2023 NBA Draft

[JasonEvans]

I know we have discussed Scott Hernderson and Victor Whambamthankyoumam in other threads, but I think it makes sense to have a dedicated thread for 2023 draft stuff at this point.

And lets kick it off with a 2023 mock draft from one of the more respected draft analysts around, The Athletic's Sam Vecenie: https://theathletic.com/3407947/2022...ampaign=601983

1. Victor Wembanyama - France
2. Scoot Henderson - GLeague
3. Cam Whitmore - Nova
4. Nick Smith - Ark
5. Dariq Whitehead - Duke - I've seen him listed 3rd in most other mocks
6. Ausar Thompson - OTE
7. Amen Thompson - OTE
8. Keyonte George - Baylor
9. Cason Wallace - Kentucky
10. Derek Lively - Duke - Vecenie makes a great point... 10th is about the ceiling for traditional centers who are not freakish shooters or ballhandlers

Also of note--
11. Terquavion Smith - NC State - if he lands in the lottery, his decision to return to school looks really great as he was a late first rounder if he had stayed in this year's draft
19. Kris Murray - Iowa - Duke will get a taste of this dude in the Big Ten Challenge. Can he make the same leap his brother did?
20. Kyle Filipowski - Duke
25. Matthew Cleveland - FSU - Has all the physical tools, but I just did not see the skills a year ago. Can he develop anything from outside of the lane?
29. Caleb Love - UNC
37. Oscar Tshiebwe - Kentucky
39. Emoni Bates - Eastern Michigan - I won't be shocked if even this is a stretch for him
42. Armando Bacot- UNC
45. Drew Timme - Gonzaga
50. Hunter Dickinson - Michigan - I'm including this one as a way of inducing Scottdude to reply to this post

Neither Jeremy Roach nor Mark Mitchell are listed among his 2nd round picks.

[Kedsy]

I know we have discussed Scott Hernderson and Victor Whambamthankyoumam in other threads, but I think it makes sense to have a dedicated thread for 2023 draft stuff at this point.

And lets kick it off with a 2023 mock draft from one of the more respected draft analysts around, The Athletic's Sam Vecenie: https://theathletic.com/3407947/2022...ampaign=601983

1. Victor Wembanyama - France
2. Scoot Henderson - GLeague
3. Cam Whitmore - Nova
4. Nick Smith - Ark
5. Dariq Whitehead - Duke - I've seen him listed 3rd in most other mocks
6. Ausar Thompson - OTE
7. Amen Thompson - OTE
8. Keyonte George - Baylor
9. Cason Wallace - Kentucky
10. Derek Lively - Duke - Vecenie makes a great point... 10th is about the ceiling for traditional centers who are not freakish shooters or ballhandlers

Also of note--
11. Terquavion Smith - NC State - if he lands in the lottery, his decision to return to school looks really great as he was a late first rounder if he had stayed in this year's draft
19. Kris Murray - Iowa - Duke will get a taste of this dude in the Big Ten Challenge. Can he make the same leap his brother did?
20. Kyle Filipowski - Duke
25. Matthew Cleveland - FSU - Has all the physical tools, but I just did not see the skills a year ago. Can he develop anything from outside of the lane?
29. Caleb Love - UNC
37. Oscar Tshiebwe - Kentucky
39. Emoni Bates - Eastern Michigan - I won't be shocked if even this is a stretch for him
42. Armando Bacot- UNC
45. Drew Timme - Gonzaga
50. Hunter Dickinson - Michigan - I'm including this one as a way of inducing Scottdude to reply to this post

Neither Jeremy Roach nor Mark Mitchell are listed among his 2nd round picks.

Is Tyrese Proctor listed at all?

[JasonEvans]

Is Tyrese Proctor listed at all?

Nope.

[MChambers]

Is Tyrese Proctor listed at all?

He is not.

[johnb]

Here are links to a bunch of additional lists. With a few exceptions, they are remarkably similar to each other.


