Hard lessons for Cam Whitmore in what might be his lone season at Villanova

Let’s get the most important thing out of the way, because it bears repeating over and over: Cam Whitmore is 18 years old and won’t turn 19 until July.

The 6-foot-7 Villanova freshman is an adult, but in so many ways, he’s just a kid navigating his first season playing college basketball with NBA draft lottery expectations hanging over every move he makes like a cloud.

He arrived at Villanova — recruited by Jay Wright as one of the highest-rated prospects in program history — as most 2023 NBA mock drafts slotted him in the top 10, especially after his MVP performance for Team USA in the U18 FIBA Americas championships.

Whitmore entered the 2022-23 season slated to be Villanova’s first real one-and-done since Tim Thomas.

And based on most mock drafts, that reality still is the most likely one. They still project Whitmore to go in the lottery, and most have him inside the top 10, some even in the top five.

But the path hasn’t been perfect. Whitmore acknowledged some difficulties this season, saying last week that his time at Villanova has been “a struggle, to be honest.”

“He probably came in with one of the craziest surroundings and all the hype … that can get in someone’s head,” said veteran Villanova forward Brandon Slater. “With all of that coming at you, he’s handled that really well. I don’t know if me, as a freshman, I could handle it like that.”

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Whitmore, who missed the first seven games with a thumb injury, made his debut and impacted the game in an early-December win over Oklahoma, scored 21 points against Penn and had a highlight-reel dunk (the first of many) in his second game, then went for 19 in a win over Boston College. Those represented some of the early highs.

There have been lows, too. Whitmore looked out of sorts and shot just 3-for-10 with three turnovers in 19 minutes in a narrow win over St. Joseph’s. He looked overmatched at times — six points on seven shots and three fouls in 22 minutes — in a tough road environment in a loss to Connecticut. That game provided Whitmore with his “welcome to college basketball” moment, he said Thursday. It happened when he drove to the basket and had his shot attempt swatted by UConn junior Andre Jackson.

Then, after being the Wildcats’ best offensive player in the first half vs. Marquette at home, Whitmore turned it over a few times early in the second half and was seemingly benched over the final seven minutes while Villanova struggled to score.

“Put in Whitmore!” fans shouted at coach Kyle Neptune.

Whitmore again looked outmatched at times Friday night at Madison Square Garden in what turned into a sloppy, physical Big East game. Star lottery pick? He was just one of the guys, making two baskets on 10 shots while turning it over four times in a 57-49 win against St. John’s.

In the five games before that, however, Whitmore played 31.8 minutes per game while averaging 15 points and grabbing 3.6 rebounds and 2.0 steals. He shot 10 of 20 from beyond the three-point arc and 53% from the field in the four games before Friday.

It had been his best stretch, but Villanova hadn’t beaten a team not named Georgetown during it.

So, where do things stand with Whitmore, and how do we evaluate whether his 13 games have been a success for Villanova — and him — or not?

Allan Ray spent a lot of his youth playing against older competition, including in pickup games on New York City playgrounds. But when Ray started practicing with his Villanova teammates as a freshman in 2002, all it took was one hard screen to separate his shoulder.

“The thing that stands out most is the physicality,” said Ray, who played one season with the Boston Celtics before spending more than a decade playing professionally overseas. “You’ll go to the lane, and your opponent is so much stronger than you. They can snatch the ball out of your hands.”

Even Whitmore, at 232 pounds, has had some adjusting to do. The Big East is chock-full of experienced players.

Neptune called Whitmore a “young 18 years old.” Whitmore missed most of Villanova’s summer workouts while with Team USA and then was injured in the weeks leading up to the season. While Villanova is 20 games into its season, Whitmore has barely hit the midway point when it comes to practices and games.

“I feel like Cam is a raw talent that isn’t really seasoned yet,” said Ray, who watches every Villanova game and relays his thoughts via Twitter. Ray said he’d like to see Whitmore improve his off-ball defense and slow down a little more.

There have been NBA flashes, though. Plenty of them. Ray acknowledged one on a basket Whitmore didn’t even make. It was a December game against Boston College, and Whitmore split a double team with a low dribble, then got into the lane and elevated for a one-handed dunk. He was fouled, however.

