NBA Combine 2016: Biggest Standouts from Day 2 in Chicago

The first two days of the 2016 NBA Draft Combine are in the books, and already we've seen a few prospects draw plenty of attention and praise for their head-turning performances.

Day 1 saw Oakland's Kay Felder earn superlatives for his 44-inch vertical leap, the second-best ever recorded at the combine. Add in his strong play during scrimmages and a Twitter shout out from Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green, and scouts are sure to be taking an extra look at the 5'9" guard's college tape. 

Kansas center Cheick Diallo doesn't have much tape to go on after one year spent mostly on the bench with the Jayhawks, but he's done very well for himself with his scoring and shot-blocking in the scrimmages.

Those were Thursday's big stars. Here's a quick look at a few players who stood out on Friday.

Michael Gbinije

Syracuse swingman Michael Gbinije isn't one of the top prospects at the combine, but he certainly had one of the top performances on Friday. Gbinije did a little bit of everything in the first of the day's two scrimmages, scoring 17 points while adding in four assists, four steals and two boards. 

His contributions went beyond the box score, as Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman noted: 

It was a continuation of a strong Thursday showing, one that started a conversation around the 6'7" Nigerian. 

"I talked to multiple coaches who liked the play of Michael Gbinije yesterday," ESPN's Jay Williams said on Friday, per Syracuse.com's Donna Ditota. 

The Vertical's Jonathan Givony listed Gbinije among his Day 2 standouts. 

Gbinije's four steals are an especially encouraging statistic, as he will have to prove to scouts he can play NBA-caliber man defense after spending his college days in Syracuse's 2-3 zone scheme. Gbinije's top marks in the 3/4-court sprint on Thursday showed he could do well in the transition game and keep up with the competition.

With performances like these, Gbinije is well on his way to convincing a team to call his name on draft night.

Ben Bentil

It's been a good two days for Providence forward Ben Bentil. After standing out as one of the most efficient players on Thursday, per Givony, Bentil impressed in the second game of Friday's scrimmages with a team-high 17 points and six rebounds. 

While Bentil could still return to the Friars, Wasserman thinks he might be pretty high up on some teams' big boards: 

Bentil's agility numbers weren't the best, but he makes up for it with toughness and tenacity on the court. It's perhaps little surprise then that he had a good meeting with Minnesota Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau earlier in the week, per the Star Tribune's Jerry Zgoda. Bentil spoke about his strong mentality after the meeting, per Zgoda:

"

They just want to learn if you’re a mature player, if you’re a player who’s ready and willing to work. That fits into their organization. That’s what he talked about a lot. He just said you’ve got to be mentally tough. When he’s talking to you and things are not going your way, how are you going to take it? But he’s a coach. That’s every coach’s mentality.

"

Bentil's Providence teammates Kris Dunn is one of the more highly touted prospects in the draft, and a lock for the first round. Bentil isn't quite at that level, but he could sneak into the first round.


Sheldon McClellan

Michael Hickey/Getty Images

Talk about making the most of an opportunity. Miami guard Sheldon McClellan was a late invite to the NBA draft combine, but he's done plenty to assert himself as a viable option in the draft. 

McClellan stood out with a 41.5-inch max vertical leap on Thursday, and then proceeded to light up the box score with 22 points in his scrimmage on Friday. 

The senior guard had a very productive career with the Hurricanes, topping out with 16.3 points per game and 40.3 percent shooting from three in the 2015-16 season. Although he wasn't initially on the combine list, McClellan was anxious to prove himself as soon as he learned he was Chicago bound, per the Miami Sun-Sentinel's Christy Cabrera Chirinos:

"

I’m embracing this. When my agent called me and told me I was in, I was very excited and very anxious. I’m just thankful for the opportunity to be here. I’m going to showcase my skills and my talent. I really can’t wait to do the drills and I feel like I can break a couple of records here. It’s a great feeling, you know?

"

McClellan is probably looking at a late-second-round pick right now, but his athleticism gives him some serious upside.