NBA Draft 2020: Roundup of Experts' Latest Mocks
Much is in flux regarding the NBA right now, but as things stand, the league's June 25 draft isn't on that list.
While the future of events such as the rest of the regular season, playoffs and even free agency are being considered during the coronavirus pandemic, all signs point to the NBA draft going ahead as scheduled. Whether it will be in-person or done virtually like the upcoming NFL draft is still to be determined, though.
The league's pre-draft process, which typically includes interviews, individual and group workouts, as well as the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, will likely have to be shifted almost exclusively to a digital platform.
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According to The Athletic and Stadium's Shams Charania, teams will be allowed four hours of virtual meetings with a player (but no more than two in any given week), but live workouts and/or requests for watching a player work out virtually are prohibited.
That should make for an interesting process for teams and potential draft picks, particularly with no set end date attached to these rules.
With the combine scheduled to begin May 21, it's hard to envisage a scenario in which teams will get to see any prospects in person, meaning they'll almost certainly have to rely on game film from this season and/or past years to make their physical evaluations.
As more and more of the country's top men's college basketball players declare their intentions to test the NBA waters, here's a roundup of the most recent mock drafts and a few players to keep an eye on.
Tyrese Maxey, G, Kentucky
While it was essentially a given that Tyrese Maxey would be another one-and-done at Kentucky, the former McDonald's All-American declared his intentions to join the draft pool Monday.
The Wildcats guard, who is listed as the No. 8 prospect in the ESPN Top 100 available prospects, averaged 14 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists in his lone season with the team.
The questions around his shooting ability weren't put to rest, though. Maxey shot just 29 percent from behind the arc, a surprising development considering his ability to shoot at the high school level.
He does, however, possess the ability to score with ease at the other two levels, and despite lacking top-end athleticism, he's crafty enough to beat defenders.
In NBADraft.net's latest mock, the 19-year-old is projected to drop all the way to Brooklyn at No. 19. That's a little hard to believe considering the weakness of the class, but anything is possible.
Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated, meanwhile, has Maxey teaming up with former Kentucky star Devin Booker in Phoenix at No. 10, and Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman has him at No. 12 going to Sacramento to join another former Wildcat, De'Aaron Fox.
One of the biggest risers over the course of the 2019-20 season was Iowa State's Tyrese Haliburton.
After averaging a respectable 6.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.4 assists as a freshman at ISU in 2018, the 6'5" guard broke out this year. He led the Cyclones with 15.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game while shooting better than 41 percent from behind the arc.
In the meantime, the Cyclones point guard rose from draft afterthought to a potentially high lottery pick.
There will likely be some questions about his durability—especially with the uncertain draft process and an injury that cut his season short—but Haliburton will be near the top of a deep group of point guards in this year's class.
NBADraft.net has him as the fifth PG taken in the top 12 picks—after LaMelo Ball, Cole Anthony, Theo Maledon, and Nico Mannion—where he's projected to land with the Kings and Fox.
If Haliburton is willing and able to play both guard spots, Sacramento could be a good fit for him, though it seems something of an odd fit given his passing abilities.
Woo projects him at No. 4 to Atlanta to play alongside Trae Young, Clint Capela, Cam Reddish and De'Andre Hunter, and Wasserman has him going at No. 11 to San Antonio to join Dejounte Murray.
R.J. Hampton, G, New Zealand Breakers
Sticking with the guard-heavy theme because, well, it's the NBA, and one of the more intriguing—yet hard to project—prospects is R.J. Hampton.
The 6'5" guard, who was a consensus top-five recruit in the 2019 class, opted to play professionally overseas for a season rather than going the traditional college route.
And it's hard to say whether that hurt or helped his stock significantly. Hampton averaged 8.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 20.9 minutes per game for the NBL's New Zealand Breakers, but arguably the most damning stats were his shooting numbers: 40 percent from the field and 29 percent from three.
The 19-year-old has a multitude of athletic tools and was known as a scorer, and if he can tap into those at the pro level, he could be a nice addition for a lottery-level team.
Woo has him going to Portland at No. 14 as a backup to CJ McCollum, while Wasserman has him going No. 8 to Charlotte, and NBADraft.net has him dropping to Boston at No. 17.
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