Tag: 2022 nba draft

2022 NBA mock draft roundup: Potential Houston Rockets picks entering February

In the latest wave of 2022 NBA mock drafts, Gonzaga big man Chet Holmgren is the most popular selection to the Houston Rockets with their own first-round pick.

As we enter February, the 2021-22 NBA regular season is well past the halfway mark and college basketball is in the middle of conference play. Thus, mock drafts are becoming more valuable to monitor.

After all, the Houston Rockets, who sit at the bottom of the Western Conference, know they have very strong odds to draft high in the first round. Moreover, the track records for many available college players are coming into better focus, since many of the top prospects are facing quality opposition on a more frequent basis.

The Rockets are currently slotted to have two first-round picks in the 2022 NBA draft: Their own, along with the better pick between Miami and Brooklyn. As of now, Houston’s pick is likely to be high in the draft, while the Miami/Brooklyn pick appears likely to be in the 20s — since both the Heat and Nets appear poised to easily make the playoffs.

As of Saturday, the Rockets (14-35) were in possession of the league’s third-worst record. Scroll on for a look at the associated draft lottery odds, if that position holds, along with prospects that recently released mocks have going to Houston with those two 2022 first-round selections.

New SB Nation mock draft sees Celtics pick up a shorter, defense-first floor general

Undersized point guards with a knack for defending are a historical focus of the Celtics in recent drafts — but will it be moving forward?

As the 2022 NBA trade deadline inches closer to arriving this Feb. 10 at 3 pm ET, attention for fans of the Boston Celtics begins to turn in the NBA media sphere towards the other primary tool used in building up teams for the future, the 2022 NBA draft.

While still many months away in the future, teams at the NCAA level and in other professional leagues are starting to get into the meat of their own respective schedules, giving us our first chunks of meaningful data to analyze where the potential prospects to populate this year’s NBA draft are at in terms of their personal development as players.

And to that end, another mock draft projecting who the Celtics might pick up in the 2022 draft has been released, this one from SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell.

Celtics add pair of G League Ignite prospects in new Rookie Wire mock draft

While most of us are focused on the trade deadline, our sister site gears up to gauge the 2022 NBA draft for Boston.

Now, with the whole of NBA fandom and analysis with their attention focused on improving teams via trade, there is not a whole lot of attention being paid to the other primary means of team building — the coming 2022 NBA draft.

But a few intrepid analysts are already firing up their mock draft engines, and editor of our sister site Cody Taylor has done exactly that, with a pair of projected picks in store for the Boston Celtics so long as they retain their picks in the 2022 draft. And while that certainly is far from a certainty given the expectations of Boston staying busy on the trade front before the Feb. 10 deadline, it would be criminal mismanagement to ignore their due diligence in the draft.

So with that said, let’s take a look at Taylor’s picks for Boston based on where they stand in terms of estimated draft order at present.

Report: Kentucky’s Shaedon Sharpe eligible to enter 2022 NBA draft

Sharpe, who just committed to Kentucky in September, is now reportedly eligible to enter the 2022 NBA draft.

Kentucky Wildcats commit Shaedon Sharpe, the No. 1 recruit in the high school class of 2022, is reportedly eligible to enter the 2022 NBA draft, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN.

Sharpe announced in September his commitment to Kentucky prior to his senior season at Dream City Christian in Glendale, Arizona. Instead of playing his senior year, he opted to graduate high school prior to the season after having the necessary credits to do so.

Because Sharpe will turn 19 in May, and will be one NBA season removed from graduating high school, he will be eligible to declare as an early-entry candidate in the upcoming draft. However, he has yet to formalize those plans.

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Sharpe opted to enroll at Kentucky this month and has practiced with the team. He has not played yet but has been seen on the Wildcats’ bench at games. The team could opt to use him soon as the Wildcats gear up for the second half of the season.

The five-star prospect, who was born in Ontario, averaged 21.4 points, six rebounds and three assists last season as a junior. He helped Canada earn the silver medal in the 2019 FIBA U16 Americas Championship, averaging 13 points per game.

With Sharpe eligible to be drafted this season, the 6-foot-6 guard could emerge as a top-five pick if he chooses to leave school. He is an athletic player that can score from all over the floor and is active on defense, traits that translate well to the next level.

This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!

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2022 NBA Mock Draft 2.0: Jabari Smith rising in latest projections of every pick

Auburn forward Jabari Smith Jr. highlighted the prospects on the rise in the latest Rookie Wire Mock Draft.

With the 2021-22 basketball season in full swing, scouts and front-office executives have had an extended look at the next wave of prospects set to enter the NBA.

Prior to the beginning of the season, Duke forward Paolo Banchero and Gonzaga center Chet Holmgren dominated the conversation atop most draft boards. However, the top of the draft looks to be changing with Auburn forward Jabari Smith Jr. emerging in a big way this season.

