Tag: 2024 NBA Draft

2024 NBA Mock Draft: Projecting the entire first round, with Bronny James outside the lottery

We have a different player at No. 1 overall than you may have expected.

With the 2023 NBA Draft in the rearview mirror, it is never too early to work on our projections for the 2024 NBA Draft.

What you’re about to read is a mock draft for a class that does not have an obvious No. 1 overall pick like Victor Wembanyama (or Cade Cunningham, Zion Williamson and Karl-Anthony Towns).

There are several prospects jockeying for the position as the top player in the class and so a year from now, this exercise may make us look silly.

But this mock draft is based on intel, research, scouting, deep data dives, and continued conversations with experts around the league. While it is not at all perfect, it has some value.

Around this time last year, for example, we correctly identified 16 out of 30 players eventually selected in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft. Meanwhile, however, 26 of the players we had projected in the top 45 heard their names called with one of the top-45 picks in the 2023 NBA Draft.

Unless noted otherwise, all data was pulled from our friends at Cerebro Sports — you can create a free account to evaluate player performance across all levels globally. We also used AI-Powered statistics provided by the Stats Perform database.

Our order was determined based on reversed odds to win the 2024 NBA Finals. The teams outside the top eight in each conference were considered lottery squads. Trades were pulled from this database at RealGM.

With all that in mind, here is how I’d project the 2024 NBA Draft:

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Xavier Booker checks in at No. 30 in USA Today’s latest 2024 NBA mock draft

Check out where Xavier Booker sits in USA Today’s latest mock draft:

Xavier Booker is one of the highest rated recruits in the Tom Izzo era of Michigan State basketball and the anticipation and hype around the prospect is growing large.

In the latest edition of USA Today’s mock draft, Xavier Booker was featured as the No. 30 overall pick, assuming the 5-star prospect will be a one and done in East Lansing.

Booker’s stock will only rise as he continues to get acclimated to Michigan State.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on Twitter @Cory_Linsner.

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2024 NBA mock draft: Who’s projected to go to the OKC Thunder

Thoughts on the Thunder’s projected additions in next year’s draft?

The 2023 NBA draft is history. The Oklahoma City Thunder enjoyed a quiet night, adding two rookies to their roster. The Thunder selected Cason Wallace at No. 10 and Keyontae Johnson at No. 50.

Next year promises to be more eventful. The Thunder could own four first-round picks:

  • Thunder first-round pick
  • LA Clippers first-round pick
  • Top-four protected Houston Rockets first-round pick
  • Top-10 protected Utah Jazz first-round pick

As is tradition, ESPN published its first mock of the 2024 class the day after the draft. In this exercise, the Thunder only owned two draft picks — their own at No. 15 and the Rockets’ at No. 5.

Who did Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo have OKC select?

At the No. 5 pick, the Thunder came away with 19-year-old Kentucky guard Justin Edwards. At the No. 15 pick, the Thunder selected 18-year-old Oregon forward Kwame Evans.

Edwards is a five-star wing from Philadelphia. Evans is a five-star wing from Maryland. In this mock, the Thunder passed on selecting Jalen Williams’ brother Cody. He went No. 6 to the Jazz.

If the Thunder have the No. 5 pick via the Rockets, that would be a huge win and an extra talent boost to their young core.

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USC has two players in top 20 of USA TODAY Sports 2024 NBA draft projections

Are these early projections? Of course. Yet, it’s still notable that #USC has two projected top-20 picks. Bronny isn’t in the lottery, but he’s close.

The 2024 NBA draft is already a hot discussion topic now that the 2023 draft is history. Where will USC star Isaiah Collier and media magnet Bronny James land in next year’s draft? These are questions people want answers to, or at least early forecasts so that they can measure expectations this coming season.

USA TODAY Sports’ Jeff Zillgitt has an early set of 2024 NBA draft projections. He has Isaiah Collier going at No. 4 and Bronny James going at No. 20.

You will note that 247Sports had Bronny James at No. 27 on its NBA draft big board for next year. Zillgitt has Bronny seven spots higher. This all plays into a larger reality we noted a few days ago: Bronny is definitely not going to be a prospect whose predicted range is settled and stable, at least not in the early stages of the college basketball season. Part of the reason for this is that he won’t be the central figure on this USC team; Collier and Boogie Ellis will have more central roles.

Bronny won’t be asked to do everything for the Trojans. If he can be a “3 and D” guy, who hits catch-and-shoot triples and defends well on the wings, that will be a great contribution to the Trojans. NBA scouts and evaluators might see weaknesses or incomplete elements in his game, but that is to be expected. Bronny doesn’t have to be Superman; he just needs to do what Andy Enfield and his USC teammates require. If he can meet that standard, trust us: He’s going to get some respect on draft night one year from now.

