Moussa Diabate – Page 2 – Syndication Server

2022 NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Debut rankings of the top 101 prospects

Let’s be honest. Ranking the best NBA draft prospects is a fool’s errand. But evaluating this class is an especially challenging assignment.

One of the top pre-season prospects (Patrick Baldwin Jr.) is playing for a mid-major program that has just two wins so far this season. Other top prospects (AJ Griffin and Peyton Watson) are not getting much playing time for their high-major programs. Meanwhile, guard Jean Montero is playing in the inaugural Overtime Elite league. How do we compare his productivity to other prospects? I’m frankly not sure.

But nevertheless, my big board exists. Rather than going small, I decided to blow it up and do the opposite. Why did I go ahead and rank 101 prospects if this class has been so challenging to evaluate? There are two distinct reasons.

One is that I’m absolutely crazy and get a very fulfilling satisfaction with the completion of a mock draft and big board because it feels complete. It looks awesome seeing as many names as I can fit on one article, even if the science behind the rankings is a bit inconclusive.

The other reason is that as I make more big boards throughout the year, it’s interesting to track the progress (and regression) of certain prospects. I am inevitably wrong about most of these placements! But this article serves as a barometer for where I feel certain players are at in their development right now.

Note that several notable prospects (e.g. freshmen Max Christie, Matthew Cleveland, Nolan Hickman, Hunter Sallis, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield, Jeremy Sochan, Kobe Bufkin) were excluded because I expect them to go back to school to improve their draft stock.

More likely than not, some of those players will declare for the 2022 NBA draft. When that happens, I obviously will not have them outside of my top 101.

Until then, as we prepare to turn the calendar into a new year, here are the debut rankings for 101 of my favorite prospects.

All stats are accurate as of Dec. 14 and are from Sports-Reference unless noted otherwise.

Aggregate NBA mock draft 2.0: Paolo Banchero, Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith battle for No. 1

In order to help us get a better sense of where all of the projected top prospects in the class stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from ESPN, NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, The Athletic, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo, Basketball News and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion.

Since our last update, the players who have improved the most spots are Ismael Kamagate (Paris), Moussa Diabate (Michigan), Azuolas Tubelis (Arizona), Hugo Besson (New Zealand), Efe Abogidi (Washington State), Iverson Molinar (Mississippi State), Justin Lewis (Marquette), Max Christie (Michigan State), EJ Liddell (Ohio State), and Ochai Agbaji (Kansas).

The most notable prospects making their debut on our rankings are Trevor Keels (Duke), Bryce McGowens (Nebraska), MarJon Beauchamp (G League Ignite), Keon Ellis (Alabama), Christian Koloko (Arizona), Wendell Moore (Duke), Blake Wesley (Notre Dame), Josh Minott (Memphis), Zach Edey (Purdue), and Johnny Davis (Wisconsin).

Some of the top prospects who did not make the cut this time included Hunter Sallis (Gonzaga), Brandon Huntley-Hatfield (Tennesse), Kobe Bufkin (Michigan), Mouhamed Gueye (Washington State), Jahvon Quinerly (Albama), Adam Flagler (Baylor), Jaylin Williams (Auburn), Matthieu Gauzin (Le Mans), Isaiah Wong (Miami), Marcus Williams (Texas A&M), and Tyson Etienne (Wichita State).

Otherwise, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

2022 NBA draft: Breaking down the best freshmen in college basketball

It’s no secret that in the NBA draft, the first few players selected are almost always one-and-done freshmen. So who will it be next season?

Of course, it’s hard to say definitively before the college basketball season begins. But with the Champions Classic tipping off at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 9, another year of collegiate hoops is about to begin. That means another year of prospects are going to make their NCAA debuts and show scouts what they can potentially do as pros.

Below are ten of the best freshmen who are making the transition to the college ranks — as well as another watch-list of some other notable and interesting freshmen to pay attention to as well.

(Note that Memphis’ Emoni Bates was not included because he is not eligible to be drafted until the 2023 NBA draft.)

2022 aggregate NBA mock draft: Debut ranking of all notable prospects

The 2021 NBA draft class finished their first go-around in the summer league, which means evaluators are fully focused on next year’s class.

