Who I Watched (3/18): Magoon Gwath, Miles Byrd, Drake Powell, Ian Jackson, Seth Trimble
Evaluating San Diego State vs. North Carolina from day one of the NCAA Tournament.
I watched San Diego State vs. North Carolina on March 18, 2025. This game was part of the NCAA Tournament’s First Four.
Here are some draft-related notes:
Magoon Gwath (San Diego St.)
BOX SCORE: 9 PTS (2/6 FG, 1/2 3P, 4/8 FT), 5 REB (1o/4d), 1 AST, 2 TOV, 1 STL, 2 BLK, 3 PF in 24 MINS
Magoon Gwath, the MWC Rookie and Defensive Player of the Year, played his first game since Feb. 22. He was returning from a hyperextended right knee and was wearing a bulky brace.
Gwath is already an interesting name for the 2025 draft, but I think he should be in no rush to get to the NBA. Maybe he can test the waters this year and get feedback, but I think another year of seasoning in college would be great. Right now, he flashes tantalizing talent blocking shots, making threes, finishing at the rim, and even putting the ball on the floor — but I’m not sure he does any one of these things at a high enough level just yet, even for the college game.
All of this was on display against Carolina, although the 7-foot redshirt freshman clearly wasn’t at full health or mobility. He made a three, attacked a couple of closeouts, and finished a putback, but that was about it on offense.
Gwath never quite looked comfortable from a physical standpoint against the Tar Heels, and that was noticeable close to the basket. He struggled creating clean looks on his post-ups, even being responsible for a pair of turnovers, and he generally played slightly out of control at the rim.
I’m very high on Gwath defensively, but he lacked game rhythm and it was evident that his knee injury was limiting him. Gwath had one nice moment where he tracked a play and ended up with a block, but he was also late contesting some drives that he’s usually more of a factor defending.
Miles Byrd (San Diego St.)
BOX SCORE: 4 PTS (1/5 FG, 0/4 3P, 2/2 FT), 1 DREB, 1 AST, 3 TOV, 2 STL, 1 BLK, 0 PF in 24 MINS
Miles Byrd ended a good season with a terrible game. It happens, but it wasn’t a great time for this against a team with NBA prospects and when college basketball is most watched. That’s not to say that a single performance should deviate from Byrd’s entire year, but those in-person impressions matter in the eyes of NBA decision makers and evaluators.
The San Diego St. prospect had an awful time with his handle from the very start of the game. He had an open avenue to the rim after getting a steal, but fumbled the ball going up and instead settled for a missed pull-up three. Things didn’t get better from Byrd after that. He couldn’t create separation off the dribble (45.2% on layups this season, per Synergy, which goes down to 42.5% on 17/40 attempts in the half-court), especially against Seth Trimble, and he kept taking and missing tough catch-and-shoots (30.1 3P% on 53/176 for the season).
Byrd had three nice moments: an off-ball rotation to stump a roll, a pass to his big out of a pick-and-roll, and a tip dunk in transition. But it wasn’t good enough. He’ll get first round looks in the draft.
Drake Powell (San Diego St.)
BOX SCORE: 6 PTS (2/4 FG, 1/2 3P, 1/2 FT), 4 REB (1o/3d), 0 AST, 2 TOV, 1 STL, 1 BLK, 3 PF in 20 MINS
I’ll use Drake Powell real quick to talk about something that drives me crazy, is easily avoidable, and is also an easy way to get yourself pulled from an NBA floor. Prospects need to stop taking wasteful dribbles in spot-up situations. Either catch-and-shoot, catch-and-drive/go, or catch-and-pass.
Instead, look at these turnovers by Powell. Maddening.
And watch the difference when Powell just gets the ball and shoots it. He's at 37.4 3P% on 34/91 for the season.
Besides those rough turnovers, I thought Powell had a solid game. He was active on defense and got some stops, and he fed off scraps decently down the other end out of spot-ups and in transition.
Ian Jackson (San Diego St.)
BOX SCORE: 9 PTS (3/9 FG, 3/6 3P, 0/0 FT), 1 DREB, 0 AST, 0 TOV, 0 STL, 0 BLK, 0 PF in 17 MINS
This game was basically a blowout for UNC throughout, so Ian Jackson got in off the bench with the green light to go get buckets.
He took six threes in 17 minutes, including four tough pull-ups. Jackson’s shotmaking talent is so natural and easy for him that it’s tough to not envision him in a microwave scoring role in the NBA down the line. Whether he can add anything else as a playmaker or defender is the question.
I also liked this defensive possession from the former OTE prospect.
Seth Trimble (San Diego St.)
BOX SCORE: 16 PTS (5/10 FG, 0/2 3P, 6/6 FT), 3 REB (1o/2d), 0 AST, 0 TOV, 0 STL, 0 BLK, 3 PF in 27 MINS
I don’t expect to have Seth Trimble in the top 60 of my 2025 big board or anything like that, but he always stands out to me whenever I watch UNC. Also, he’s a junior, so he can still explore the NBA down the line.
Trimble is a stubborn, downhill guard who comes up with those “little plays” that accrue value over the course of a game. He can also be a defensive stopper. We saw him stonewall Miles Byrd multiple times in this game.
Looking to the future, Trimble probably lacks the juice to play the 1 or the 2 in the NBA, and he isn’t even close to being big enough (6-foot-3) to play the wing. Still, he is the type of player worth inviting to your Summer League squad or having on your G League team. The UNC junior will have a long career as a pro.