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This Gator selected in first round of USA TODAY Sports’ 2024 mock NBA draft

It’s been a couple of years since a current Gator was selected in the NBA draft. Will next season snap the schneid?

The 2023 NBA draft is now in the rearview mirror after the 77th edition of the annual event took place on June 22. Unfortunately for Florida basketball, it was the second consecutive year that the program failed to have a former player drafted straight out of the university.

The last time a Gator was picked in the draft was in 2021 when Tre Mann was selected in the first round at pick No. 18 by the Oklahoma City Thunder. Then in 2022, Andrew Nembhard — who had transferred to Gonzaga prior to going pro — was taken in the second round at No. 31 overall, while another former transfer, Keyontae Johnson, also went in the second round of the 2023 draft at No. 50 overall.

With all of that now officially in the books, USA TODAY Sports’ Jeff Zillgitt quickly turned around with his mock draft for the 2024 selection process. This time, a future former Gator made the cut with [autotag]Riley Kugel[/autotag] getting taken at No. 24 overall in the first round. The team who will own that pick has still yet to be determined.

Kugel, a rising sophomore out of Dr. Phillips in Orlando, Florida, averaged 9.9 points per game during the regular season in 2023 while stepping up in Southeastern Conference Tournament play with a 12.6 scoring average — the highest by a Gators freshman since Bradley Beal in 2011-12. Earned also SEC All-Freshman honors thanks to his superlative play at times, including back-to-back 20-point games making him the first since Kenny Boynton (2009-10) to achieve that feat.

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Bulls select 7-foot Duke center in early 2024 NBA mock draft

In a recent way-too-early 2024 NBA Mock Draft, the Chicago Bulls select a seven-foot center with their lottery pick.

The 2023 NBA draft just wrapped up, and despite not having any picks heading into the night, the Chicago Bulls made some noise. They traded into the second round, nabbing pick No. 35 from the Washington Wizards and selecting Tennessee forward Julian Phillips. Then, after the night was done, they signed undrafted free agent center Adama Sanogo of UConn to a two-way contract.

Now, heading into the league year, the Bulls will shift their focus to competing for the postseason. Arturas Karnisovas stated he has no intentions of rebuilding the roster. While they may not try to rebuild, staying afloat in a packed Eastern Conference could prove a tough feat.

In ESPN’s way-too-early 2024 NBA mock draft, the Bulls land the 10th pick, putting them out of the playoff race. With the selection, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo have Chicago selecting Duke center Kyle Filipowski.

Filipowski just wrapped up his freshman year with the Blue Devils and is headed back to school for a second season, during which he will attempt to improve his draft stock.

In his first year in college, the seven-foot big man appeared in 36 games (starting all of them), averaging 29.1 minutes per contest. He averaged 15.1 points, 9 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game on 44.1% shooting from the field and 28.2% from behind the 3-point line.

If, by this time next year, the Bulls decide they are ready for a rebuild, it’s safe to assume that Nikola Vucevic would not be a part of those plans. In that case, Filipowski could slot in as the Bulls’ starting center on a young, rebuilding roster.

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Boogie Ellis, Bronny James and Isaiah Collier should give USC 3 top-50 NBA draft picks

Kentucky will likely have three top-50 picks at the 2024 #NBADraft. A few other schools will, too. #USC should be one of them.

We can hold out hope that Bronny James will come back for a second season at USC, but we certainly shouldn’t expect that outcome. LeBron James will want to play with his son in the NBA, and with the clock ticking on LeBron’s career, he will want to make that a reality sooner rather than later. The odds suggest — if not flatly indicate — that Bronny will be a one-and-done player at USC, even if he isn’t a lottery pick.

If we accept that one likelihood as the eventual outcome, USC will have three top-50 picks at the 2024 NBA draft, barring any injuries.

Bronny James — currently projected to be a late-first-round selection — would be joined by projected top-five pick Isaiah Collier and returning star Boogie Ellis. In a Pac-12 loaded with quality draft talent, USC should have a bundle of good players for NBA teams to choose from.

Boogie Ellis is not currently projected to be a first-round pick, but he has a situation at USC in which he will get every possible opportunity to develop his game and display his skills in one-on-one matchups. He won’t get double-teamed very often with Collier and/or Bronny on the floor at the same time.

This accumulation of draft talent is precisely why USC is Pac-12 analyst Jon Wilner’s choice as the preseason No. 8 team in college basketball. USC has a real chance to win a first conference championship since 1985 and make its first Final Four since 1954.

