Stint in China makes it hard tell how good Mudiay is

So how good is Emmanuel Mudiay?

NBA fans are scouring for game tapes and scouting reports for more information of this draft mystery man. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound point guard is projected as a top-five pick in the June 25 draft, and could go as high as third to the 76ers.

But his ability has come into question based on his decision to play professionally this past season in China instead of honoring a commitment to play at Southern Methodist.

The level of competition in the Chinese Basketball Association is considered questionable. And the fact that he played in just 12 games - 10 in the regular season - for the Guangdong Southern Tigers, due to an ankle injury, gave scouts a small sample size to judge.

But Mudiay still believes he has learned a lot from taking the one-year, $1.2 million deal to play in China.

"I got out of it what I wanted," said Mudiay earlier this week at the NBA draft lottery in New York. "It definitely was a great experience. I wanted to do it for my mom at first.

"But after I made the decision and made sure she was financially stable, I just wanted to go on and pursue it, a basketball mind-set. It can definitely help me out" in the NBA.

The 19-year-old averaged 18.0 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 1.6 steals in a league that was tougher than he expected.

One of the things that stood out to Mudiay was the "physicality" of going up against "grown men."

"Actually the first game I played was against Beijing [Ducks] with Stephon Marbury and you know I was getting clotheslined and I was getting pushed all over and I didn't get any calls," he said. "After that, I decided you know what, I'll approach it a different type of way.

"So that second game, I bounced back and had a real good game."

Now the Congo native, who moved to Dallas in 2001 to escape a war, is focused being an impactful NBA player.

He describes himself as a "leader" and a "determined guy."

"Whatever the coaches need to do and whatever my team needs me to do in that particular time, I'm going to try to get the job done as much as I can," Mudiay said. "And winning is the main thing for me. I just love to win."