3 Reasons Why Archbishop Spalding grad Cam Whitmore will succeed in the NBA

SEVERNA PARK, MARYLAND – Former Archbishop Spalding graduate Cam Whitmore surprised many by falling from a projected top five position to the 20th overall pick of 2023 NBA Draft, Thursday night. There are, however, compelling reasons to believe Whitmore, who was selected by the Houston Rockets, can shine as bright as anyone in his draft class.

The two-time Baltimore Catholic League Player of the Year dazzled Baltimore area high school basketball fans with a combination of athleticism and explosiveness during an All-American career at Spalding, which wrapped up in 2021-22. He then fought through injuries during his lone year at Villanova University where he earned Big East Freshman of the Year honors.

Whitmore became the second Spalding player to be taken in the first round of the NBA Draft, joining long-time star Rudy Gay, who was selected at No. 8 overall in the 2006 draft, also by Houston. In three high school seasons, he scored 1,252 points and collected 633 rebounds. He averaged 21.4 points and 10.6 rebounds per game as a senior. He was was also a three-time 1st-Team All-BCL pick and the Maryland Gatorade Player of the Year. He was named a McDonald’s All-American and led the East team to victory by scoring a game-high 19 points, while collecting eight rebounds, five steals and two assists.

A three-time All-Baltimore Catholic League 1st-Team selection and the BCL Player of the Year in his final two seasons, Whitmore was a McDonald’s All-American and the Maryland Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior.

Whitmore suffered a thumb injury last October which cost him more than two months of his only college season, but he rebounded to average 12.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in 25 games with the Wildcats. In the summer before college, Whitmore was the Most Valuable Player of the U.S. National U-18 team at the FIBA Americas Championship, scoring a team-high 30 points in a win over Brazil.

While his slip in the draft has created more than a few doubters for Whitmore, here are 3 reasons he can succeed in the NBA.

3. Work Ethic

Many things in the game of basketball come easily to Whitmore, but he has never shied away from working hard, a trait instilled in him by his father Myron, a retired 30-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force.

Myron Whitmore introduced his son to basketball at the age of 5 and, even though he was often deployed far from the family’s home in Maryland, he served as an example of hard work and discipline. At a young age, he forced his son to dribble with his off hand and always attack. He insisted that his son constantly compete against top competition in tough environments.

“I think Myron did an unbelievable job being a mentor, obviously father, to Cam,” Villanova coach Kyle Neptune said to the New York Post. “I think he is the one, both him and his wife Beth, that did a good job keeping him on the straight and narrow. He doesn’t have too many people around him, he really locks in with his family… I think they’ve done a great job at navigating a really tough world of basketball that we live in. It is not always easy to navigate as a high-level athlete.”

2. Physical Tools

At 6-foot-7 and 232-pounds, Whitmore has the ideal size for an NBA guard, but a lot of players have similar bodies. What sets Whitmore apart is his explosiveness. His 40-1/2-inch vertical leap was the third best at the NBA combine and his athleticism bordered on the “freakish” level during his brilliant high school career.

It is this type of talent that has propelled him to become a big-time scorer against tough, defensive minded competition in Baltimore and beyond. His combination of strength, speed and touch has made him a gift scorer at all three levels of the floor. He has a quick first step, good ball handling skills and the ability to embarrass defenders off the dribble, especially when moving to his left.

1. Motivation

Despite numerous accolades in high school and college, including two-time Baltimore Catholic League Player, Maryland Gatorade Player of the Year, McDonald’s All-American and Big East Freshman of the Year, Whitmore feels he has been often “overlooked” in his basketball career.

Sliding to No. 20 in the NBA Draft, when some projected him as high as No. 4, is the latest fuel to this perception.

Sliding “motivates me to like 150%,” Whitmore told ESPN during a post-draft interview. “I mean, I don’t even know. It’s just something to where I just got to rethink, going into the next day, new mind, free mind, come into that organization with a chip on my shoulder, and have a lot of motivation on my mind.

“But at the end of the day, it doesn’t faze me.”