Tag: Jared Butler

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.

Tuesday Big 12 morning rush: Oklahoma facing injury bug

The latest news from around the Big 12 Conference including the injury bug biting Oklahoma and Baylor sophomore withdraws from NBA Draft.

Each morning Longhorns Wire will share the top stories from around the Big 12 Conference. For this edition of the Big 12 Morning College Football Talk and 247Sports provide the headlines.

Oklahoma linebacker Caleb Kelly has suffered a knee injury, per report

The Sooners defense lost one of their key players when he went to the NFL through the draft. Now Caleb Kelly was expected to be part of that linebacker group hoping to replace Kenneth Murray’s production. However, Sooners Wire is reporting that Kelly suffered an ACL tear that will cost him his season.

After a step back his sophomore year, former defensive coordinator Mike Stoops moved him to inside linebacker, where he ended up losing his starting role. Kelly suffered an almost season-ending injury in the spring of 2019 and played just four games in the fall.

He seemed prime for a big last year, but Kelly has reportedly been injured again during 2020 fall camp.

Oklahoma quarterback Tanner Mordecai reportedly suffers injury during fall camp

On top of the Kelly news, Sooners Wire also reported that backup quarterback Tanner Mordecai also suffered an injury. Mordecai wasn’t likely to challenge Spencer Rattler for any significant time but back up quarterbacks play a vital role and Moredecai could miss time depending on when the season actually kicks off.

The Sooners were going through a quarterback competition between Tanner Mordecai and presumed starter Spencer Rattler. The competition may have just gotten easier to figure out for unfortunate reasons.

According to a report from SoonerScoop.com, Mordecai suffered an injury during practice that won’t require surgery, but he will miss time.

Lincoln Riley has maintained that Mordecai is in the thick of this quarterback race, but missing time to the heavy favorite is not good for his potential of that.

The Waco, Texas, native came to Oklahoma in the 2018 recruiting class. He was a four-star prospect and one of the best players in Texas.

Baylor sophomore Jared Butler withdraws from draft

ESPN reported that Jared Butler has withdrawn from the NBA Draft and will return to campus for the 2020-21 basketball season.

“This decision was extremely difficult because of the relationships I’ve built in Waco, the tremendous will to win a national championship for Baylor, the unprecedented time of the coronavirus and my ultimate dream of playing in the NBA all in one equation,” Butler said. “But I think through it all I came to have great peace of mind in what I wanted to do and what’s best for me right now.”

Butler, a 6-foot-3 sophomore, was ranked as the No. 46 prospect in the ESPN 100. He averaged 16 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game for Baylor, which was projected as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament when the season was canceled. A deep tournament run would have undoubtedly benefited Butler, who had a breakout season, being named to the Big 12’s all-conference first team and a third-team All-American.

Sixers prospective draft profiles: Baylor 3-and-D wing Jared Butler

We continue our Philadelphia 76ers draft profile series with a look at Baylor 3-and-D guy Jared Butler.

The NBA is in a state where things are unknown when it comes to when the league will restart after officially suspending operations on March 11. So, it’s time for everybody to turn their attention to the draft, even though there is some hope that the league can return fairly soon.

In the meantime, we will continue our 10 part series of the most realistic draft options for the Philadelphia 76ers. Up next in the series is another 3-and-D option, similar to Saddiq Bey who was featured earlier, in Jared Butler out of Baylor.

Jared Butler, Baylor

The Sixers obviously have a lot of hope for Matisse Thybulle to become that 3-and-D guy and for good reason, but Thybulle has yet to really figure out the 3-point part of that aspect. He’s absolutely amazing on defense, but Butler could be a guy who can come in and provide a 3-point shot for this team that is desperately needed for their success.

Butler is a crafty scorer, though he does lack that explosive first step, and he is a guy who is going to get his points despite his limitations athletically. He can shoot off the dribble or off of a handoff and he projects as more of a microwave scorer off the bench. As mentioned before, the Sixers need something to count on when they turn to their bench so Butler could be that guy for them.

Defensively, he’s strong, he has good instincts, and he slides his feet out on the perimeter. It will probably be an adjustment for him in terms of the rise of quickness from guys at the next level, but he projects as a guy who can be counted on as a solid defender in the NBA.

Our sister site, Rookie Wire, has him going 28 overall to the Toronto Raptors in their mock draft:

Baylor sophomore guard Jared Butler is an underrated 3-and-D prospect who helped his team become arguably the best in the nation in 2019-20. The guard made 2.6 shots from beyond the arc per game while also grabbing 1.6 steals per game. He was accurate and prolific when shooting off the catch or off the dribble. Butler can shoot well off screens and dribble hand-offs, too. As a versatile combo guard, Butler likely can jump in as a plug-and-play option in the backcourt for almost any team in the NBA. In Toronto, he would provide depth behind Kyle Lowry. There are no reports that he has yet declared for the draft, however, which means it is possible that he returns to school. He is someone who could have very much lifted his draft stock with Baylor poised for a deep run in March Madness.

The Sixers have some decent scorers off their bench in the form of Alec Burks and Glenn Robinson III. However, both of those guys will be free agents in the offseason and there is a chance the Sixers could lose both of those guys. It is much better to be safe and take a guy like Butler who is young, a prolific scorer, and a guy who can heat up in an instant to help his team. [lawrence-related id=29291,29284,29258]