2021 NBA Draft

[Almond2Oak]

are we getting a college basketball season this year?

Yes... 11/25 start date... will be bubbles everywhere. Exciting times

Do we really expect college kids to stay in a bubble and not see anyone.

The athletes, yes, rumor is Chicago&Omaha for B1G. Will be very interesting because the NCAA absolutely needs CBB & Tournament or they will 100% collapse.

[Marcus]

Yes... 11/25 start date... will be bubbles everywhere. Exciting times

Do we really expect college kids to stay in a bubble and not see anyone.

The athletes, yes, rumor is Chicago&Omaha for B1G. Will be very interesting because the NCAA absolutely needs CBB & Tournament or they will 100% collapse.

Which for the business of it I'm absolutely ok with but I'd hate for the kids to suffer.

[EMG518]

Do we really expect college kids to stay in a bubble and not see anyone.

The athletes, yes, rumor is Chicago&Omaha for B1G. Will be very interesting because the NCAA absolutely needs CBB & Tournament or they will 100% collapse.

Which for the business of it I'm absolutely ok with but I'd hate for the kids to suffer.

These are college kids you are asking to forgo their college life in order to play a sport said colleges will make billions from and the kids wont see a dime of. Do you also think these kids will adhere to the restrictions of the bubble. I imagine they will want to see friends, girls, go out, go to parties etc.

[Almond2Oak]

The athletes, yes, rumor is Chicago&Omaha for B1G. Will be very interesting because the NCAA absolutely needs CBB & Tournament or they will 100% collapse.

Which for the business of it I'm absolutely ok with but I'd hate for the kids to suffer.

These are college kids you are asking to forgo their college life in order to play a sport said colleges will make billions from and the kids wont see a dime of. Do you also think these kids will adhere to the restrictions of the bubble. I imagine they will want to see friends, girls, go out, go to parties etc.

There won’t be parties, girls, friends... by the time CBB starts. Schools all over country will be empty. This is when colleges will send all students home for an even longer winter break that doesn’t get kids back till Jan. Will it work? Doubtful due to the fact you’re now implying student-athletes aren’t normal given they’re not leaving, being stuck in a bubble in a random city... with no compensation.

[Almond2Oak]

Frank Kepnang is now eligible for 2021 draft. #27 prospect in 2021 class. He can enroll early at UO. Literally no O game but just another name in this class.

[EMG518]

So is this shaping up to be one of those all time drafts as far as strength. The freshman class is very intriguing and there are some guys returning I would take towards the top of the draft this year.

[clyde21]

this is my favorite returning class in a while

[MemphisX]

It is go time.

[amcoolio]

This is a perfect draft for Charlotte to tank and add one of these point forwards to LaMelo Ball, or Green, or Mobley. Just getting in the top 5 is golden in this draft.

[CalL]

Who are the best international prospects in this draft? Garuba and ...? Banchero?

[clyde21]

Who are the best international prospects in this draft? Garuba and ...? Banchero?

Usman Garuba
Roko Prkacin
Moussa Diabate
Malcolm Cazalon
Arturs Zagars
Carlos Alocen
Ariel Hukporti
Mojave King
Makur Maker
Ibou Dianko Badji
Kai Sotto


Banchero is in 2022 class

[CalL]

Who are the best international prospects in this draft? Garuba and ...? Banchero?

Usman Garuba
Roko Prkacin
Moussa Diabate
Malcolm Cazalon
Arturs Zagars
Carlos Alocen
Ariel Hukporti
Mojave King
Makur Maker
Ibou Dianko Badji
Kai Sotto


Banchero is in 2022 class

What about guys like Ayayi, Jokubaitis, Wagner, Schoormann, Sylla, Begarin, Krejci, Grant, Tshiebwe, Dante, Bassey, Petrusev or Faye? Any opinion on them?

[clyde21]

Who are the best international prospects in this draft? Garuba and ...? Banchero?

