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Houston Rockets rookie Cam Whitmore certainly has a much higher opinion of his game than all the teams that passed on him in the 2023 NBA Draft. After Cam Whitmore fell all the way to the No. 20 pick in the first round, he seems to believe he has what it takes to be an All-NBA-caliber player.
Cam Whitmore told The Spun that he believes LeBron James is the greatest NBA player of all time. The Rockets' first-rounder stopped short of saying he was aiming to have a career like that of James, though he set the bar high when it comes to comparing himself to a current NBA star.
“My goat is LeBron [James],” Whitemore said when asked who is the greatest player and who’s a player he likes to study. “He’s the greatest all-around player ever. My ceiling though and a great player who I think I can play like is Jayson Tatum.”
If Whitemore ends up being the next Jayson Tatum, he'll go down as one of the great draft-day steals in recent memory. The former Villanova star was expected to be a top-10 pick, at worst. He plummeted down the draft until the Rockets took him 20th, their second pick of the first round.
Houston took Amen Thompson with the No. 4 pick. The Rockets likely thought there was no chance Whitmore would be still on the board when they drafted again.
Whitemore is considered to be one of the most NBA-ready rookies. After struggling with 14 points on 18 shots in his Summer League debut, the Rockets forward scored 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting in a win over the Detroit Pistons.