Nate Ament, Tennessee - 2026 NBA draft - The edge of the lottery

[BlazersBroncos]

What is one thing this kid does well? He has size and a good handle and people go crazy. His frame is narrow and he’s not a good shooter. None of what he does translates to being a good basketball player. It’s laughable this kid has hype

He has great size and mobility for a true 6'10. His shot is a WIP but he gets to the line at a great rate (And generally when attacking from the wing, more impressive at 6'10 than getting post FTa at 6'10).

He is a total project but has some skills. Reminds me of Osumane Dieng in a way, not so much the tools but the necessary development and high bust potential. Still a lotto pick, just hard to find guys his size that are true wings (That and this draft is mid after the Top-4 - good depth, but the 1st group to 2nd/3rd/4th group is a huge drop off - great top, mid middle, nice depth especially if you need a big)

[ReggiesKnicks]

What is one thing this kid does well? He has size and a good handle and people go crazy. His frame is narrow and he’s not a good shooter. None of what he does translates to being a good basketball player. It’s laughable this kid has hype

He has great size and mobility for a true 6'10. His shot is a WIP but he gets to the line at a great rate (And generally when attacking from the wing, more impressive at 6'10 than getting post FTa at 6'10).

He is a total project but has some skills. Reminds me of Osumane Dieng in a way, not so much the tools but the necessary development and high bust potential. Still a lotto pick, just hard to find guys his size that are true wings (That and this draft is mid after the Top-4 - good depth, but the 1st group to 2nd/3rd/4th group is a huge drop off - great top, mid middle, nice depth especially if you need a big)

Yeah he is a total project with few projectable skills but an incredible canvas.

It is why he is a 2nd half of the lottery type pick. He could bust like Dieng.

Jonathan Kuminga is another player who was incredibly raw but had good physical tools.

I think the selling point for Amen is his length/size coupled with fluidity and a handle. He definitely could bust though.

[Chuck Everett]

What is one thing this kid does well? He has size and a good handle and people go crazy. His frame is narrow and he’s not a good shooter. None of what he does translates to being a good basketball player. It’s laughable this kid has hype

He has great size and mobility for a true 6'10. His shot is a WIP but he gets to the line at a great rate (And generally when attacking from the wing, more impressive at 6'10 than getting post FTa at 6'10).

He is a total project but has some skills. Reminds me of Osumane Dieng in a way, not so much the tools but the necessary development and high bust potential. Still a lotto pick, just hard to find guys his size that are true wings (That and this draft is mid after the Top-4 - good depth, but the 1st group to 2nd/3rd/4th group is a huge drop off - great top, mid middle, nice depth especially if you need a big)

Yeah he is a total project with few projectable skills but an incredible canvas.

It is why he is a 2nd half of the lottery type pick. He could bust like Dieng.

Jonathan Kuminga is another player who was incredibly raw but had good physical tools.

I think the selling point for Amen is his length/size coupled with fluidity and a handle. He definitely could bust though.

If you draft him, he's probably playing a quarter to half the season in the G-League. I honestly have no clue where he will be selected. He has put on weight since arriving at Tennessee, which is a good thing, but now he looks like he lacks athleticism.

I still believe staying in school another year and dominating to show everyone exactly what he does "well" as azcats said, would go along way to helping people project the kind of player he could become.

[ReggiesKnicks]

He has great size and mobility for a true 6'10. His shot is a WIP but he gets to the line at a great rate (And generally when attacking from the wing, more impressive at 6'10 than getting post FTa at 6'10).

He is a total project but has some skills. Reminds me of Osumane Dieng in a way, not so much the tools but the necessary development and high bust potential. Still a lotto pick, just hard to find guys his size that are true wings (That and this draft is mid after the Top-4 - good depth, but the 1st group to 2nd/3rd/4th group is a huge drop off - great top, mid middle, nice depth especially if you need a big)

Yeah he is a total project with few projectable skills but an incredible canvas.