I like NBC's 1st round (6 July)
3 Whitehead
6 Lively
9 Flip
https://www.nbcsports.com/washington...-early-edition

From Gary Parrish at CBS, just the lottery (24 June):
4 Whitehead
8 Lively
https://www.cbssports.com/college-ba...y-projections/

Kyle Boone, also at CBS, just 1st round (9 July):
8 Whitehead
12 Lively
21 Flip
https://www.cbssports.com/college-ba...022-23-season/

Top 148 from nbadraftroom (4 July):
6 Whitehead
15 Lively
23 Flip
36 Mitchell
91 Roach
https://nbadraftroom.com/p/2023-nba-mock-draft/

Sports Illustrated, 1st round (25 June)
4 Whitehead
8 Lively
26 Flip
https://www.si.com/nba/thunder/draft...nba-mock-draft

Sporting News included tiers (26 June)
Tier 2 (potential top 5, after a tier 1 that only included Wembanyama)
5 Whitehead
Tier 3 (potential lottery)
10 Lively
16 Flip
https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/...wwml8s6fj1cbac

NBAdraft.net, 2 rounds with no mention of Flip (8 July)
3 Whitehead
11 Lively
https://www.nbadraft.net/nba-mock-drafts/

yahoo, 1 round; note the dramatic Lively/Whitehead reversal and Flip edging toward the lottery (24 June)
8 Lively
9 Whitehead
16 Flip
https://sports.yahoo.com/2023-nba-mo...130835038.html

SBNation, 1st round
8 Whitehead
13 Lively
https://www.sbnation.com/nba/2022/6/...coot-henderson


Tankathon, 1st rd (26 June)
7 Whitehead
8 Lively
21 Flip
https://www.tankathon.com/mock_draft
https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nba/...wwml8s6fj1cbac

oddschecker.com. A relatively unknown gambling site, but really stepping out by putting Flip before Lively
3 Whitehead
16 Flip
22 Lively
https://www.oddschecker.com/us/insig...1st-round-pick

[MarkD83]

Of course bacot and love will petition for extra years at unc and stay

[brevity]

Of course bacot and love will petition for extra years at unc and stay

They don't need to petition. With the COVID 5th year in place, Armando Bacot (3 seasons down) can stay until the 2024 draft, while Caleb (2 seasons down) has a lot of Love left to give before the 2025 draft.

6. Ausar Thompson - OTE
7. Amen Thompson - OTE

Wow, this is really a thing. The 80's are back. I have "Doctor! Doctor!" playing in my head, but I guess "Hold Me Now" and "King for a Day" would work too. Or even "Lies", to circle back to UNC.

[budwom]

anyone notice that our guy Adam Silver says he wants to lower the NBA eligible age to 18 from 19 and hopes to work on that in the next CBA? If that happens, we're unlikely to see the very top guys in high school ever make it to college ball.

[Tappan Zee Devil]

anyone notice that our guy Adam Silver says he wants to lower the NBA eligible age to 18 from 19 and hopes to work on that in the next CBA? If that happens, we're unlikely to see the very top guys in high school ever make it to college ball.

In reality, I think that may be a good thing for coolege ball (or at least schools like Duke), since it will allow some continuity to be built.

[HayYou]

In reality, I think that may be a good thing for coolege ball (or at least schools like Duke), since it will allow some continuity to be built.

It won't help Duke. AS isn't talking about OAD. That is a non-starter amongst the owners. Too many of them got burned drafting OAD busts (or at least players that were drafted far too high). But the NBA wants to see 1 year of play versus post HS quality of competition. They just want the guys to be younger. OAD won't go anywhere.

[Tappan Zee Devil]

It won't help Duke. AS isn't talking about OAD. That is a non-starter amongst the owners. Too many of them got burned drafting OAD busts (or at least players that were drafted far too high). But the NBA wants to see 1 year of play versus post HS quality of competition. They just want the guys to be younger. OAD won't go anywhere.

I am aware of why the NBA owners/GMs want to have kids play a year of college ball. But, lowering the age limit a year makes it easier for kids to take an alternative route.

[Daddylawman]

It won't help Duke. AS isn't talking about OAD. That is a non-starter amongst the owners. Too many of them got burned drafting OAD busts (or at least players that were drafted far too high). But the NBA wants to see 1 year of play versus post HS quality of competition. They just want the guys to be younger. OAD won't go anywhere.

Literally the ONLY reason to lower the age is to allow kids to go from high school straight to the NBA. It won't eliminate OAD, but it will seriously alter it.

[JasonEvans]

In reality, I think that may be a good thing for coolege ball (or at least schools like Duke), since it will allow some continuity to be built.

