Walt Lemon, a 6-foot-2 guard for the G League’s Fort Wayne Mad Ants, never saw Bol Bol’s towering frame coming.

As Lemon drove right last Wednesday, Bol left his cover, tracked the play and snatched the layup attempt with his two massive hands. The optical illusion – replays later showed it should’ve been a goaltending – was beside the point.

It was one of a handful of sequences that make you believe the Nuggets might have, once again, found something in the depths of the second round. Bol, whom the Nuggets acquired at No. 44 via a draft night trade last summer, finished with his first career double-double of 16 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks in 20 minutes for the Windy City Bulls.

At 7-foot-2, the easy dunks and intimidating swats are expected. It’s his agility and soft touch that make him an intriguing prospect.

Bol’s two-way contract allows for him to spend 45 days with the Nuggets, who are one of just two NBA franchises without a G League affiliate. While with Windy City, his task is to get stronger and gain experience as a professional.

“I thought he was very engaged because, as you know, a lot of guys who have high profiles and go down to the G League, they’re kind of looking around wondering ‘What am I doing here?’” said Mark Schanowski, who serves as the NBC Sports Chicago analyst for all Windy City home games. “I think Bol realizes that he needs to put the time in to get on-court minutes at game speed.”

His defensive acumen, boosted by his timing and size, is already apparent. After logging four blocks in his G League debut last Friday, he’s averaging 2.7 per game in just over 17 minutes through three games. As a result of surgery on his left foot that limited him to nine games at Oregon, Bol is on a minutes restriction in the range of 15 to 20 per game. Any lingering effects from his injury weren’t noticeable over his first three games.

“He was active, he was quick off his feet, he was engaged,” said Schanowski. “You can’t teach that kind of height. He’s an underrated athlete. He’s got decent lateral quickness, he’s a quick jumper. In that respect he’s kind of different from his father (10-year NBA vet Manute), who was more of a stationary guy, he wasn’t able to move his feet as well as Bol Bol does.”

Like his father, Bol has the potential to patrol the paint and impact shots that come within swatting distance. But it’s his offensive gifts, particularly his ball-handling and shooting touch, that had him ranked far higher on the Nuggets’ draft board than where he ultimately went.

In his debut against the Canton Charge, Bol received a transition pass at the top of the 3-point arc, collected, Euro-stepped and finished a smooth one-legged floater a step inside the free-throw line. In the same game, he showed off a comfortable shooting stroke that the Nuggets hope will eventually extend to the 3-point line, like it did at Oregon.

“We were watching him warm up as we were getting ready for the broadcast, and his shooting touch is something to see,” Schanowski said. “Beautiful rotation, nice arc on his shot.

“A lot of seven-footers, because of the way the league is trending, wanting the fives to go out and be able to knock down long-range jumpers are kind of forcing the shot. You can see that they don’t really have great form at that distance, it’s hit or miss. He’s got such an easy stroke from 3-point range that when he gets back to the NBA level, I think he can be a real weapon.”

How soon and to what extent is what Nuggets officials can’t help but wonder.