Usman Garuba
Roko Prkacin
Moussa Diabate
Malcolm Cazalon
Arturs Zagars
Carlos Alocen
Ariel Hukporti
Mojave King
Makur Maker
Ibou Dianko Badji
Kai Sotto


Banchero is in 2022 class

What about guys like Ayayi, Jokubaitis, Wagner, Schoormann, Sylla, Begarin, Krejci, Grant, Tshiebwe, Dante, Bassey, Petrusev or Faye? Any opinion on them?

i'm not including guys like Ayayi, Tshiebwe, Bassey, Wagner, Dante cuz they're playing in the NCAA, don't consider them 'international guys' at this point

Krejci just got draffted in the 20 class btw

and yes Sylla and Begarin etc. belong on the list I gave you just didn't list everyone, but sounds like you already knew about them so not sure what your are asking now

[CalL]

Usman Garuba
Roko Prkacin
Moussa Diabate
Malcolm Cazalon
Arturs Zagars
Carlos Alocen
Ariel Hukporti
Mojave King
Makur Maker
Ibou Dianko Badji
Kai Sotto


Banchero is in 2022 class

What about guys like Ayayi, Jokubaitis, Wagner, Schoormann, Sylla, Begarin, Krejci, Grant, Tshiebwe, Dante, Bassey, Petrusev or Faye? Any opinion on them?

i'm not including guys like Ayayi, Tshiebwe, Bassey, Wagner, Dante cuz they're playing in the NCAA, don't consider them 'international guys' at this point

Krejci just got draffted in the 20 class btw

and yes Sylla and Begarin etc. belong on the list I gave you just didn't list everyone, but sounds like you already knew about them so not sure what your are asking now

Because i wanted to know how other people rate those players. Who could possibly be drafted in the first round and how would other people rank those players? Doesn't Diabate also play college?

I didn't know about Krejci. I am not sure whether it would have been better for him to drop out and try to get drafted in the first round next year. Many of the european guys who get drafted in the 2nd round never even make it to the NBA.

[clyde21]

What about guys like Ayayi, Jokubaitis, Wagner, Schoormann, Sylla, Begarin, Krejci, Grant, Tshiebwe, Dante, Bassey, Petrusev or Faye? Any opinion on them?

i'm not including guys like Ayayi, Tshiebwe, Bassey, Wagner, Dante cuz they're playing in the NCAA, don't consider them 'international guys' at this point

Krejci just got draffted in the 20 class btw

and yes Sylla and Begarin etc. belong on the list I gave you just didn't list everyone, but sounds like you already knew about them so not sure what your are asking now

Because i wanted to know how other people rate those players. Who could possibly be drafted in the first round and how would other people rank those players? Doesn't Diabate also play college?

I didn't know about Krejci. I am not sure whether it would have been better for him to drop out and try to get drafted in the first round next year. Many of the european guys who get drafted in the 2nd round never even make it to the NBA.

Diabate hasn't played in the NCAA yet, when he is, i'd probably remove him from my list (same with Maker), but you're more than welcome to include him on yours it's just my rule not yours.

[Upperclass]

Jalen Green is far and away the best player in this class imo and probably best within the past 8 years (since AD)

[Sea2003]

After watching the top 15-ish players in this class I've finally come up with my power rankings. Now, unlike most of you guys, I'm not basing these rankings on their play during HSnecessarily but on potential. While a guy like Mobley might have played better then a like Johnson, I'm more willing to believe a guy like Johnson's skills will translate much better. Now, without further ado here it is:

Cade Cunningham
- I usually don't tend to make assumptions about how good a player can be in HS, but Cade is different. Cade's a 6'7 point forward/guard with a unique combination of passing, handling, and touch. Despite being 17 years old, Cade has shown himself to be an elite passer as well as general in the PNR. Also, he's shown the ability to be an elite off-ball defender as well as on-ball. However, will that being said, the one thing that concerns me about cade is his aggressiveness, particularly when he's scoring the ball. does he have the determination to drop 40? Can he generate a bucket at ease? I see Cade a high ceiling high floor type of player. Worst case scenario, he averages 21/7/6 while being an inconsistent shooting.

Jonathan Kuminga
- Kuminga's a 6'6-6'8 slashing forward who can score the ball in a multitude of ways. He can take the ball to the rim or pull of a mid-range. One area I think he's very underrated in is his passing. Kuminga has displayed the ability to be a good passer especially when he's on the fast break or driving to the paint. He's gotten away with his size considering that he's bigger than most kids his age. He relies a lot on the bully ball when he's been in the paint causing him to take a lot of bad shots. He also tends to take a lot of bad shots. It'll be interesting to see how that part of his game develops. All in all, Kuminga's a high upside player with the potential to be a 2-way monster at the next level.