I think the elimination of OAD would be very good for Duke. We will still get the top players WHO PLAN TO COME TO COLLEGE. Duke is always going to be one of the top preferred destinations for guys playing in college. The difference would be, we will get kids who are thinking more about playing in college because the "get me to the NBA as fast as possible" folks won't even be looking at college any more.

We won't be signing 4+ recruits per year anymore though, because we will expect the kids who come to last longer at Duke.

[CDu]

I think the elimination of OAD would be very good for Duke. We will still get the top players WHO PLAN TO COME TO COLLEGE. Duke is always going to be one of the top preferred destinations for guys playing in college. The difference would be, we will get kids who are thinking more about playing in college because the "get me to the NBA as fast as possible" folks won't even be looking at college any more.

We won't be signing 4+ recruits per year anymore though, because we will expect the kids who come to last longer at Duke.

Eh, I'm not sure. I'm guessing we'll still get top recruits, and many/most of them will still leave early. We'll see maybe a bit more continuity (a bit fewer one and dones, more two and dones), but probably not a lot more. And we'll also see a big drop in talent as more of the top guys go pro instead of college.

I feel like the most likely scenario is that we are a net push rather than a clear positive for Duke.

[tommy]

Eh, I'm not sure. I'm guessing we'll still get top recruits, and many/most of them will still leave early. We'll see maybe a bit more continuity (a bit fewer one and dones, more two and dones), but probably not a lot more. And we'll also see a big drop in talent as more of the top guys go pro instead of college.

I feel like the most likely scenario is that we are a net push rather than a clear positive for Duke.

Yeah I kinda agree. Duke's identity with recruits is that we're the program that gets them to the league right away. Sure, we win too, and all the other benefits of being Duke, but the league is the main thing. If that advantage is removed, then the separation between us and some other programs, in the minds of these young guys, is likely to diminish.

[CDu]

Yeah I kinda agree. Duke's identity with recruits is that we're the program that gets them to the league right away. Sure, we win too, and all the other benefits of being Duke, but the league is the main thing. If that advantage is removed, then the separation between us and some other programs, in the minds of these young guys, is likely to diminish.

Exactly. Either we will stop landing one-and-done talent and thus stop being viewed as a path to get to the League quickly, or we will continue to land the top talent going to college and those guys will continue to want to leave as early as possible.

In the first scenario, we better hope Scheyer is a heck of a coach and not just a recruiter because we would no longer have the talent advantage that has carried us in recent years. In the second, it looks a lot like what we currently have but with maybe a tad less talent and a tad more continuity.

[-jk]

anyone notice that our guy Adam Silver says he wants to lower the NBA eligible age to 18 from 19 and hopes to work on that in the next CBA? If that happens, we're unlikely to see the very top guys in high school ever make it to college ball.

In reality, I think that may be a good thing for coolege ball (or at least schools like Duke), since it will allow some continuity to be built.

Going after OAD talent when they might go straight to the pros? I don't envy Jon that recruiting headache! Half a class doesn't show up?

-jk

[brevity]

It's from October 2020, but still interesting to see Victor Wembanyama, then 16 years old, match up against shorter Frenchman Rudy Gobert in a 2-on-2 workout:



Mon dieu. Adam Spinella has a more recent look at Wembanyama, the first prospect profiled in his 2023 Draft series.

"His length combined with his athleticism allows him to throw down some of the goofiest looking dunks ever."

[DavidBenAkiva]

Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report has his first mock draft for 2023 up.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/...tor-wembanyama

4. Dariq Whitehead
12. Dereck Lively
17. Kyle Filipowski

This seems to track with other mock drafts I've seen. Whitehead is the guy getting lottery buzz. Lively slots into the late lottery as a lob finisher and rim protector with the possibility of having pick-and-pop potential. Filipowski offers a lot of interest in his offense to go along with questions about his defense.

Watching those three, along with Roach, Mitchell, and Proctor, throughout the season will be interesting to see who rises and if any fall.

[brevity]

I can't really vouch for Hoop Intellect yet, but he did take the time to put together an early look at the 2023 draft, listing his top 45 picks.



These are the Duke and ACC players he included:

4. Dariq Whitehead
13. Dereck Lively
24. Tyrese Proctor
28. Kyle Filipowski

16. Baba Miller, Florida State
17. Terquavion Smith, NC State
31. Judah Mintz, Syracuse
32. JJ Starling, Notre Dame