Rookie Wire took a look at the next rookie class and projected every pick based on the latest information at hand. Of course, with much of the season left to play, these rankings will change but here is how we see things at the moment.

Note: The order of the draft was pulled from Tankathon as of Jan. 19. The 2022 draft may only have 58 picks after the Bucks and Heat were stripped of their second-round picks by the NBA.

Could the Boston Celtics make a major move by pursuing Mavs guard Jalen Brunson?

One NBA analyst is floating the suggestion.

With just under a month to go before the arrival of the 2022 NBA trade deadline, the Boston Celtics are seen by many analysts as likely to be one of the most aggressive franchises looking to make moves this season.

And while it might not be blockbuster deals going down with the Celtics, the expectation is that Boston will be an active participant in trade calls as the month of January melts into February. One such analyst is NBA.com’s Shaun Powell, who recently placed the Celtics among his six most likely teams to be making moves this trade season in a new article.

“Do the Celtics dare trade one of their star wing players,” asks Powell, “or hold tight with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown?”

2 Alabama MBB players selected in latest 2022 NBA mock draft

These two Alabama MBB stars are expected to be drafted to the league!

Alabama has seen a few players make it to the NBA in recent seasons, under both Avery Johnson and Nate Oats. Collin Sexton has found himself a nice career in the league, while Herb Jones, Kira Lewis and Josh Primo are making their young presences felt.

As Oats brings in top talent from across the nation, it will become commonplace for Crimson Tide stars to leave the program early. Whether it be a one-and-done, a player that finds success in his sophomore or junior season or even a transfer, it will happen more often.

The latest 2022 NBA mock draft done by ESPN exemplifies two of the aforementioned examples.

In the second round, pick No. 48 overall, ESPN projects the Sacramento Kings to select senior guard Keon Ellis, who transferred to Alabama from Florida Southwestern State College.

However, much closer to the start of the draft is a true freshman being selected out of Alabama.

At No. 13 overall, the Toronto Raptors are expected to take J.D. Davison off the board.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to cover Crimson Tide basketball, as well as projections for the 2022 NBA draft and how it impacts Alabama players.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on Twitter @SpurrFM.

New B/R trade proposal sees Pacers’ Domantas Sabonis dealt to the Boston Celtics

It’s not a painless trade, but a no-brainer if you could get Indy to agree.

With most of the NBA’s players able to be traded now for the better part of two weeks, we should see the first signs of them actually changing teams soon, and with that has come increased speculation regarding what it might take for players to actually be traded now that leaks of what various franchises are looking for is percolating to the surface.

With the Indiana Pacers rumored to be among clubs looking to retool more so than rebuild, a package recently put together as a hypothetical by Bleacher Report’s Greg Schwartz that sees star big man Domantas Sabonis traded to the Boston Celtics might just suit the Pacers for that reason,

That it might get a two-time All-Star under 26 to the team without costing another is all the more reason to kick the tires on such a trade for Boston.

WATCH: What would it take to get the Sacramento Kings’ De’Aaron Fox to the Boston Celtics?

If Boston wanted an upgrade at the point, would Fox make sense? And what would it likely take?

The Boston Celtics need to make changes to move closer to being a true contender, and many analysts believe the missing piece for the team is a true floor general in the mold of a Rajon Rondo or Bob Cousy.

One such prospective trade target is De’Aaron Fox of the Sacramento Kings, who has hinted at the prospect of a change for himself as well.

What would it take to get Fox to the Celtics before the end of the 2021-22 NBA trade deadline? Is there a path to convince the Kings what Boston has on its roster and in its coffers is worth swapping for in a deal that could conceivably make both teams better off in the long run?

The hosts of the CLNS Media podcast “Celtics Beat” Adam Kaufman and Evan Valenti recently dived into such a debate with guest Sean Deveney of Heavy.com, weighing the pros and cons of such a proposition against its plausibility.

Watch the clip embedded above to see their perspective on what it might take to get such a deal done, and whether it makes sense for the Celtics.

This post originally appeared on Celtics Wire. Follow us on Facebook!

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Do the Gators have any 2022 NBA draft prospects?

Take a look at our 2022 NBA draft prospects on the current Florida basketball roster.

During the 2021 NBA draft, the Gators saw two of their players — Scottie Lewis and Tre Mann — selected by pro teams. Both now playing in the G League for their respective clubs, Florida basketball has restocked its cupboards and has yet to lose a basketball game in their non-con schedule.

As this team finds its identity and virtually the entire college basketball season still lays before us, it is a bit too early to speculate heavily about the 2022 NBA draft. However, could the Gators have any players involved in the draft process at all this season? Most of the big-time recruits Mike White has brought into the program have moved onto other opportunities and none of the remaining players, though successful in college, have drawn much attention from the draftnicks.

Let’s take a look at some of the pillars of this roster and examine what they have to offer a pro team and what they’d have to improve to get a genuine chance at the next level.