2024 NBA Draft Thread

[Jamaaliver]

2nd Round Draft Prospect
He seems like a Quin kind of kid. Hard nosed, unselfish, high BBall IQ.

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[Jamaaliver]

Candidate for a 2-way contract next season.
He's Kyle Korver reborn as an NCAA Champion.

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[Jamaaliver]

I'm real leery of this kid. I think he needs another year or two at the collegiate level.

What do you guys think?

[Jamaaliver]

Name to watch in the late first round:

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[Jamaaliver]

Buzelis looking pretty polished in the Rising Stars Games.

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[Jamaaliver]

He lacks top end athleticism, but his scoring/passing/shooting means he could be a solid role player off the hbench.

Feels like a solid 2nd round option.

(He needs to lose weight.)

Draft Riser: Dillon Jones | Wing | Weber St

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19.3 PPG - 9.9 RPG - 4.9 APG

Dillon Jones had a chance to enter the 2023 NBA Draft as a second-round pick but opted to return to Weber State for his senior season. This decision seems to have been the right one, senior, as Jones has played himself into the first round and possibly the lottery. Jones likely won't be a star on the next level, but he's shown to be a potential high-quality utility player.

Immediately what stands out about Jones is his strong frame of 6'6 235lbs and how well he uses it. Jones loves to bully defenders into the paint and finish strong, as shown by his high at-the-rim field goal percentage of 59.4. As a result, Jones gets to the line frequently, where he shoots 84%. Although Jones has a high FT percentage, he hasn't proven himself as a consistent outside shooter and is hesitant at times from beyond the arc. Additionally, Jones flies for rebounds, as he is second in the Big Sky for RPG and has the third-highest DREB% in the entire NCAA at 32.7%.

His strength advantage carries to the defensive side as he is a sturdy defender who is switchable on wings and guards, an extremely important trait for NBA wings. With the way Jones has played, don't be surprised if he is this year's mid-major prospect darling.

Hoops Habit

[Jamaaliver]

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[King Ken]

Name to watch in the late first round:

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Guys like him are the king of moving up the draft board once the process really starts. High IQ, shot tendency around 40-45, Big wing size, Herb Jones category.

[King Ken]

I think Tyler Kolek's best comp is Jarrett Jack with extremely limited foul-drawing ability and similar playmaking to Brevin Knight

[King Ken]

He lacks top end athleticism, but his scoring/passing/shooting means he could be a solid role player off the hbench.

Feels like a solid 2nd round option.

(He needs to lose weight.)

Draft Riser: Dillon Jones | Wing | Weber St

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19.3 PPG - 9.9 RPG - 4.9 APG

Dillon Jones had a chance to enter the 2023 NBA Draft as a second-round pick but opted to return to Weber State for his senior season. This decision seems to have been the right one, senior, as Jones has played himself into the first round and possibly the lottery. Jones likely won't be a star on the next level, but he's shown to be a potential high-quality utility player.

Immediately what stands out about Jones is his strong frame of 6'6 235lbs and how well he uses it. Jones loves to bully defenders into the paint and finish strong, as shown by his high at-the-rim field goal percentage of 59.4. As a result, Jones gets to the line frequently, where he shoots 84%. Although Jones has a high FT percentage, he hasn't proven himself as a consistent outside shooter and is hesitant at times from beyond the arc. Additionally, Jones flies for rebounds, as he is second in the Big Sky for RPG and has the third-highest DREB% in the entire NCAA at 32.7%.

His strength advantage carries to the defensive side as he is a sturdy defender who is switchable on wings and guards, an extremely important trait for NBA wings. With the way Jones has played, don't be surprised if he is this year's mid-major prospect darling.

Hoops Habit

Because NIL, trainers, and players understand what's needed in the NBA, college development is massively better than 10 years ago, there are so many better basketball players today than in 2014. That said, there is still a limit on great basketball players and finding NBA starters but NBA-level players are becoming plentiful. Women's college basketball is still struggling with the transition while men's seem to adjust and we are seeing better draft classes due to this.

I am posting 2005 NBA draft but look at most classes from 2000-2010. It's legit bad pro prospects getting drafted yearly in the 2nd round. Some in the 1st round.

https://tankathon.com/past_drafts/2005

Today, it's hard to get drafted and not be a good hooper who could play at this level in time.

[Jamaaliver]

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1. Zaccharie Risacher | 6-8 wing/forward | 19 years old | JL Bourg
2. Alex Sarr | 7-1 big | 19 years old | Perth Wildcats
3. Nikola Topić | 6-6 lead guard | 18 years old | Crvena Zvezda
4. Cody Williams | 6-8 wing | 19 years old | Colorado




10. Atlanta Hawks

Dalton Knecht | 6-6 wing | 23 years old | Tennessee


I’m not sure we’re recognizing the extent to which Knecht is obliterating the SEC. He’s scoring at a staggering pace for this level. In his 12 SEC games so far, Knecht is averaging 25 points while shooting 50.2 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from 3. He’s grabbing 5.3 rebounds and dishing out 2.3 assists. For the season, he’s averaging 20.1 points per game on 48 percent from the field, but those stats are dragged down by a stretch where he played at less than 100 percent following an ankle injury at North Carolina. If you remove those games, Knecht is averaging nearly 25 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.1 assists, which would make him a clear All-American.

