NBA Draft 2016: Updated Prospect Big Board Heading into Scouting Combine
With the NBA playoffs in full swing, the majority of NBA fans are likely enjoying the action but looking forward to the NBA draft in the hopes that their favorite teams will still be playing in May next season.
The next big item on the NBA draft calendar is the combine, which is set to run May 11-15. Players will have the opportunity to show off their athleticism, scrimmage and interview with potential future teams.
Some prospects will rise, others will fall and draft big boards could look pretty different come May 17's NBA draft lottery.
Here's a look at the latest top-30 big-board projections from CBS Sports' Sam Vecenie, ESPN Insider's Chad Ford and Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman, along with my own rankings of the best players looking to make the leap to the Association (full big boards from each writer can be found at the above links).
For a complete list of prospects invited to the scouting combine, check out NBA.com.
| 1 | Ben Simmons, SF, LSU | Ben Simmons, SF, LSU | Ben Simmons, SF, LSU | Ben Simmons, SF, LSU |
| 2 | Brandon Ingram, SF, Duke | Brandon Ingram, SF, Duke | Brandon Ingram, SF, Duke | Brandon Ingram, SF, Duke |
| 3 | Dragan Bender, PF, Israel | Jamal Murray, SG, Kentucky | Dragan Bender, PF, Croatia | Kris Dunn, PG, Providence |
| 4 | Kris Dunn, PG, Providence | Kris Dunn, PG, Providence | Buddy Hield, SG, Oklahoma | Dragan Bender, PF, Croatia |
| 5 | Jaylen Brown, SG, California | Dragan Bender, PF, Croatia | Kris Dunn, PG, Providence | Buddy Hield, SG, Oklahoma |
| 6 | Jamal Murray, SG, Kentucky | Buddy Hield, SG, Oklahoma | Jamal Murray, SG, Kentucky | Jamal Murray, SG, Kentucky |
| 7 | Jakob Poeltl, PF, Utah | Henry Ellenson, C, Marquette | Ivan Rabb, PF, California* | Jaylen Brown, SF, California |
| 8 | Buddy Hield, SG, Oklahoma | Marquese Chriss, PF, Washington | Jaylen Brown, SF, California | Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah |
| 9 | Henry Ellenson, C, Marquette | Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah | Domantas Sabonis, PF, Gonzaga | Domantas Sabonis, PF, Gonzaga |
| 10 | Denzel Valentine, SG, Michigan State | Jaylen Brown, F, Cal | Marquese Chriss, PF, Washington | Henry Ellenson, C, Marquette |
| 11 | Domantas Sabonis, PF, Gonzaga | Skal Labissiere, PF, Kentucky | Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah | Denzel Valentine, SG, Michigan State |
| 12 | Timothe Luwawu, SG, France | Domantas Sabonis, PF, Gonzaga | Henry Ellenson, C, Marquette | Deyonta Davis, PF, Michigan State |
| 13 | Deyonta Davis, PF, Michigan State | Denzel Valentine, G, Michigan State | Timothe Luwawu, SG, France | Furkan Korkmaz, SG, Turkey |
| 14 | Skal Labissiere, PF, Kentucky | Deyonta Davis, PF, Michigan State | Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame | Timothe Luwawu, SG, France |
| 15 | Tyler Ulis, PG, Kentucky | Furkan Korkmaz, SG, Turkey | Furkan Korkmaz, SG, Turkey | Marquese Chriss, PF, Washington |
| 16 | Furkan Korkmaz, SG, Turkey | Dejounte Murray, PG, Washington | Denzel Valentine, G, Michigan State | Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame |
| 17 | Marquese Chriss, PF, Washington | Tyler Ulis, PG, Kentucky | Taurean Prince, SF, Baylor | Wade Baldwin, PG, Vanderbilt |
| 18 | Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame | Diamond Stone, C, Maryland | Wade Baldwin, PG, Vanderbilt | Stephen Zimmerman Jr, C, UNLV |
| 19 | Wade Baldwin IV, SG, Vanderbilt | Malik Beasley, SG, Florida State | Stephen Zimmerman Jr, C, UNLV | Skal Labissiere, PF, Kentucky |
| 20 | Malik Beasley, SG, Florida State | Malachi Richardson, SG, Syracuse | Skal Labissiere, PF, Kentucky | Dejounte Murray, PG, Washington |
| 21 | Taurean Prince, SF, Baylor | Ante Zizic, C, Croatia | Deyonta Davis, PF, Michigan State | Tyler Ulis, PG, Kentucky |
| 22 | Ante Zizic, C, Croatia | Ben Bentil, PF, Providence | Jonathan Jeanne, C, France | Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame |
| 23 | Brice Johnson, PF, North Carolina | Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame | Malik Beasley, SG, Florida State | DeAndre' Bembry, G/F, Saint Joseph's |
| 24 | Juan Hernangomez, PF, Spain | DeAndre' Bembry, G/F, Saint Joseph's | Tyler Ulis, PG, Kentucky | Malachi Richardson, SG, Syracuse |
| 25 | DeAndre' Bembry, SF, Saint Joseph's | Jarrod Uthoff, PF, Iowa | DeAndre' Bembry, G/F, Saint Joseph's | Taurean Prince, SF, Baylor |
| 26 | Thon Maker, C, Australia | Thon Maker, C, Australia | Ben Bentil, PF, Providence | Ante Zizic, C, Croatia |
| 27 | Ivica Zubac, C, Croatia | Stephen Zimmerman Jr, C, UNLV | Dejounte Murray, PG, Washington | Brice Johnson, PF, North Carolina |
| 28 | Stephen Zimmerman Jr, C, UNLV | Timothe Luwawu, SG, France | Ante Zizic, C, Croatia | Diamond Stone, C, Maryland |
| 29 | Diamond Stone, C, Maryland | Brice Johnson, PF, North Carolina | Damian Jones, C, Vanderbilt | Malcolm Brogdon, SG, Virginia |
| 30 | Malcolm Brogdon, SG, Virginia | Josh Hart, SG, Villanova | Ivica Zubac, C, Croatia | Thon Maker, C, Australia |
No Combine Necessary for Ben Simmons
Ben Simmons' spot atop most big boards shows that there is little doubt that he's the blue-chip, generational prospect from this year's draft. Simmons averaged 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game as a freshman with LSU this season, all-around numbers that would make any coach or scout swoon.