In order to help us get a better sense of where all of the projected top prospects in the class stand as of right now, we compiled mock drafts from Bleacher Report, Yahoo, The Athletic, Yahoo, SB Nation, NBADraft.net, CBS Sports, and USA TODAY Sports Media Group’s For The Win.

Please note that these rankings reflect the composite score to get a feel for consensus, not our own opinion.

Collegiate teams who had more than two players appear on a mock were Auburn, Baylor, Duke, Kentucky, Michigan, Tennessee and UCLA. Three players will be on the G League’s Ignite roster and one is on Overtime’s Elite squad.

Additionally, seven players are rostered in Spain and four are playing in Australia’s NBL. There are also three players on Serbia’s KK Mega Basket included.

Freshmen one-and-done candidates who didn’t make the list but could climb on to join during the season: Harrison Ingram (Stanford), Trevor Keels (Duke), Bryce McGowens (Nebraska), Josh Minott (Memphis), Kowacie Reeves (Florida), Bryce Hopkins (Kentucky), Nathan Bittle (Oregon) and Jeremy Sochan (Baylor).

Some of the most notable collegiate returners who were snubbed from these rankings: Marcus Williams (Texas A&M), Jonathan Davis (Wisconsin), Kofi Cockburn (Illinois), Zach Edey (Purdue), Adam Miller (LSU), Colin Castleton (Florida) and Tyson Etienne (Wichita State).

Relevant international prospects to know who were not included below: Fedor Zugic, Lefteris Mantzoukas, Jayson Tchicamboud, Nikita Mikhailovskii, Yoan Makoundou, Tom Digbeu and Makur Maker.

Otherwise, you can learn the latest updates on every single prospect who has been included in recent mock drafts by scrolling below.

HoopsHype’s Alberto de Roa contributed research to this report

Main Image: Coley Cleary / USA TODAY Sports Media Group

Top high schoolers who may reclassify, eventually enter 2021 NBA Draft

Many believe the NBA Draft will feature a stronger prospect pool in 2021 than what the 2020 class will offer. But it may get even deeper.

Our mock draft for 2021 featured blurbs on several high school juniors who have already reclassified to forego their senior seasons, including Terrence Clarke (Kentucky), Devin Askew (Kentucky) and JT Thor (uncommitted). Another high school junior who narrowly missed the cut was Cam Hayes, who committed to North Carolina State.

However, we believe that the topic of reclassification will become even more pressing in the coming few weeks and months. Perhaps one reason why high school juniors may want to join a class that is already loaded is the following year could become even more crowded.

It is fairly well known that the NBA may allow high school seniors to enter the draft in 2022 for the first time since Amir Johnson was selected in 2005. That means that the draft class will feature all of the usual college prospects as well as an influx of high school talent as well.

There would be an incentive, then, for top high school juniors to find a way to separate themselves by potentially showcasing what they are capable of when playing against NCAA talent. Scouts and executives are more familiar with evaluating college basketball players than high schoolers.

As such, here is what you need to know about the high school stars that are most rumored to join the ranks of the Class of 2020 and then potentially be eligible to be selected in the 2021 NBA Draft.

JONATHAN KUMINGA

Forward, 6-foot-8, The Patrick School (New Jersey)

Background: Jonathan Kuminga is considered, nearly unanimously, the best high school junior in the country. He averaged 20.8 points per game on the Nike EYBL Division B circuit in 2019, showing his prolific scoring ability. Kuminga also had the second-most points per game (27.4) among all players in the Peach Jam Tournament last year. As recently noted by SB Nation’s Ricky O’Donnell, the forward could be a top-five pick in the 2021 NBA Draft if he chooses to reclassify. He will participate at the Basketball Without Borders Global Camp during All-Star Weekend in Chicago.

NCAA: Back in October, the top prospect announced that he was not going to reclassify. However, that has not quieted any of the speculations that he will forego his senior season and play college basketball next season. He narrowed his collegiate decision to ten schools in November 2019. Kuminga also had an official visit from Kentucky head coach John Calipari in January. Corey Evans of Rivals believes Duke could add Kuminga via reclassification to their Class of 2020. Evans has called his recruitment “fluid” so though the talk of him reclassifying was once silenced, it could easily change.

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