2023 NBA Mock Draft Thread

[HuskyHawk]

Tell me you don't know anything about the NBA without telling me you don't know anything about the NBA.

The defense doesn’t often look like UConn defense did last year, because these offenses would slaughter anybody who guarded that closely. It’s about forcing lower value shots. They essentially let those go up, so it doesn’t look as aggressive. I think people are confused by the lack of offensive rebounding too. A shot goes up and most of the time, 5 guys go back because NBA teams don’t miss in transition. If it’s a poor quality shot, it’s likely a change of possession. College is just so different with all the O Rebounds.

But defense is what wins, and a big part of what makes guys stars.

 

[PNolanFan]

The defense doesn’t often look like UConn defense did last year, because these offenses would slaughter anybody who guarded that closely. It’s about forcing lower value shots. They essentially let those go up, so it doesn’t look as aggressive. I think people are confused by the lack of offensive rebounding too. A shot goes up and most of the time, 5 guys go back because NBA teams don’t miss in transition. If it’s a poor quality shot, it’s likely a change of possession. College is just so different with all the O Rebounds.

But defense is what wins, and a big part of what makes guys stars.

This is the biggest misconception about the NBA, sure stars dont have to give it 100% every night on defense but if you arent a top guy you NEED to play good defense to stay on the floor. Look at bouknight, I am fairly certain offensivlely he could have been one of their leading guys last year but his abysmal defensive effort is why he was in the G league (also other reasons).

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Yeah, with three guys at the top the would have gone #1 most years. It’s a loaded draft and there was more tanking than ever.

We will know in a couple of years. It is good to get so many posters on the record that this is a great draft.

 

[gtcam]

I know one thing now I understand why Villanova was so good watching Brunson and Hart.

Nova has a fair share of recent players who are doing well in the NBA.

 

[gtcam]

Irving has become the new face of the “Ewing Effect”. Just about every time Kyrie gets hurt or leaves a team, the team gets better.

Perhaps because the trading team gets a boatload for him?
Don't get the "Ewing Effect" - if its Patrick, he played with the Knicks 15 of his 17 NBA years, not a journeyman by any means.

 

[huskiesNhoos]

Perhaps because the trading team gets a boatload for him?
Don't get the "Ewing Effect" - if its Patrick, he played with the Knicks 15 of his 17 NBA years, not a journeyman by any means.

The "Melo effect" is probably more appropriate

 

[Dogdeacon]

Perhaps because the trading team gets a boatload for him?
Don't get the "Ewing Effect" - if its Patrick, he played with the Knicks 15 of his 17 NBA years, not a journeyman by any means.

Knicks made the NBA finals one year, after Ewing got hurt at beginning of Eastern conference final series.

 

[bendm]

Miami's Isaiah Wong, ACC Player of Year, entering NBA draft

Miami guard Isaiah Wong announced Monday that he plans to enter the NBA draft.

www.espn.com

 

[AZHuskiePop]

Hawk has gone from 25-30 pre-season, to 20-25 mid-season and now has pushed himself into the lottery by showing out in the tourney.

His development has just been brilliant. Everyone involved (mostly Jordan) deserves a ton of credit. He was not this good a year ago.

He was injured a year ago remember he was a starter preseason .
When he was healthy he along with Polley were huge in the Auburn game . If not injured the dynamics of last years team are much different.
Everyone gets better looks .
an additional shooter helps everyone . Better looks = higher shooting % .

 

[auror]

I love this. I've always been dying to see the measurements and athletic testing of the elite prospects and the combine was getting to be a farce in recent years. (Note this doesn't compel 5v5 scrimmaging.)

 

[Matrim55]

As far as skills and talent as basketball player Irving absolutely is. He is a first tier talent that really isn't all that debateable.

It's entirely debatable. Dude has a career losing record when not playing with LeBron, and it's not like he's only had scrubs for teammates -- Tatum & Brown, KD & Harden, now Luka. Think about that.

He's a generational 1v1 player and an excellent shooter but is bad at almost every other facet of the game. And as much as he brings to a team's offense with his individual skills, he takes off the plate with his ball-stopping.

Kyrie's got a great highlight reel, but he's not a winning player.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

It's entirely debatable. Dude has a career losing record when not playing with LeBron, and it's not like he's only had scrubs for teammates -- Tatum & Brown, KD & Harden, now Luka. Think about that.

