[The following scouting report is part of a series on potential 2023 draft prospects from Sports Business Class alumni. Come back soon for the 2023-24 update.]

Kyle Filipowski
Frame: 7’0″ 230lbs
Position: Center
Team: Duke
Year: Freshman
2023 Draft Age: 19
Stats via sports-reference.com

Offense

Filipowski’s biggest strength is his versatility. He uses size and change of pace to slash to the rim. Filipowski is a skilled finisher with both hands around the basket, shooting 61.5 percent at the basket on 96 attempts through 17 games, per barttorvik.com. 

Utilizing jab steps and rip-throughs to get past defenders, he can put his man on his hip and use his physicality to reach his desired location. He is also a quality post scorer, using his size to punish smaller defenders on switches or playing with patience and poise against players his size,  lulling his defender asleep and spinning off them.

Filipowski isn’t an explosive athlete, which can lead to floater attempts and long, contested two-point field goal attempts. He has shown intriguing signs as a shooter, notably at the line, where he has hit approximately 80.7 percent on about 4.8 attempts per game.

His shooting and guide hand placement is good, but his release is low. That works from the line but can cause issues behind the three-point line. His lower release leads to low arc and back-of-the-rim misses. The percentages reflect where he needs to improve at 26.3 percent on 57 attempts. 

At only 1.4 assists per game, he seems to thrive on finding his teammates on the perimeter for open shots and may have untapped skills as a facilitator. He’s capable of throwing cross-court passes, clearly more than just a transition passer, pushing the ball up and finding one of his teammates filling the lane.

Defense

Filipowski is also a versatile defender, capable of playing within various schemes. He is comfortable playing in drop coverage as the big man, keeping a healthy distance between the roll man and ball handler. Filipowski can also come to the level of the ball screen and use his size to block the ball handler’s path from said ball screen. Despite his versatility, he can be attacked at times, as he is liable to be beaten in space by smaller, quicker guards due to his foot speed. Additionally, he can struggle to guard post players due to his lackluster presence around the rim.

As a help defender, Filiposwki does an excellent job navigating weak side sets and sticking with his man, rarely falling asleep from the weak side. He is even better when one to two passes away, excelling at picking off passing lanes and initiating fastbreaks for his team. He is currently averaging 1.2 steals per game with a 2.7 steal percentage which is well above average for a big man. He can struggle to get out to the perimeter to contest shooters with his footspeed mentioned above. 

Filipowski is also a strong defensive rebounder. He has good timing on the glass and uses his physicality to create space around himself to rise and grab the board, often snagging the rebound in traffic.

Rim protection is an area of growth for Filipowski, averaging 0.8 blocks per game with a 3.2 block percentage; his lack of vertical athleticism is a significant reason, as he cannot meet above-the-rim finishers at the basket to adequately contest their shots.

Looking Ahead

At 6’11, Filipowski is essentially a Swiss Army knife on both sides of the floor. Defensively able to play in multiple pick and roll schemes will provide value as a help defender and on the glass. Filipowski’s lack of rim protection does hamper his defensive upside. However, he still projects as a slight plus on that end of the floor. 

Offensively he can attack mismatches off the dribble and play in the post. He can operate with finesse and aggression when the moment calls for one or the other. Making the proper tweaks to his jump shot mechanics to be a consistent shooter from behind the arc will be essential for him to be a positive impact player on the offensive side of the ball. However, it is hard to envision him not being a versatile role player in the NBA.