Doubters motivate Warriors’ Paschall
Rookie forward often likened to 3time AllStar
LAS VEGAS — Of his three minors at Villanova, Eric Paschall relished philosophy the most.
His favorite classes focused on taking a rational approach to everyday problems. In studying how to investigate truth, Paschall realized he had long been an optimist. Obstacles, to him, were opportunities.
Perceived slights fueled Paschall’s rise from unheralded recruit to NBA prospect. Two weeks ago, when the draft’s first round ended without his name being called, Paschall — watching with dozens of friends and family at a pub in his hometown of Dobbs Ferry, N.Y. — told himself, “Calm down, this is just another opportunity.”
Roughly a halfhour later, the Warriors took him No. 41 overall. Paschall, 22, was suddenly wellpositioned to play a key role for a team fresh off its fifth straight Finals appearance. Draymond Green — the threetime AllStar he tried to emulate at Villanova — would be his teammate.
“Of course, I was disappointed because I felt like I played well enough in workouts to be a firstround pick,” Paschall said. “But honestly, I’m just so glad the Warriors took a chance on me. This feels like an ideal situation.”
Paschall was the last of Golden State’s three draft picks, but he might have the best shot at cracking the rotation as a rookie. The Warriors’ recent signandtrade deal with Brooklyn that landed them guard D’Angelo Russell led them to part with freeagent big man Jordan Bell for salarycap reasons. With 12
of Golden State’s 15 roster spots for next season filled, Paschall is in line to be Green’s primary backup.
This is fitting, given that Paschall has been compared to Green. They’re both undersize power forwards who slipped to the second round despite productive careers at prestigious college programs. Although Paschall isn’t a passer of Green’s caliber, he is a versatile defender who subsists on hustle plays and open 3pointers.
“I understand the comparisons in terms of their physicality defensively,” said Aaron Miles, the Warriors’ summer league coach. “For me, that’s what I feel like (Paschall) has. That feel, that strong ability to guard all five positions.”
The parallels between Paschall and Green extend beyond the court. Like Green, Paschall is a master at selfmotivation. Green can still name all 34 players, in order, taken ahead of him in the 2012 draft. Six years after a national recruiting magazine ranked Paschall the 15thbest player in New York, he remembers each of the 14 players listed ahead of him.
As a freshman at Fordham, Paschall was driven to prove wrong all of the bigconference coaches who hadn’t offered him a scholarship despite accomplished stints at Dobbs Ferry High School and St. Thomas More — a prep school powerhouse in Oakdale, Conn. In summer 2015, after earning Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year with the Rams, he transferred to Villanova and immediately heard chatter about not being ready for such an elite program.
While sitting out a year with the Wildcats under NCAA transfer rules, Paschall dropped 17 pounds and trimmed his body fat percentage from 18 to 6. By his junior year, he was a core player for the national champions, scoring 24 points on 10of11 shooting in a Final Four win over Kansas.
With three starters gone from that titlewinning team, Paschall settled in as the Wildcats’ goto option last season. His 3point shooting, a weakness early in his career, was a major asset for a program that overcame a shaky start to reach the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
When Paschall worked out for the Warriors two days before the draft, they projected him to go late in the first round. His size, motor and basketball IQ gave him a chance to contribute to an NBA team immediately.
But for reasons that remain unclear to Golden State, Paschall still was available when it went on the clock at No. 41. Frustration gave way to elation for Paschall when he learned he was headed to the Warriors. Minutes later, he received a text message from Green.
“Congrats bro,” it read, “but know that this is just the beginning. You haven’t proven anything yet.”
“As soon as you’re given opportunities, you just have to take advantage of them,” Paschall said. “That’s what I’ve been trying to do my whole life, and this is no different.” Connor Letourneau is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: cletourneau@ sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @Con_Chron