He's a generational 1v1 player and an excellent shooter but is bad at almost every other facet of the game. And as much as he brings to a team's offense with his individual skills, he takes off the plate with his ball-stopping.

Kyrie's got a great highlight reel, but he's not a winning player.

To be fair, that career record without LeBron is inflated by the early Cavs years which were bad teams.

 

[Matrim55]

To be fair, that career record without LeBron is inflated by the early Cavs years which were bad teams.

In other words he's not good enough to make a bad team decent, which is VERY different from being on the same tier as guys like Kawhi and Butler. And when he was on the Celtics, Marcus Smart had a much bigger impact on wins/losses -- per both the eye test and the advanced stats -- than Kyrie did.

Put him next to arguably the greatest player in the game's history and he can help you win a title. In any other situation he's going to cost you games, and that's before taking all the off-court bullshit into account.

 

[CardiacAndre7]

In other words he's not good enough to make a bad team decent, which is VERY different from being on the same tier as guys like Kawhi and Butler. And when he was on the Celtics, Marcus Smart had a much bigger impact on wins/losses -- per both the eye test and the advanced stats -- than Kyrie did.

Put him next to arguably the greatest player in the game's history and he can help you win a title. In any other situation he's going to cost you games, and that's before taking all the off-court Stop into account.

Oh I don’t disagree, and I don’t like him at all, what he stands for, and how hot and cold he is in every situation he’s been put in. But, that was at the beginning of his career and those Cavs teams kinda just sucked, at least the first 2 seasons they did.

He has the best situation in Cleveland with LeBron and pissed it away because he thought he could lead a great team, but obviously he couldn’t. Don’t care for the guy at all.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

In other words he's not good enough to make a bad team decent, which is VERY different from being on the same tier as guys like Kawhi and Butler. And when he was on the Celtics, Marcus Smart had a much bigger impact on wins/losses -- per both the eye test and the advanced stats -- than Kyrie did.

Put him next to arguably the greatest player in the game's history and he can help you win a title. In any other situation he's going to cost you games, and that's before taking all the off-court Stop into account.

Irving and Doncic turned a Conference Finals team into one that missed the playoffs in one year, and did this without a major injury. That takes some impressive underachieving.

 

[uconngb]

You don’t even know what you are arguing.

That may be true but he’s not wrong

 

[Matrim55]

I love this breakdown. The guy at Thinking Basketball (best in the business) has had multiple pods & videos on how pre-switching is growing as a counter to matchup hunting in the playoffs, and the Celtics put on a clinic against the Hawks in game 1:



The level of communication & connectedness to pull off concepts like this on the fly is really, really impressive.

 

[gsmooth]

It's entirely debatable. Dude has a career losing record when not playing with LeBron, and it's not like he's only had scrubs for teammates -- Tatum & Brown, KD & Harden, now Luka. Think about that.

He's a generational 1v1 player and an excellent shooter but is bad at almost every other facet of the game. And as much as he brings to a team's offense with his individual skills, he takes off the plate with his ball-stopping.

Kyrie's got a great highlight reel, but he's not a winning player.

Again, I am talking about his skills and talent, that's the part that is not debateable and you seem to agree with that in your 2nd paragraph. I am not talking about whether he is a winning player or a good teammate, I already alluded to the fact that he is not with the baggage he brings.

 

[husky429]

I love this breakdown. The guy at Thinking Basketball (best in the business) has had multiple pods & videos on how pre-switching is growing as a counter to matchup hunting in the playoffs, and the Celtics put on a clinic against the Hawks in game 1:



The level of communication & connectedness to pull off concepts like this on the fly is really, really impressive.

Marcus Smart is one of the best communicators in the business. I would imagine this would be much more difficult to pull off without him.

Always thought it was ironic that we get loud as fans when our team is on defense, when defense is when you need to hear your teammates MORE to make a stop.

 

[aceboon]

2023 NBA Mock Draft: Surprises near the top, a run on college stars in second half of lottery

As far as drama is concerned, the 2023 NBA Draft will start at pick No. 2, where Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson are the two primary candidates.

247sports.com

11. ORLANDO MAGIC (VIA CHICAGO): JORDAN HAWKINS, G, CONNECTICUT​

The Magic need shooting, especially if they take Anthony Black early in the lottery. Gradey Dick could be an option here, but Jordan Hawkins looks like the best movement shooter in the country during Connecticut’s national championship run. His non-shooting metics are a bit concerning, but he’s got decent positional size, bounce at the rim, and plenty of untapped upside as he fills out his frame.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer has Hawkins at #23 and Jackson at #36. Of course, he has Clingan at #21, so it needs a little updating.