“I was like, ‘Wow,’” Ray said.

Slater has seen a few of those “wow” moments this year, too.

“It stands out to you how athletic he is,” Slater said of Whitmore. “His body is just way more developed for an 18-year-old than normal or what you usually see.”

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Neptune has had more one-on-one teachable moments with Whitmore than any other player on the team. Those moments have occurred after pulling Whitmore out of a game quickly following a mistake, outside of the huddle during a media timeout, and even while Whitmore is on the floor.

That Whitmore was on the floor for defensive purposes down the stretch in a home win against Georgetown last Monday was a step in the right direction, even if it came at the expense of Neptune being booed for subbing out Whitmore for Chris Arcidiacono on offense, a move Neptune said was made to put more ballhandlers on the floor to break Georgetown’s pressure.

“There’s a lot of people in his situation that would try to make it all about themselves,” Neptune said. “I think he’s done a great job trying to buy in and learn our concepts and coming out and making his best effort to execute what we ask him to execute. That’s all we can ask of him.”

Asked to evaluate Whitmore after last Monday’s win over Georgetown, Slater said the freshman is “very selfless, and he wants to get better. He wants to win.”

That showed when Whitmore dove on the floor for a loose ball against the Hoyas. Yet it hasn’t always looked like that. Whitmore at times has looked disengaged on the court and on the bench.

Over the last few weeks, however, he seems more lively and engaged with his teammates.

“As long as you have that want, especially a talented guy like Cam, it just helps the team in so many ways,” Slater said. “His energy, his defense, his rebounding, him being active … certain stuff like that, it matters and helps a lot for a team that might not have many players because of injuries.”

The “selfless” part also included Christmas gifts, as Whitmore, who has NIL deals, gave Beats by Dre headphones to his teammates in December.

Whitmore recently said he’s not focused on his NBA draft rankings.

“I’m in college right now,” Whitmore said. “That’s a couple more months [away]. I’m learning the system and learning how to play [at Villanova].”

Asked to evaluate his game, Whitmore said he’d like to continue improving his jump shot and tighten up his handle. Whitmore has 27 turnovers compared to just 10 assists.

But even if Whitmore says he’s not thinking about it, others around him probably are. And so are NBA personnel. There have been plenty of pro scouts at Villanova games this season.

The Inquirer asked a few NBA scouts after the Georgetown game to assess where Whitmore is and how he impacted his draft stock over his first 12 games. The scouts, of course, spoke on the condition of anonymity.

“I think it’s been a tough go for him,” one wrote in a text message. “Between the injury, roster fit around him and some of his on-court habits, he definitely hasn’t helped himself. He is still very much a first-round pick but there’s not the same level of momentum that he had coming off his all-star game performances last spring.”

Another scout said Whitmore is “obsessed with scoring.”

“He’s capable, but he’s not an elite scorer,” the scout wrote. “Improved shooter. Guards the ball. Lost off the ball. Needs to pass it some. A real talent. Tad small.”

» READ MORE: Villanova’s Maddy Siegrist and Drexel’s Keishana Washington rank No. 1 and No. 2 in the nation in scoring. Here’s the reason why.

Where does he fit in the draft order?

“Draft is fluid,” that scout said. “Cam, like others, will move up and down. Never thought he was 8. 12 to 15 felt right. Maybe in June, he’s 8.”

The scout pointed to three of Whitmore’s last four games before Friday: “Zero, one, and two rebounds. Can’t happen.”

The fourth of those games, however, was the Jan. 13 loss at Butler. Whitmore took just eight shots (including the attempts he was fouled on), but he grabbed eight rebounds to go with his 12 points and three steals. He grabbed another seven rebounds Friday, after the scout’s assessment.

And in the two-rebound performance, an 88-80 loss to Xavier, Whitmore had a season-high 26 points on 11-of-18 shooting, including 3-for-7 from beyond the arc.

It’s the perfect example of where things stand with Whitmore. Even when he tried to do everything he could to will Villanova to a much-needed signature win on its home floor — scoring from deep and showing off his athleticism above the rim — he’s supposed to do more. That’s the complicated reality for a teenager taking part in a complicated Villanova season.

Colin Beazley contributed to this article.