In Sports Illustrated’s latest mock draft, the Oklahoma City Thunder selected two of the better Pac-12 players from this past NCAA season.
SI’s Jeremy Woo projected the Thunder will draft Zeke Nnaji, a power forward out of Arizona, with the No. 25 pick in the draft.
At pick No. 51, OKC selected Oregon point guard Payton Pritchard.
Nnaji was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year this season after averaging 16.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per game while shooting 57% from the field.
Woo wrote that Nnaji showed “some potential as an athletic stretch big who can legitimately rebound, two important skills that don’t always come in concert.”
In being named the top freshman in the conference, Nnaji beat out five Pac-12 freshmen projected to be selected higher than him in this SI mock draft: USC center Onyeka Okongwu, Washingon forward Jaden McDaniels and center Isaiah Stewart, and Arizona teammates Nico Mannion and Josh Green.
Woo said questions about Nnaji’s defense and post game is keeping him as a borderline first-rounder.
Defensively, he’s not polished or physical yet, which is where most of the nitpicking comes from right now. His post game is somewhat rudimentary, and he needs shots created for him.
At 6-foot-11 and 240 pounds, Nnaji has the potential to be a modern big if he can fill out and refine and improve his skill set.
The Thunder’s second-round pick in this mock draft was Pritchard, the Pac-12 Player of the Year and a finalist for AP’s College Basketball Player of the Year.
Pritchard led the conference with 20.5 points per game and 5.5 assists per game and had the fifth-best 3-point percentage at 41.5%.
He was a late bloomer in college, which is largely what’s holding him back in the second round. Pritchard was a starter all four seasons, but over the first three years he averaged 11.5 points and 4.3 assists per game.
He blossomed as a senior, though, and led Oregon to the best record in the conference.
Most mock drafts peg Pritchard as a second rounder, and he seems unlikely to go undrafted. Teams could do much worse than a late-draft flyer with the 6-foot-2 guard.
The Thunder had success with another Pac-12 name last offseason. Lu Dort, who went undrafted out of Arizona State, emerged as a contributor this season.
Could Oklahoma City look at the Pac-12 for more young talent this offseason?
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