The Ringer's 2025 NBA Draft Guide

The no. 1 overall pick might be a layup this year, but the rest of the lottery is wide open. Join us as we rank the top prospects in this year’s class and prep for the 2025 NBA Draft..

nbadraft.theringer.com

No way in hell Hawkins is there at 23. I doubt hes there at 15.

 

[UConn990411]

2023 NBA Mock Draft: Surprises near the top, a run on college stars in second half of lottery

As far as drama is concerned, the 2023 NBA Draft will start at pick No. 2, where Brandon Miller and Scoot Henderson are the two primary candidates.

247sports.com

11. ORLANDO MAGIC (VIA CHICAGO): JORDAN HAWKINS, G, CONNECTICUT​

The Magic need shooting, especially if they take Anthony Black early in the lottery. Gradey Dick could be an option here, but Jordan Hawkins looks like the best movement shooter in the country during Connecticut’s national championship run. His non-shooting metics are a bit concerning, but he’s got decent positional size, bounce at the rim, and plenty of untapped upside as he fills out his frame.

I actually think Hawkins has an underrated midrange game and he’s better at attacking the basket than the numbers indicate.

He’ll need to put some size on to be able to finish around the basket against NBA defenders. But in the (limited) times he attacked the basket in college, he looked pretty natural doing it and has some sneaky hops.

Hawkins’ shooting will likely be what gets him on the court initially, but I think the openness of the NBA compared to college will help the other parts of his offensive game develop.

 

[ToolzieFan]

Fanta has Hawkins at #12.

NBA Mock Draft 1.0: No certainties outside of Victor Wembanyama | FOX Sports

Victor Wembanyama is the consensus No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but who are the next best available prospects? John Fanta gives his first mock draft of the year.

www.foxsports.com

 

[Ratso]

i agree that AJ is draymond, as disruptive but 10000x athletic

 

[3rdbass]

I actually think Hawkins has an underrated midrange game and he’s better at attacking the basket than the numbers indicate.

He’ll need to put some size on to be able to finish around the basket against NBA defenders. But in the (limited) times he attacked the basket in college, he looked pretty natural doing it and has some sneaky hops.

Hawkins’ shooting will likely be what gets him on the court initially, but I think the openness of the NBA compared to college will help the other parts of his offensive game develop.

He has more than sneaky hops. He has a big time vertical.

 

[aceboon]

i agree that AJ is draymond, as disruptive but 10000x athletic

Draymond is the best defensive player of his generation and before KD came was actually a decent scoring threat before that part of his game eroded. I love AJ's game and his effect on winning but folks gotta slow down just casually comparing the two.

 

[Umami Zen]

I have no idea what AJ is thinking re: the NBA draft.. In other words.. Is he considering second round as a non-starter?? Teams will evaluate and scout guys.. Maybe want to improve their position to trade up in picks to get in position for guys.. A few teams ..if their draft positions stay intact(which they won't).. have interesting draft positions. Indiana and Utah have 3- 1st round picks.. Indiana also has pick#32 -2nd round.. Orlando has 2- 1st round picks and a #36-second round..And Charlotte has 2- 1st rounds and picks #34/#39 in second round..

So.. There are some teams with draft capital to trade up and down for certain guys.. Hawk will be fine (pick 10-15).. AJ might slide into late 1st round/ early 2nd if a team falls in love with his talents other than shooting. See Adama as a mid-to- late second rounder with a team where his unique skill set would fit.. TN --See him looking for NBA feedback and returning to Storrs.

But crazy things happen leading up to and on Draft Night.. Lakers or Warriors might love Hawk and are willing to trade up to get him because they need his shot-making off the bench.. Ainge has a lot of draft capital and might be a player in mixing things up with Utah's picks.. You never know..

 

[CardiacAndre7]

 

[superjohn]

Draymond is the best defensive player of his generation and before KD came was actually a decent scoring threat before that part of his game eroded. I love AJ's game and his effect on winning but folks gotta slow down just casually comparing the two.

The comparisons to Kidd, Rondo, Simmons, and Rodman are all spot on though.

 

[bendm]

https://www.si.com/nba/draft/newsfeed/2023-nba-draft-jordan-hawkins-offers-game-changing-shooting