Tag: Evan Mobley

Evan Mobley’s double-double leads USC past Drake in the first round

Freshman star Evan Mobley and the USC Trojans outlast the Drake Bulldogs, 72-56, to move on to the round of 32 to face the Kansas Jayhawks.

Last season, the USC Trojans’s were led by freshman big man Onyeka Okongwu, who was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 6 pick in the 2020 NBA draft.

This season, the Trojans find themselves led by another freshman big man. Evan Mobley, consensus top-5 pick in the 2021 NBA draft, helped lead the Trojans to a 23-7 regular season record this season, despite losing in the semifinals of the Pac-12 tournament.

In today’s first round matchup in the NCAA Tournament against the 11-seed Drake Bulldogs, Mobley and the 6-seed Trojans dominate the second half to outlast Drake in their 72-56 victory to move on to the round of 32. Mobley finished the game with 17 points on 7-of-15 from the floor with a game-high 11 rebounds and 3 blocks.

Evan’s older brother, Isaiah, finished with 15 points and 5 rebounds for the Trojans.

The Trojans will take on the 3-seed Kansas Jayhawks on Monday.

[mm-video type=video id=01f15d9kgfk06kbt57 playlist_id=01f09kz5ecxq9bp57b player_id=01eqbvq570kgj8vfs7 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01f15d9kgfk06kbt57/01f15d9kgfk06kbt57-c70f480efe0823285862368cf74709f2.jpg]

2021 NBA Draft Big Board 2.0: Top prospects playing in March Madness

This includes some names to watch in the men’s tourney.

March Madness is set to begin, which means for college basketball fans, it’s the most wonderful time of the year. But it’s also one of the busiest times for scouts and executives around the NBA.

Last season, the men’s NCAA Tournament was canceled due to COVID-19, which makes the stakes even higher for those involved in this year’s event. It will be a fascinating few weeks of basketball, all unfolding in Indiana, and the games are sure to further illuminate who may be most worth targeting in the 2021 NBA Draft.

But in addition to the spotlight of college basketball fully underway, we have now also seen the entirety of the 2021 G League season. That included the inaugural campaign for the Ignite, a pathway to the NBA for top talents who sought an alternative to the NCAA. Their exciting playoff run taught us more about prospects including Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga.

So with those results in mind, and with the college basketball postseason on the horizon, we have ranked the Top 100 prospects most likely set to make the jump to the NBA next season.

Our methodology for the rankings includes conversations with folks around the league, learning the general consensus surrounding a player, as well as a deep dive into stats and game film.

To put everything in perspective, we have also included everyone’s previous ranks from our last update, published on Jan. 22. This helps show whether a player is trending up or trending down and also helps illuminate how much can change in just two months of action.

As the madness begins during the men’s NCAA Tournament, follow along to see how these players are performing, as many will make a case to move up or down once the nets are cut on Apr. 5, 2021.

2021 aggregate NBA mock draft 3.0: Checking in before March Madness

Which future NBA players will be playing during March Madness? Who have been the best players on the inaugural G League Ignite squad?

Which future NBA players will be playing during March Madness? Who have been the best players on the inaugural G League Ignite squad?

These are the kind of questions that many basketball fans are asking right now, especially if their favorite team is projected to have a lottery pick in the 2021 NBA draft.

Now that the NCAA tournament is on the horizon, and as the G League Ignite’s first year nears the end of the regular season, players have started separating themselves as potential top picks.

So in order to get a better sense of where all of the prospects stand right now, we compiled mock drafts from ESPN, NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo, The Athletic and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win to see where the prospects rank at the moment.

Since our last update back in December, these are the players who have improved the most: Kai Jones (Texas), Sharife Cooper (Auburn), Taevion Kinsey (Marshall), Moses Moody (Arkansas), Jalen Suggs (Gonzaga), Davion Mitchell (Baylor), Nah’shon Hyland (VCU) and Corey Kispert (Gonzaga).

Below are the full rankings based on the latest mock drafts from top analysts and experts.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

2021 NBA Mock Draft 2.0: Latest updates before March Madness

This mock should provide an update, if the season ended today, on the talent that could be available when your favorite team is on the clock.

We’re rapidly approaching March Madness and top prospects like Jonathan Kuminga have started their long-awaited season, which means the 2021 NBA draft finally has some more clarity.

Even though it took a while for us to see the G League Ignite in action, the bubble season is underway in Florida, giving us a more confident assessment of the full class. Meanwhile, in the NCAA, enough of the regular season has eclipsed to extract meaning from a larger sample size of scouting.

Despite the unusual circumstances surrounding the collegiate season due to the ongoing pandemic, this class has multiple players that project as potential stars. Remember, though, this class is incredibly fluid.

This mock should provide an update, if the season ended today, on the talent that could be available when your favorite team is on the clock.

For more information on many of the second-rounders, as well as some sleepers that were not included in this mock draft, I expanded in my big board published late last month.

The main difference from the big board is that this mock factors intel, team fit, front office philosophy and roster construction. For example, there are more international players included here because I’m projecting teams with surplus picks will select draft-and-stash players rather than roster four or five rookies next season.

This draft order, which factors in trades and pick protections, was pulled from the latest Tankathon update following the games on Feb. 11.

All relevant statistics are from BartTorvik.com, KenPom.com, Sports-Reference, RealGM and Synergy Sports Tech. Data is accurate as of February 11, 2021.

2021 NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Who are the top players to know?

While the college basketball season has been strange, we have a more clear idea of which top prospects are expected in the 2021 NBA draft.

While the college basketball season has been strange, we have a more clear idea of which top prospects are expected in the 2021 NBA draft.