It is why he is a 2nd half of the lottery type pick. He could bust like Dieng.

Jonathan Kuminga is another player who was incredibly raw but had good physical tools.

I think the selling point for Amen is his length/size coupled with fluidity and a handle. He definitely could bust though.

If you draft him, he's probably playing a quarter to half the season in the G-League. I honestly have no clue where he will be selected. He has put on weight since arriving at Tennessee, which is a good thing, but now he looks like he lacks athleticism.

I still believe staying in school another year and dominating to show everyone exactly what he does "well" as azcats said, would go along way to helping people project the kind of player he could become.

I agree.

I think his floor is in the draft is Charlotte/San Antonio (Late Lotto to teens). Both could use a lengthy wing prospect to bring along.

[FarBeyondDriven]

What is one thing this kid does well? He has size and a good handle and people go crazy. His frame is narrow and he’s not a good shooter. None of what he does translates to being a good basketball player. It’s laughable this kid has hype

how much hype do you think he has? I haven't heard of definitive top 10 chatter. So if he's a late lottery/mid-1st pick that's reasonable given his size and production no? That's around where similar guys like Murphy III, Eason, Hendricks, Clowney, da Silva, and Newell went.

[CptCrunch]

Nate Ament thinks he is Kobe with this shot chart. Probably the most garbage shot selection in college for a NBA prospect.



He reminds me of Cam Reddish, basically the same profile. Hot and cold, crappy efficiency, basically the same counting stats, a bit better across the board, but close enough. High ranked recruit with crappy college year.



He is the 8th most impactful player on his team by his raw RAPM.



He is a draft and stash project. Work on that ego, shot selection. He'll likely be better than Reddish in the league.

[ReggiesKnicks]

Nate Ament thinks he is Kobe with this shot chart. Probably the most garbage shot selection in college for a NBA prospect.



He reminds me of Cam Reddish, basically the same profile. Hot and cold, crappy efficiency, basically the same counting stats, a bit better across the board, but close enough. High ranked recruit with crappy college year.



He is the 8th most impactful player on his team by his raw RAPM.



He is a draft and stash project. Work on that ego, shot selection. He'll likely be better than Reddish in the league.

All your image links are broken (for me).

Cam Reddish is high praise for a prospect. Cam is one of the most talented prospects of recent times, but lacked work ethic and never truly developed his shot.

If you are saying Ament could be like Cam Reddish, but then actually develop his shot and being able to self-reflect, that's a hell of an NBA player.

[CptCrunch]

Nate Ament thinks he is Kobe with this shot chart. Probably the most garbage shot selection in college for a NBA prospect.



He reminds me of Cam Reddish, basically the same profile. Hot and cold, crappy efficiency, basically the same counting stats, a bit better across the board, but close enough. High ranked recruit with crappy college year.



He is the 8th most impactful player on his team by his raw RAPM.



He is a draft and stash project. Work on that ego, shot selection. He'll likely be better than Reddish in the league.

All your image links are broken (for me).

Cam Reddish is high praise for a prospect. Cam is one of the most talented prospects of recent times, but lacked work ethic and never truly developed his shot.

If you are saying Ament could be like Cam Reddish, but then actually develop his shot and being able to self-reflect, that's a hell of an NBA player.

Probably ISP blocking catbox.moe image hosting. Try this link - http://vstatball.com?s=03ed77, click on his name, see same stats.

[tontoz]

On the season he is shooting 43.5% on 2s. That is a big red flag for someone that size.

[JMAC3]

What is one thing this kid does well? He has size and a good handle and people go crazy. His frame is narrow and he’s not a good shooter. None of what he does translates to being a good basketball player. It’s laughable this kid has hype

I think a lot of his issues are fixed by getting stronger. He was an elite high school player on his skill level and facing guys similar strength, but since coming to college he has struggled with teams playing more physical with him. That hasn't really hurt his confidence though as he is an attacking player who draws a lot free throws.

