourownershipgroupatsomepointinthenearfuture”[alolargodesucarrera[yestoysegurodequehablaremosdequeseunaanuestrogrupodepropietariosenalgúnmomentoenelfuturocercano”[overhiscareer[andI’msurewe’llbetalkingabouthimjoiningourownershipgroupatsomepointinthenearfuture”