The 2024 NBA Draft first round is now in the books and 30 players heard their names called and now know what NBA city they are heading to. Over the course of three-plus hours on Wednesday, there were winners, there were losers, and there were players who went higher than expected. The most intriguing type of draftee, though, is the player who maybe went a little lower than expected. If these players pan out for the team that took them, they could become NBA draft first-round steals. These are those players.
Donovan Clingan, Portland Trail Blazers
UConn big man honestly could have gone No. 1 overall in this weird and confusing NBA Draft. At 7-foot-2, 282 pounds, Clingan is a massive modern big who can move, protect the rim, and maybe even shoot threes one day.
The former Huskies star helped his team win back-to-back national championships, and this season, he won the one-on-one battle in the final game against the National Player of the Year, Zach Edey.
Despite being a cornerstone prospect, six teams passed on Clingan on his way to the Blazers.
Portland was ecstatic to have their big man fall to them. In fact, the reporting on the NBA draft ESPN broadcast is that the Blazers hoped Clingan would have come out last year. And this year, they tried to trade up from seven to go get him.
Alas, they didn’t have to and got their guy at seven. Staying put like that and getting easily a top-five and maybe even a top-three prospect makes this a steal.
Jared McCain, Philadelphia 76ers
There were a lot of guards who went at the top of the 2024 NBA Draft but the real steal was Duke’s Jared McCain to the 76ers at pick No. 16.
There were several reasons that McCain slipped out of the lottery, and not many of them had anything to do with basketball. The Blue Devil is a quite the internet celebrity with over 2.8 million followers on TikTok. And he’s a unique guy, doing things like painting his nails.
While that may have turned off some teams, what Daryl Morey saw is a gritty, competitive guard who can really shoot from the outside and bring energy to the team. McCain averaged 14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds (at 6-foot-2) and 1.9 assists. He also shot 41.1% from three.
He has some places to improve his game when it comes to playmaking and defense, but McCain has excelled at every level and the NBA should be no different.
This is a similar pick to Tyrese Maxey, who has developed into a star guard for the 76ers with his scoring ability. McCain should be able to do the same thing and can contribute with his three-point shooting right away.
Dalton Knecht, Los Angeles Lakers
The big faller in the 2024 NBA Draft was Dalton Knecht, who was projected as a top-10 pick and fell all the way to the Lakers at No. 17.
Knecht is a 6-foot-6 wing who can fill it up. Last season, he averaged 21.7 points per game and shot 39.9% from deep. Yes, he is 23 years old, so his ceiling may not be as high as some of the teenagers drafted on Wednesday, but he should come into the league and contribute immediately.
The fall cost Knecht some money, for sure, but landing with JJ Redick, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the Lakers is an amazing fit.
With Davis behind him, Knecht’s defensive liabilities aren’t as pronounced. And with LeBron being LeBron, the sharpshooter can focus on scoring from deep. Also, while we don’t know what Redick will be as a coach, we do know he was a great shooter and should have a connection with Knecht right away.
A lot was made about the Lakers trading this pick for a veteran star, but now that they got an NBA draft first-round steal in Dalton Knecht, those whispers are probably over.
Terrence Shannon Jr., Minnesota Timberwolves
The Terrence Shannon Jr. story is a rough one. The 6-foot-6 wing had a tough year, being arrested on rape allegations and only playing after an injunction against Illinois allowed it. Ultimately, Shannon was exonerated on the charges, but he still fell in the draft.
On the court, there is no question as to how good Shannon is. He averaged 23.0 points last season and can score on multiple levels.
The Timberwolves made an odd trade up into the lottery to take Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham off of the San Antonio Spurs’ hands. This pick made a ton of sense, though, as the T’wolve need wings around guard Anthony Edwards and big men Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert.
At 23, Shannon is the type of player who should be able to contribute right away and make Minnesota’s playoff rotation next season.
Baylor Scheierman, Boston Celtics
Last but not least, the NBA champs got better when they took first-round draft steal Baylor Scheierman out of Creighton.
Like most of the names on this list, Scheierman is a little older at 23 and is a 6-foot-6 wing who can really shoot. He scored 18.5 points per game last season and 39.0% from deep over the course of his career at Creighton and South Dakota State before that.
The defense here isn’t great, but the Celtics have that in spades. If Scheierman can be a knockdown shooter from the corner, he should get a ton of opportunities with Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and the rest of the champs doing what they do next season.
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