He should be, regardless. Everything he does offensively should translates to NBA settings. He is a terrific shooter but is also a high-end athlete who can sky in transition and finish inside using legitimate hang time in the air.

The issues come on defense. Knecht is rough around the edges on that end and consistently makes errors that lead to problems for Tennessee. But I tend to buy into these late bloomers, especially those who can really shoot and possess legitimate NBA athleticism. Knecht’s range is somewhere No. 10-20 for scouts right now.


19. Atlanta Hawks (via SAC)

Jared McCain | 6-3 guard | 20 years old | Duke

McCain was seen as a potential one-and-done entering the season, but a slow start gave pause for evaluators as they waited to see exactly where he’d settle in. The good news? McCain has settled in nicely as one of the best freshman scorers in all of college basketball.

Since Duke’s Dec. 9 game against Charlotte, McCain is averaging 16.6 points and 5.1 rebounds over his last 17. He’s hitting 41.3 percent of his more than six 3-point attempts per game and is also consistently getting into the lane either in transition or off closeouts. Scouts very strongly believe McCain will end up as a high-level shooter even by NBA standards, and the name Seth Curry comes up in a reasonable amount within conversations.

The key will be continuing to impact the game in other ways beyond just the offense. He rebounds well for a small guard and generally makes good decisions. But there isn’t much margin for error for him in either of those capacities given that he’s 6-3 and doesn’t have a ton of length.

[Jamaaliver]

Solid role player. Epitome of a 3 & D guard.

Devin Carter | 6-3 guard | 22 years old | Providence

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Carter is one of the best players in college basketball this season, point blank. The son of former NBA point guard Anthony Carter, Devin was terrific last year at Providence after transferring from South Carolina, but his leap this season has been different. Carter has always been a terrific defensive player, rightfully nominated as a semifinalist for National Defensive Player of the Year. He is aggressive at the point of attack and has elite off-ball defensive instincts.

But where the real jump has come is on offense. Long a questionable shooter, Carter has hit 40.5 percent of his nearly seven 3-point attempts per game. Shooting something of a moon ball that arcs high in the air before falling, he’s hitting shots at volume at a level that is hard to ignore on his way to 19.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. The idea here is a 3-and-D guard who can do a little bit more than that.

The Athletic

[Jamaaliver]

This guy is a true homerun swing. Huge potential but with no high level basketball under his belt, it's really impossible to know what to expect long term.

Is he the next Giannis or the next Thon Maker?

Ulrich Chomche | 6-11 big | 18 years old | NBA Africa Academy

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Another one of the high-upside potential swings in this class, Chomche is at the NBA Academy in Africa. Scouts got to see him up close at the G League Showcase in December, where he showed off the tremendous tools that have built his stock. At 6-11, Chomche moves fluidly and has good feet that allow him to slide around defensively as well as run the court offensively. Plus, with his 7-4 wingspan, he displays strong shot-blocking instincts on the interior. The real game-changer, though, is the jumper. Chomche has a ways to go, but the ball comes out of his hand fluidly and displays the kind of touch necessary to be a floor-spacing five.

Chomche is extremely raw. He’s clearly still learning the nuances of the highest levels of hoops as he gains more experience playing against tougher competition. There is a real consideration that he might end up going to college and using that as a bridge between the Academy and the NBA. Scouts will get an opportunity, in all likelihood, to see him at Nike Hoop Summit, where they can evaluate him in a bit more detail and decide if the 2024 draft is a distinct possibility. I’m putting him here now because scouts are telling me he’s a legitimate name to know for this class.

The Athletic

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Ja’Kobe Walter | 6-5 wing | 19 years old | Baylor

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Walter has been a bit up and down this season, averaging 14.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. A lot of his struggles have to do with his inconsistent shooting. Walter has always been known as a solid marksman going back to high school, but he’s made just 32.9 percent of his 3s so far this season and just 25 percent in his last 11 games. If that part of his game turns around as expected, Walter is a good investment. He’s an athletic, 6-5 wing who can be run off movement into tough shots. He rarely makes mistakes, has strong feel for the game and plays well within a team concept.

There’s a split about Walter’s overall upside? Most scouts don’t see him as a star, but they disagree on whether he’s a starter long-term or more of a rotation player. Evaluators who believe he’s closer to the latter, such as a few team scouts, may have him more in the No. 15 range. Those who buy into his shooting and think he can improve his shaky defense could even see him landing in the top six. This ranking splits the difference.

The Athletic