Tag: Jason Preston

Did he stay or did he go? Tracking the biggest NBA draft decisions

All prospects who declared early entry for the 2021 NBA draft without foregoing their collegiate eligibility had until July 7 to withdraw.

All prospects who declared early entry for the 2021 NBA draft without foregoing their collegiate eligibility had until July 7 to withdraw.

While the official date from the league is not actually until July 19, the NCAA has mandated the deadline of July 7 for players who wish to play college basketball next season.

Prospects who declared as early entry candidates but were just “testing the waters” often opt to return to the collegiate ranks so as to improve their draft stock for the subsequent year instead. But there are several reasons why a player might be even more willing to return to college for another campaign than usual.

For example, seniors have the option to use another year of eligibility because of the massive impact of COVID-19. Others may be interested in playing another year of college in front of fans after last season was met with many restrictions.

Meanwhile, all NCAA athletes also now have the ability to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL) for the first time. This offers an avenue to collect some money while still in college without needing to fully commit to turning pro.

Here are the latest updates about who is still testing the waters, who will be turning pro and who will be returning to the NCAA.

Did he stay or did he go? Tracking the biggest NBA draft decisions

All prospects who declared early entry for the 2021 NBA draft without foregoing their collegiate eligibility had until July 7 to withdraw.

All prospects who declared early entry for the 2021 NBA draft without foregoing their collegiate eligibility had until July 7 to withdraw.

While the official date from the league is not actually until July 19, the NCAA has mandated the deadline of July 7 for players who wish to play college basketball next season.

Prospects who declared as early entry candidates but were just “testing the waters” often opt to return to the collegiate ranks so as to improve their draft stock for the subsequent year instead. But there are several reasons why a player might be even more willing to return to college for another campaign than usual.

For example, seniors have the option to use another year of eligibility because of the massive impact of COVID-19. Others may be interested in playing another year of college in front of fans after last season was met with many restrictions.

Meanwhile, all NCAA athletes also now have the ability to profit from their name, image and likeness (NIL) for the first time. This offers an avenue to collect some money while still in college without needing to fully commit to turning pro.

Here are the latest updates about who is still testing the waters, who will be turning pro and who will be returning to the NCAA.

NBA Mock Draft 5.0: All 60 picks updated after the 2021 lottery

Learn who we think will get selected with each of the 60 picks in the 2021 NBA draft.

The 2021 NBA draft order is set and the Detroit Pistons have won the lottery, taking home the No. 1 overall pick on Tuesday evening.

Of course, these projections are subject to change even over the next few days, as the NBA’s combine is currently underway in Chicago. Prospects are often able to separate themselves and improve their draft stock if they stand out during five-on-five scrimmages that will take place later this week.

Note that there are several players who are currently “testing the waters” (e.g. Texas Tech’s Terrence Shannon Jr., UCLA’s Johnny Juzang, St. John’s Julian Champagnie and Oral Roberts’ Max Abmas, etc.) that were omitted from this mock. Such players will have until midnight on July 8 to decide if they wish to return to the NCAA and improve their draft stock or remain in this class.

Unfortunately, collegiate national champion Jared Butler was omitted from our mock after news broke earlier today that he is “not permitted to play or practice” in the NBA, per The Athletic’s Shams Charania, unless his heart condition is deemed as cleared.

We will continue to release more mock drafts as we gather more intel, but until then, here is how we project the draft to shake out on July 29.

NBA combine invitations suggest who could be heading back to the NCAA

We took a look at the participant list for the NBA draft combine and G League Elite Camp to tell us who might return to their college team.

We took a look at the participant list for the NBA draft combine and G League Elite Camp to tell us who might return to their college team.

While there is nothing final about our projections, now that those lists are finalized we know the names of the most notable players who have declared for the draft without foregoing their collegiate eligibility.

These prospects, who are all classified as “testing the waters” at this point, are the ones facing the toughest decision for their pro future but may have more clarity now than they did during the college basketball season.

2021 NBA Draft Big Board 4.0: Top 100 prospects pre-combine and lottery

Now that the early entry list is officially out and combine invitations have been sent out, the 2021 NBA draft class is starting to finalize.

Now that the early entry deadline has passed and combine invitations have been sent out, the 2021 NBA draft class is starting to finalize.

Last year, the NCAA tournament and the combine were both canceled due to the pandemic. That made evaluations much tougher for scouts and front offices around the league. This year, the pre-draft process feels somewhat normal again for top basketball prospects who are set to join the pros.

As a new class of players prepares to turn professional, here is how we would currently rank this class based on what we have seen from them so far, with some of my picks that are higher than other experts have them ranked.

2021 NBA Mock Draft 4.0: Player comparisons and predicting all 60 picks

Who should the Houston Rockets select if they get the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft?

While fans are now enjoying the NBA postseason, there are several teams that didn’t make the playoffs with full attention on the draft.

Now that the regular season and play-in tournament are both complete, the order is set for picks No. 15 to No. 60. However, we will have to wait until the lottery on June 22.

For more details on odds for when each team in the lottery will be on the clock, you can read this post by our own Charles Curtis.

Meanwhile, we also have a pretty clear idea of which prospects have opted to declare for the 2021 NBA draft. But any stragglers still have until May 30 to make their decision in order to be eligible for draft consideration.

Scouts and executives around the league will have an even better feel for this class come June 21, when the combine begins in Chicago.

After that, all those who hired either NCAA-certified agents or do not already have any representation have until July 19 to decide if they wish to remain in the class and forego their collegiate eligibility or return to school.

Until then, however, this is how we predict the two rounds of the 2021 NBA draft will shake out:

2021 NBA Draft Big Board 3.0: Top 100 prospects pre-early entry deadline

As the NBA’s 2020-21 regular season nears its close, the league’s next wave of talent is preparing to take the great leap to become pros.

As the NBA’s 2020-21 regular season nears its close, the league’s next wave of talent is preparing to take the great leap to become pros.

Players have until the end of this month, May 30, to apply for entry into the 2021 NBA draft. They will then have until July 19 to determine whether or not they plan to stay in this class or (unless they hired an agent who does not have NCAA certification) return to school.

This is obviously an incredibly difficult decision and as the majority of early entry candidates have made their intentions public, those who are testing the waters are already weighing their options.

Fortunately, the NBA’s Undergraduate Advisory Committee (UAC) exists to help answer some of those questions.

The advisory committee, which began in 1997, offers feedback to prospects on their potential draft stock. As many prospects are facing pivotal decisions about their future, this kind of intel is incredibly important.

Players like Gonzaga’s Corey Kispert and Baylor’s Jared Butler both went through this process last season, likely were not satisfied with the results and opted to return. Now, after tremendous efforts last season, both are projected first-rounders.

These decisions have tremendous financial implications for these individuals as well. For example, even if Kispert or Butler went with the last pick in the first round in 2020, they would have likely earned a contract worth around $5 million over three years. This year, even if they went outside of the lottery at at No. 15 overall, that would be around $8.5 million.

With that in mind, for the latest version of For The Win’s 2021 NBA draft big board, I’ve provided my evaluation for the top prospects expected to be in the pre-draft process. Players excluded from this exercise were likely because the reporting suggests that they are going back to school.

Note that these decisions were fully based on where I would have each player ranked, not a projection, although various conversations with scouts as well as other talent evaluators around the league have factored into my evaluation.

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.