Unfortunately, putting together a big board at this point in the year is an incomplete task. The inaugural NBA G League Ignite team, a new developmental team that plays exhibitions and is meant to serve as an alternative to college for some players, has not yet begun their season.

That makes it impossible to track development for top prospects like Jonathan Kuminga and Jalen Green as well as potential risers like Isaiah Todd and Daishen Nix.

While there are some honorable mentions included for some fringe prospects, several names (e.g. Duke’s DJ Steward, UNC’s Caleb Love, Texas Tech’s Terrence Shannon, Miami’s Earl Timberlake) were omitted on account of projected returns to the NCAA. As of right now, however, it is still a great challenge to predict who will be in this class.

The key to this draft is fluidity and being willing to accept that things will change quickly. Players will have slumps and some may be slow to adapt to the new normal. Rankings now are hardly reflective of where they will be as we get closer to March Madness.

Note that any conversations with NBA scouts mentioned in the article were held under the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on behalf of their teams.

All relevant statistics are from BartTorvik.com, KenPom.com, Sports-Reference, RealGM and Synergy Sports Tech. Data is accurate as of January 22, 2021.

2021 aggregate NBA mock draft 2.0: How has the NCAA season changed rankings?

Now that the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball season is underway, we are getting a more clear picture of the top prospects in the upcoming class.

Now that the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball season is underway, we are getting a more clear picture of the top prospects in the upcoming class.

Former top recruits like Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley and Jalen Suggs have made a great first impression and have confirmed why many already feel they are going to be solid future professionals in the NBA.

Of course, considering the unusual nature of the college basketball season, some players are struggling a bit more than others. The performance on the court will likely stray closer to the mean with a larger sample size as the year continues.

But to get a better sense of where everyone stands right now, we compiled mock drafts from ESPN, NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo, The Athletic and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win to see where the prospects rank at the moment.

We highlighted the prospects who have been the biggest risers since we published our last edition of this exercise.

College basketball standouts who have most drastically improved their draft stock through the early parts of the season include Keon Johnson (Tennessee), James Bouknight (UCONN), Jared Butler (Baylor), Corey Kispert (Gonzaga), Day’Ron Sharpe (UNC), Aaron Henry (Michigan State), Ayo Dosunmu (Illinois), Marcus Bagley (Arizona State), Moussa Cisse (Memphis), Charles Bassey (Western Kentucky), Jason Preston (Ohio) and Luka Garza (Iowa).

Below are the rankings based on the latest mock drafts from top analysts and experts:

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

2021 NBA Mock Draft: Predicting all 60 picks, starting with Cade Cunningham

Now that the 2020-21 NCAA Men’s Basketball season is in full swing, we examined what the 2021 NBA draft class is shaping up to look like.

Now that the 2020-21 NCAA Men’s Basketball season is in full swing, we examined what the 2021 NBA draft class is shaping up to look like.

Consider this an introduction to the top players in college, as well as those on the inaugural NBA G League Ignite team, a new developmental team that plays exhibitions and is meant to serve as an alternative to college for some players. We’ll also look at international prospects who are playing abroad.

Due to the ongoing pandemic, this is going to be an unusual season for all hopeful pros. The bizarre offseason made it hard to get in the swing of things and some may struggle early as they adjust accordingly. As they already have been, games will inevitably be postponed or outright canceled.

Even in a normal season, a mock draft this early is a bold move. With these circumstances in mind, our mock draft is obviously going to look very different from how the actual night will shake out next offseason.

But it does offer a general starting range to encapsulate where the top prospects may be selected if they draft were held now. It also gives some insight on the kinds of players who may be available when your favorite team is on the clock.

The draft order was determined by projected wins from ESPN’s Kevin Pelton, whose projected real plus-minus has “outperformed” the over-under figures from Las Vegas since 2015. Pick swaps and trades were pulled from the future draft picks section on RealGM.

Note that all conversations with NBA scouts mentioned in the article were held under the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on behalf of their teams.

All relevant statistics are from BartTorvik.com, KenPom.com, Sports-Reference, RealGM and Synergy Sports Tech. Statistics for 2020-21 college basketball freshmen were calculated from their most recent AAU season via Open Look Analytics.

See where ESPN’s latest 2021 NBA mock draft has USC’s Evan Mobley

ESPN already released a mock draft for the 2021 NBA draft, and incoming USC freshmen Evan Mobley came in at No. 3 overall.

Even though the 2020 NBA draft has yet to occur, despite college basketball’s season ending abruptly in mid-March, the mock draft machine is still churning, this time focusing on the class of 2021.

ESPN is the latest to produce a 2021 NBA mock draft, based on a yet-to-be-played college (and NBA) season.

While it may seem silly to start that process so early, it does give fans and analysts an opportunity to hone in on certain players who are expected to be big time guys during the upcoming college season.

For USC, that will include incoming freshman Evan Mobley, the immediate replacement for last year’s star freshman Onyeka Okongwu.

Mobley comes in at No. 3 on ESPN’s 2021 mock draft, just behind Cade Cunningham of Oklahoma State and Jalen Green, who is headed to the G-League.

Mobley joined the Trojans as the No. 3 recruit in the country, drawing comparisons to Lamarcus Aldridge for his length, athleticism and overall skill.

He will be a high-impact player for the Trojans this season, and should be enough to power them into the NCAA tournament despite losing a lot of talent from last year’s squad.

[lawrence-related id=10633]

G League approached top prospect Evan Mobley

USC signee Evan Mobley had also been previously approached by the G League with “an awesome package,” sources told 247Sports. The Temecula (Calif.) Rancho Christian big man is the No. 1 prospect in the nation — the first time USC has ever signed the country’s top recruit — and expected to be the cornerstone of the Trojans’ 2020-21 roster following the departures of five seniors and likely top 10 pick Onyeka Okongwu.