He also improved a lot during SEC play this year, averaging 19 ppg, 6 boards 37% from three and 8 FTA at 80% during that span.

I think he is a big guard at the next level like a Brandon Miller, Ace Bailey, Risacher type.

[CptCrunch]

This guy has a lot of green flags. Don't let him fall too much due to college play. He has incredible upside in production.

Nate Ament is an ultimate buy low for potential player.

[tmorgan]

This guy has a lot of green flags. Don't let him fall too much due to college play. He has incredible upside in production.

Nate Ament is an ultimate buy low for potential player.

As long as you are willing to pay him a bunch of money for the next few years while he contributes next to nothing, sure. And you’re also going to have to give him a second contract based on potential, not production.

These things aren’t as easy to financially tolerate as they once were.

[tontoz]

He should stay in school and work on his game. I am not sure if he is even worth a top 20 pick

[Upperclass]

This guy has a lot of green flags. Don't let him fall too much due to college play. He has incredible upside in production.

Nate Ament is an ultimate buy low for potential player.

Dude is awful viewtopic.php?p=120823910#p120823910

[BigGargamel]

I've tried to give this guy the benefit of the doubt almost all season but meh, too many actual stud freshmen to waste a lottery pick on him. A 20's dart throw. Not expecting much. Guy is so soft.

[Caneman786]

Nate Ament's collegiate career is over as he scores 7 points on 25% true shooting as the 6 seed Tennessee volunteers fall to the 1 seed Michigan Wolverines in the elite eight.

The final score was 95-62.

Ament was a -31 in the game and played in 31 minutes.

His season averages come out to 16.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists (with 2.3 turnovers), 1.0 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game.

He made 43.0% of his two-point shots, 33.3% of his three-point shots, and 79.0% of his free throws.

32.2% of his shots were from beyond the arc and his free throw rate of .578. This gave him a true shooting percentage of 53.4% throughout the season.

[Caneman786]

Added a poll to the thread. Runs for 30 days.

Ament's history also added to first thread. Read below:

Ranking History:
Ranked #4 on August 30
Ranked #4 on November 2
Ranked #12 on January 5
Ranked #16 on January 17
Ranked #17 on February 21
Ranked #16 on February 27
Ranked #14 on March 18
Ranked #14 on March 26

[The-Power]

Interesting to see that I was one of his early skeptics and felt like I was swimming against the current. Now it seems like there is a lot of skepticism blowing in his direction while I have liked his development over the season. I still have my concerns and think he was overrated coming into the season, but I'd be fine with using a late lottery pick on him at this point.

[BlazersBroncos]

Interesting to see that I was one of his early skeptics and felt like I was swimming against the current. Now it seems like there is a lot of skepticism blowing in his direction while I have liked his development over the season. I still have my concerns and think he was overrated coming into the season, but I'd be fine with using a late lottery pick on him at this point.

He is a big swing with a high bust potential but if he was more consistent and not a high risk guy he would be a Top-5 pick at his size, with his handle.

I agree on late lotto. He fits seems the next in line of big raw ball of clay forwards that go in the 10-15 range - like Osumane Dieng, Matas and Noa Essengue. (FWIW - I dont like him near as much as Matas but I had him #1 on my BB that year).

Still, worth the swing. The middle of this draft is nothing speical IMO.

[tmorgan]

I think he’ll go top 15 for sure and maybe late lottery.

But given the NIL money, the (lack of) strength of next year’s draft, and his tools that haven’t translated into elite production, he’s one of the rare instances where it’s financially wise to stay in school another year. Yes, it pushes his potential big payday back a year, but he’ll make enough additional money on his rookie deal (if he goes, say, top 4 next year) to make up for that. And it’s not like he’ll be poor playing in college next year, either.

In terms of development, what would be better? Getting featured in college or getting shuttled back and forth between a NBA bench and the G-League? He’s clearly not ready to be a positive contributor, and even the deep rebuild teams are going to have better offensive options for next year.

I dunno. Tough call. The team that takes him needs to be really patient, though.