The NBA Draft is less than a month away and following NBA Draft Combine in Chicago a few weeks ago, teams are busy bringing players in for individual or joint workouts and doing deep dives on their draft boards.
Cooper Flagg is undoubtedly going to be the No. 1 pick and all signs point to the 6-foot-9 versatile wing heading to the Dallas Mavericks to join Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis. The Spurs are sitting at No. 2 and have options, but it will be hard to pass on Dylan Harper and what he projects at the next level.
Which prospects are rising? Who’s working out where and what does the second round of the draft look like now that so many players have elected to go back? Below is a roundup of the latest buzz and intel leading up to the NBA Draft, taking place on June 25 and 26.
NBA Mock Draft: The Mavs Will Pick Cooper Flagg. Who’s Going Next?
UPDATED: Now that the NBA Draft Lottery is done, it’s time to reset Hoops HQ’s projected first round
Projected No. 2 Pick Working Out for Multiple Teams
When looking at the best prospect available in this very talented draft class, 6-foot-6 Rutgers guard Dylan Harper is likely the second player off the board after Flagg. Will the Spurs make the pick? Most likely. It will be hard for the organization to pass on a talent like Harper, even though they’re already set in the backcourt and have a guard-heavy roster. Stephon Castle, last year’s No. 4 pick, just won Rookie of the Year, they added De’Aaron Fox in a midseason trade and also have Chris Paul on the roster.
Harper has similarities to Cade Cunningham and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and even though they have a bit of a crowded backcourt, the Spurs could find a way to make it work. However, they also have the No. 14 pick in the Draft and are most likely talking to teams about possibly packaging both picks and a player or two for a franchise player (ahem, Giannis Antetokounmpo). They could also trade down and entertain conversations with teams that have been targeting Harper all season and thought they would have a better chance at landing the talented guard.
Harper has been going through the pre-draft process and has already worked out for multiple teams, not limiting the possibility to the Spurs being his only landing spot. “The pre-draft process for me has been going great,” Harper told Hoops HQ. “I’ve had a few workouts and I’m just getting my body in shape and making sure I’m just sharper for the next level because everyone is so good and I’m just trying to get in that right mindset and right conditioning so I’m ready.”
Spurs Could Be Targeting Khaman Maluach to Pair With Victor Wembanyama
Another buzzy name tied to the Spurs is Maluach, a 7-foot-2 center out of Duke. The Spurs could essentially be building twin towers with Wembanyama and Maluach and there is an appeal to drafting another young big that can learn and grow alongside Wembanyama. It would be very unlikely that the Spurs would shock everyone and take Maluach with the No. 2 pick but they could be looking to trade down or package the No. 14 pick for a shot at the talented center.
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Former NBA Academy Africa teammates helped push each other to make it to the big stage
Portland Holds a Joint Workout with Multiple Projected Lottery Picks
The Trail Blazers had a recent workout where they brought in Asa Newell, Jase Richardson, Rasheer Fleming, Liam McNeeley and Will Riley. All five players are potential lottery picks or mid-first rounders and had a good showing at the NBA Draft combine. To be a fly on the wall during that workout would have been a treat for any basketball fan. “It was a great group of guys with us,” Richardson told the media after the team workout. “Very competitive, everyone shot [the ball] well, everyone played defense. You gotta have that.” Portland has the No. 11 pick in the draft and all five players are definitely in that range for a Trail Blazers team that finished 36-46 this season.
Kon Knueppel On the Rise
Knueppel had an exceptional freshman year at Duke and is a player multiple teams liked after the combine. He measured very well at 6-foot-5 (without shoes) and shot the ball extremely well during the on-court shooting drills. Prior to the combine and draft lottery, Knueppel’s draft range was anywhere from late lottery to end of the first round but the way the lottery fell has certainly worked in his favor. Teams like the Utah (Jazz No. 5 pick) and Charlotte Hornets (No. 4) are showing interest in the versatile guard and like his ability to seamlessly slide in alongside a star, ball-dominante player like Flagg and still find ways to positively impact the game.
Drake Powell Emerges as First-Rounder After Staying in the Draft
Powell, a 6-foot-6 guard, had a quiet freshman year at North Carolina, averaging 7.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game. He was a five-star recruit coming out of high school and a player multiple teams have been keeping an eye on this past college season. He interviewed very well at the combine and has potential through the roof, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. Every draft cycle, we see a team draft a player that didn’t live up to his potential at the collegiate level but his game translates better to the pros. Denver Nuggets wing Peyton Watson was selected with the 30th pick in 2022 based on defensive potential alone and he has been a key rotational player for the Nuggets ever since. Watson only averaged 3.3 points and 2.9 rebounds in 12.7 minutes per game during his one year at UCLA. Teams are looking at Powell and his potential to fill the same role, especially at the back half of the first round where there is a lot of value in drafting a player and being patient with his growth and development at the NBA level.
Derik Queen Dreaming of Potential DC Reunion With Childhood Friend Bub Carrington
Everyone loves a full-circle moment and the stars are aligning for a potential reunion between childhood friends, Queen and Carrington. The Wizards had the worst record in the NBA but unfortunately fell to No. 6 in the draft lottery. They’ll miss out on Flagg but have a chance to draft his high school teammate and Big Ten Freshman of the Year in Queen. Queen and Carrington played against each other in middle school and high school and have been friends ever since. “I would love to play with him, I know Bub really well,” Queen said at the combine. “I remember one time during my freshman year he was practicing with my team and he took a highly contested jumper and I was like, ‘bro, no!’ and he made it and ever since then, I’ve been watching him and I know he can hoop.” After a solid season at Maryland, Queen’s projects to be selected between picks 5-15.
Crickets on Kasparas Jakucionis…. Does He Have a Promise?
It’s very unusual to not hear anything about a player heading into the draft. When there are no rumors, no discussion of draft range or workouts, it typically smells like a team has made a promise. It’s both sides holding their cards close and not leaking anything. The player this year is 6-foot-6 Illinois guard Jakucionis. There hasn’t been a single word out on him. His draft range is anywhere from 6-16 and there’s a feeling that he left the draft combine with a promise. The Hawks could be targeting a bigger backup point guard to Trae Young and they’re sitting at No. 13. He could also go as high at No. 6 to Charlotte to bring some size in the backcourt. The Hornets kept things very quiet all the way up until draft day last year when they surprised a lot of people and selected Tidjan Salaun and Jakucionis could be another player they are quietly targeting this year.
Second Round Thinning Out
The number of players that elected to return to college this year is unprecedented and is forcing teams to go deep into their draft boards, particularly in the second round. Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan), Labaron Philon (Alabama) and Tahaad Pettiford (Auburn) were all fringe first-round picks but elected to return to college for another season. Boogie Fland (Florida) and Isaiah Evans (Duke) declared for the NBA Draft, were invited to the draft combine and then announced they were returning for another season before the combine even started. “If you are a projected second-round pick or if there is any chance at all of you falling to the second round, you can absolutely make more guaranteed money in college,” one NBA executive told Hoops HQ. “We all understand the new trend with NIL and it’s up to our scouting and analytics team to really dive in now and find those gems in the second round. It’s time to go to work for a lot of us with the amount of talent that decided to return to school.”