Jalen Green
- I've been tempted to give Green the #1 spot for a while now partly because of his combination of transition scoring and shooting which makes him a nightmare to deal with. Green excels in the transition where he usually runs full steam ahead to the basket. What's interesting is that both Edwards and Green have a lot of similarities. He's not a very good shooter beyond the arc and seems to take a lot of bad shots. Both he and Edwards seem to have a lot of similarities mainly being their lack of vision when they're in the paint( although Green did improve a lot from last year). Green's prone to having lapses defensively where he usually stops trying. However, that's probably due to the fact that he has to carry his team on offense a lot. I don't think he'll ever a great on that side of the ball, unfortunately. With that being said though, Green's a very talented prospect with the potential to be the best in his class.

Zaire Williams
-One of my favorite players this year, Zaire's a 6'8 forward with a high IQ who shines at making plays. He's shown the ability to knock down jumpers as well as create for his teammates. One thing that I really really like about Zaire is that he never stops moving. He's always moving by curling off-ball screens and cutting backdoor to the basket. Unlike most 5 star prospects, Zaire is very unselfish and is always looking to make the better play. He's also a very good defender with good lateral quickness giving him the potential to be a shutdown defender in the NBA. I wouldn't be surprised if Zaire went top 3 next year.

Jalen Johnson
- Probably the most intriguing prospect this year, Jalen Johnson has one of the biggest upsides in this draft. Johnson seems like a lesser version of Ben Simmons. Jalen's a 6'8 point forward with tremendous playmaking abilities as well as elite rebounding. He excels best in the transition as well as in the open court. What I like about him is that he doesn't try to force the issue by taking a lot of three's or contested shots.Now, I'm basing this ranking on the hope that he's going to improve he's shooting( say 33% from 3) and that he continues flashing his playmaking abilities. However, though, Jalen will need to improve his motor as he seems to take a lot of plays off on the defensive side of the ball.
Usman Garuba
- In a draft oozing with talent and potential, Garuba's ceiling seems to be set. You know what he is and what he isn't. As a PF/C, Garuba shines most on the defensive side of the ball where he's a ferocious rebounder as well as blocking shots. One thing to note about Garuba is that he doesn't look to score very often based on what I've been seeing. Ideally, Garuba can be a C in the modern NBA similar to Wendell Carter.

BJ Boston
- Some of you may be surprised at Boston's low ranking. Now, with Boston there's a lot of variables i don't know. This ranking is based on the fact. Besides his shooting, a lot of his game is centered around getting to the hoop. Will he be able to get to the paint with ease like he did in HS? Will his frame hinder some parts of his game? These are all things I'm not sure of. However, though, It wouldn't surprise me if Boston balls out and goes top 5.

Scottie Barnes
-Barnes is a versatile forward that can play the point. He's like Draymond green but with better handles. He's able to run the point mostly in transition making him a very lethal player. On the defensive side of the ball, he's great at block shots and challenging them. If Barnes can develop a shot he can become.

Evan Mobley
- If I was assessing Mobley on his HS play alone, he could warrant a top 3 ranking. However, I'm going to need to see Mobley play in college before I make any type of assumption about him. He won't be able to bully guys in the paint as he did in HS. He's struggled to score in traffic quite a bit causing me to believe he won't very good in that area in college. He also doesn't call for the ball enough. One thing I like about Mobley is that he's very mobile for his height. I think for Mobley to be considered a top 3 pick, he'll have to change his playstyle to someone like a Siakam or Giannis because of his thin body. However, though, Mobley is still talented enough to be a lottery pick next year.

Guys I need to see more of before making a conclusion: Nix, Clarke. Suggs, Springer, Keon, Love, Christopher,etc.

This class may be the deepest and talented class I've seen in a while. Most of these guys( Clarke, Sugges, Zaire) Would go top 7 in any normal draft. It’s a class that features a lot of high-end positions. This draft is shaping up to be one of the best ones in years

[clyde21]

21 class is definitely the most exciting class for me in a while, but it's actually super exciting because of all the sophs and jrs that returned, probably my favorite returnee class in a while

i am focusing on the PF group right now, and this might be early, but this might be the best group of PFs we've seen (at least since I've been following the draft)...which the NBA sorely needs right now

[karkinos]

watching brandon boston mixtape gets me hyped for this season

[MemphisX]

Yeah, this board is going to be fun this draft cycle.