Though LSU went just 19-14 with Simmons and failed to reach the NCAA tournament, it seems fairly clear that draft evaluators aren't holding it against him.
With his draft status largely secure, Simmons isn't on the list of players invited to the NBA combine, a development that USA Today's Derek Bodner noted is part of a larger trend in recent years: "That’s not entirely surprising of course. In fact, it continues a trend in recent years where top prospects have elected to skip the combine, including Anthony Bennett in 2013, Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker and Joel Embiid in 2014 and Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor in 2015."
It does seem worth noting that Duke forward Brandon Ingram, rated nearly as highly as Simmons, is on the list of combine invitees.
Ingram's athleticism is a fairly well-known commodity at this point, so if he is going to pip Simmons with a strong combine, it will likely be in five-on-five drills or in the personal interviews.
ESPN's Jeff Goodman also pointed out that another prospect sharing Simmons' agent won't be in attendance:
With Simmons' draft status unlikely to budge, the potential No. 1 overall pick can comfortably sit back and wait for the lottery to roll around as he figures out which teams are the likeliest to be his NBA home.
What to Make of Thon Maker?
Thon Maker's futuristic-looking NBA game has some excited about his NBA potential, but the only reason he's in the conversation this year is his throwback status as a prep-to-pro prospect. The 19-year-old Maker spent the past year at Orangeville Prep in Canada, but according to Ford, Maker still met the league's eligibility requirements:
"NBA rules state that a player must be 19 years old and one year removed from high school to be eligible. Maker turned 19 in February, and the NBA ruled that he did graduate with his high school class last year, making him eligible for this year's draft.
A source close to Maker told ESPN he will hire an agent, ending his college eligibility.
"
“Thon has been the hardest-working and the most astute kid I’ve coached in my 23 years of coaching," Edward Smith, Maker's legal guardian, told Bleacher Report in April. "I’m happy to have placed him in the position to have this choice.”
The 7'1" Maker is on the combine list, where he will look to prove that he's made the right choice in foregoing a year of seasoning and instruction in the collegiate ranks. Maker's various highlight reels show a an almost impossibly lanky young kid with a surprising ability to play out on the wing and run the break, a skill set that is certainly coveted in today's NBA.
His ridiculous length would also seemingly make him adept at disrupting passing lanes and perhaps even protecting the rim. However, he has a very lean, wiry frame and doesn't look to be the most fluid player on tape. Certainly, scouts have to be worried about his ability to hold up physically in the NBA.
According to CSNNE.com's A. Sherrod Blakely, an Eastern Conference scout has concerns about his readiness for the professional game:
"There is no way this kid should be in this year’s draft. He’s nowhere close to being ready to play or make any kind of impact that will help a team anytime soon. He’s one of those two years away from being two years away kind of players. If you take him near the end of the second round, he’s worth it. But a first-rounder? I just don’t see it.
"
The quote echoes ESPN's Fran Fraschilla's instantly famous assessment of young Brazilian Bruno Caboclo (h/t Yahoo Sports), whom the Toronto Raptors took at No. 20 overall in the 2014 NBA draft. Caboclo has played only sparingly in the NBA, doing almost nothing of note (though he is still just 20 years old).
Maker's surprise decision to join the NBA ranks makes the combine much more important for him than most players. He will have to show he can knock down jumpers, withstand the physical rigors of the game against better competition than he's used to playing and that he's committed to refining his game and perhaps being a project player rather than an early contributor.
Maker also has to erase his poor display at the 2015 Nike Hoops Summit.
The Sudan-born player's basketball life so far has been a true odyssey. The next part of his journey is far from clear, but he has a lot of potential.
