Atop of the college basketball ranks in Alabama forward Brandon Miller, a 6-9 200 pounder that averaged 18.8 PPG, 8.2 REB and 2.1 AST on a 43/38/86 shooting split. Most mock drafts have Miller going at 2 or 3 interchanging with the G-League’s Scoot Henderson. This most recent season, Miller led the 1 seeded Alabama Crimson to the sweet sixteen proving that he has the ability to compete with some of the best young basketball talent in the United States. Miller has developed his shot at the college level and has the length and athleticism to compete with the league’s best players. There are some concerns however surrounding his involvement in the scene of a fatal shooting during the season. Miller was not charged with the murder of 23 year old Jamea Harris and the police testimony proved that he never touched the murder weapon and wasn’t even at the crime scene at the time of the murder. Regardless, Miller’s potential involvement hasn’t scared NBA scouts from potentially picking him in the top 3.
Cam Whitmore out of Villanova has also seen a recent rise in his draft stock despite Villanova having its worst season in the last decade. This year, the 232 pound 6-foot-7 small forward averaged 12.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG on 34.3% shooting beyond the arc. He is comparable to a lot of the non Wemby/Scoot players in this class with strong athleticism and shot making abilities at the wing. He also plays with enough physicality to guard the league’s taller wings despite his 6-foot-7 height. There were some ups and downs throughout his season at Villanova, but this could be blamed on the Wildcats moving on from Jay Wright. Whitmore is likely to go between 4-8 in the draft.
After Whitmore and Miller, the draft seems like it could go in a million different directions with several notable prospects in lottery projections. Jarace Walker, the 6-foot-8 PF out of Houston is one prospect that is said to be the most physically ready for NBA basketball. He can shoot the three and bang around with bigs and forwards making him the perfect 3 and D big that the league is looking for. Anthony Black out of Arkansas has also impressed scouts. He is a 6-foot-7 PG who has a strong playmaking ability averaging 12.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG and 3.9 APG. Still, he struggles with defense and has a smaller frame weighing only 198 pounds. His shot creating and three point shooting is subpar at best. Power Forward Taylor Hendricks and Small Forward Gradey Dick out of UCF and Kansas respectively are both wings that have impressed scouts with their three point shooting ability. Hendricks can defend better than DIck, but both have the frames to develop into stellar NBA forwards.
Other Notable Players:
Carson Wallace: PG out of Kentucky. 11.7 PPG, 3.7RPB, 4.3 PPG. Kentucky produces successful NBA point guards. Wallace could be next with his playmaking and defense ability.
Keyonte George: SG out of Baylor. 15.3 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 2.8 APG. Risky lottery pick. Was not a very efficient scorer at Baylor and his draft stock has been falling. Expect teams to pass on George.
Jordan Hawkins: SG out of UConn. 16.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 1.3. NBA level off ball scoring. Great three point scorer and impressed in the national tournament.
Image Citation: Photo of Brandon Miller. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/230331155142-brandon-miller-0323.jpg?c=original
