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SALT LAKE CITY — Sophomore center Jakob Poeltl could be on an NBA roster along with former teammate Delon Wright instead of playing at the collegiate level. Poeltl, though, abandoned a potential first-round draft opportunity to stay at the University of Utah in hopes of improving his game.
That decision is starting to pay off for Poeltl as one of the nation's best dynamic 7-foot centers coveted by many Division I teams. No longer is he off balance in the post and playing out of his game when an opponent ups the level of physicality. Now, he's immovable, smarter with the ball, and aggressive in his quick motions to the basket or in his road-blocking defense.
The decision to come back for Poeltl is undoubtedly helping his draft stock rise as NBA scouts begin to see the improved transformation in his game in just a year's time. Although evident in nearly every game this season, Poeltl took another step forward in his dismantling of in-state rival BYU where he scored 26 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and had five blocks.
It's not that the stat line was impressive — it was — it's how Poeltl did it against BYU that shows his growth and potential. Utah established the post game early and forced BYU to address his size and overall ability to post up on smaller opponents like Corbin Kaufusi and Kyle Davis. Neither ultimately had an answer for Poeltl's quick shot over the top or burst toward the basket.
On the defensive side of the ball, Kaufusi failed to get one rebound and was plagued with foul trouble for much of the game in his attempt to stop Poeltl. Once BYU collapsed and attempted to negate Poeltl's offensive threat with a double-team, he became a sort of decoy that opened up the pass around the arc for multiple 3-point baskets.
"We all know how good Jakob is," teammate Kenneth Ogbe said after the game. "He's an NBA guy and that's where the ball has to go. He opens up the floor for us. We get open threes because of him. He's an NBA guy and our most important player."
"Jakob does a nice job in the post. They played him straight up for a number of possessions tonight and he did exactly what he needed to do: he slowed down," head coach Larry Krystkowiak said. "In the couple of occasions where they did double him, he did a great job of finding some shooters. Overall it was a pretty solid performance. It's a great opportunity to learn."
As the so-called "most important player" on Utah's roster and one with an NBA skill set, Poeltl has become an above-average offensive player in the Pac-12 as one of only four players since 1995 — Arizona State's Ike Diogu in 2003-04 and 2004-05, USC's Shareef Abdur-Rahim in 1995-96, and USC's Ryan Anderson in 2007-08 — to average over 21 points per game as a forward or center.
In seven games this season, Poeltl is averaging 21.3 points and 10.4 rebounds, which easily makes him the best big, statistically, in the conference and in the nation in terms of scoring among the so-called power conferences. LSU's Ben Simmons, who has caught the nation by storm, is averaging 19.9 points and 14.9 rebounds.
Speaking statistically again, Poeltl is the most efficient player in the Pac-12 and the fifth most efficient player in the country, second in the Pac-12 in field goal percentage (67.1 percent) and tied for 28th in the country, second best in the Pac-12 in rebounds and 21st in the country.
In Poeltl's first seven games last season, he only averaged 12.0 points and 9.6 rebounds, which is expected for a freshman learning to adapt to the collegiate level. While still a great season and a rumored first-round pick in last year's draft, Poeltl only averaged 11.6 points and 5.3 rebounds in his last seven games of the year.
"I care about (stats) a little bit, just because I want to play at my best. I'm really just trying to help the team to win as many games as possible," Poeltl said. "If the best thing for me to do is to get 20 points and 10 rebounds every night, then that's what I'm going to do. If it's screen for guys and get other guys open, that's what I'm going to do to help this team win games.
"Obviously it's been a good season for me thus far and I've just got to keep it going now and keep on that level and maybe add to it," he added.
In many projections, Poeltl is a lottery pick near the 10th pick for next year's NBA draft. But if he maintains his level of play from the first seven games through the remainder of the season, it's likely Poeltl will continue to improve his stock as NBA teams see his emerging talent. As for Utah, it's another reminder that the Runnin' Utes will go as far as Poeltl takes them as the team's leader.