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The current majority opinion on Bronny James’ 2024 NBA draft position

Hint: Analysts don’t think Bronny is a lottery pick, but they also think he’s better than a mid-second-rounder.

The USC Trojans have a galaxy of stars as they enter one of the most anticipated basketball seasons in school history.

The Men of Troy have two basketball stars who will generate a ton of media attention this coming season: Isaiah Collier and Bronny James. Boogie Ellis will be a player to watch as well, but Collier and Bronny will get most of the media’s focus and air time once the 2023-2024 college basketball season begins.

Travis Branham of 247Sports produced a way-too-early 2024 NBA draft big board. Bronny James slots in at No. 27 after rising from a No. 33 spot in a previous set of projections. There is no question Bronny brings talent (and the name), but he has some things to work on this coming season:

“He’s a talented shooting guard prospect with a college-ready body, impressive athleticism, terrific feel and instincts for the game and able to make shots from three. However, he hasn’t had the most productive or consistent high school careers but the production and impact have been becoming more consistent towards the end of his senior year,” Branham wrote.

Bronny is hitting a number of draft boards as a late-first-round pick. That seems to be the majority view as of June of 2023. We will see how much that position changes over the next 12 months.

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Bronny James’ NBA draft position is unlikely to remain stable

Wherever Bronny James lands on the #NBADraft board, don’t expect his projected spot to stay in the same range of 3 to 5 picks.

Let the 2024 NBA draft speculation begin, now that the 2023 NBA draft is over. Few players’ draft positions will receive as much discussion or speculation as Bronny James of USC. Few analysts think he will rise to the level of a lottery pick, but he will have a chance to make his statement with the Trojans this coming season.

The bigger point about Bronny applies to other 2024 NBA prospects as well: Their positions on the projected draft board are not likely to be stable or fixed. Where they stand now, and where they stand in November or December, might not match where they will eventually land next June.

ESPN NBA draft analyst Jonathan Givony explained:

“New players will undoubtedly emerge both in the college ranks and around the globe, and unlike in previous years, there are rare opportunities for less-heralded players to move into the top-five portion of the draft,” Givony wrote.

“In comparison, our 2023 mock draft a year ago correctly predicted four of the top five picks who eventually heard their names called Thursday (similar to what we saw in 2022 and 2021), something we don’t expect to happen for 2024.

“G League Ignite and the Australian NBL are becoming increasingly important evaluation platforms in the NBA scouting world, as evidenced by the fact that six of the top 25 players projected to be drafted are signed there currently, including the top-two players in our mock draft, who are slated to play for Ignite.

“Expect there to be significant movement as unknown players emerge and other, more highly regarded prospects inevitably stagnate or drop as they are heavily scrutinized throughout the season by NBA scouts.”

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We might have just seen how Bronny James will find an NBA team in the 2024 draft

Bronny is represented by Klutch Sports, which helped create a specific outcome for another client at the 2023 #NBADraft. This might be a preview.

If you are interested in Bronny James’ NBA career after he leaves USC basketball, there are a lot of questions and plot points to consider.

Many people who cover LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers are firmly convinced that LeBron wants Bronny to enter the NBA sooner rather than later, ensuring that LeBron can play in the NBA alongside his son while he is still a reasonably good player, before advancing age erodes LeBron’s skill and before the threat of injury looms larger.

It’s not a guarantee, but if you put 10 LeBron experts or insiders in a room, most of them would tell you Bronny James is likely to turn pro after one year at USC, even if he won’t be a lottery pick. LeBron wants a shorter timeline, not a longer one. That’s the basic explanation.

With that in mind, we might have seen at the 2023 NBA draft how Bronny James’ entrance into the NBA might be orchestrated.

Klutch Sports represents LeBron James. LeBron’s close friend Rich Paul is the CEO of Klutch Sports. LeBron’s longtime association with the agency gives Klutch Sports a lot of clout and pull within the NBA. We saw this clout on Thursday.

It’s true that Kentucky Wildcat draft prospect Chris Livingston had a disappointing night in terms of draft selection. His advisers told him he would go in the top 45. Instead, he slid to No. 58, the last pick in the draft. However, Klutch — per reporting from Shams Charania of The Athletic — called various NBA teams and told them not to pick Livingston late in the second round, because a back-channel arrangement had already been made with a specific team, which turned out to be the Milwaukee Bucks with that No. 58 pick.

One could make an educated, informed guess and say that at the 2024 NBA draft, Klutch will create a similar agreement with a team instead of letting any NBA organization pick Bronny James. The particulars of how the deal might go down might differ on a granular level, but the larger reality of engineering a specific route and destination for Bronny on draft night is a reasonable bet at this point.

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