NBA Draft Articles - Page 48

The Memphis Grizzlies, after months of talking themselves up as the next big thing in the NBA, had to swallow a huge humble pie. Their season, which began with much cacophony, ended on a whimper, as they suffered a six-game first-round series defeat to the lower-seeded Los Angeles Lakers. This defeat was heartbreaking enough on […]

Kentucky basketball’s Chris Livingston has been criticized by NBA scouts for his decision to file for the 2023 NBA Draft. These anonymous officials have gone as far as to say, “If you held a hundred drafts, he’d go unselected in most of them,” according to The Athletic. Other NBA personnel have also said, “He can […]

The Houston Rockets, after two seasons of finishing with the worst record in the NBA, are no longer the league’s doormat. Alas, they still finished with the second-worst record in the NBA, and at the moment, barring a meteoric rise from one of their young prospects, it looks like that will continue on for the […]

It sure does seem like time is running out for this iteration of the Los Angeles Clippers. They’re approaching Year 5 of the Kawhi Leonard and Paul George partnership, and they only have one Western Conference Finals appearance to show for it. When healthy, the Clippers have shown that they can go toe-to-toe with anyone […]

As it relates to the 2023 NBA Draft, much of the focus for the Atlanta Hawks will be on the 15th overall pick. A pick landing just outside of the lottery, the Hawks have plenty of time to hone-in on a shortlist of draft targets that they can acquire with the selection. Earlier this week, […]

The 2023 NBA Playoffs are entering their final stages, with organizations being a step closer to the coveted Larry O’Brien Trophy. Unfortunately for the Sacramento Kings, that is not the case. They were eliminated by the reigning champion Golden State Warriors in the first round, meaning their 2022-23 season is over. Now, the franchise is […]

The NBA Draft Combine is set to begin on Monday, May 15 at Wintrust Arena and the Marriott Marquis in Chicago. Some of the league’s top draft prospects will be in attendance for the combine, but French big man Victor Wembanyama, who is widely expected to be the first player taken in the draft regardless of […]

After trading away all-stars Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, as well as veteran scorer Bojan Bogdanovic, the outlook this season was grim for the Utah Jazz. Yet rookie coach Will Hardy steered the Jazz to a respectable 37-45 finish. A major reason for Lauri Markkanen, who blossomed into a superstar in Salt Lake City. The […]

How close are the Indiana Pacers to earning a spot in the postseason? Guard Tyrese Haliburton again proved to be a bright spot on Indiana’s roster, averaging a double-double in 56 games started and played for the Pacers. The duo of Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin placed first and fourth on the roster in points per […]

The Utah Jazz are in as enviable position as any rebuilding team, apart from, perhaps, the Oklahoma City Thunder. They already have a star to build around in Lauri Markkanen, a rising star in Walker Kessler, and a few youngsters who could turn out to be quality rotation pieces for the next half-decade or so […]

Victor Wembanyama is not attending the 2023 NBA Draft Combine. The 7-foot-2 unanimous number 1 pick cannot attend the event from May 16th to 18th at Wintrust Arena in Chicago because of his commitment to the French League, LNB Pro A. On the official list published by the NBA, many notable college and amateur athletes […]

The NBA Draft Lottery will take place next Tuesday, May 16 in Chicago. Teams will be vying for the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes, including the Portland Trailblazers. For the lottery, the Blazers will be returning Brandon Roy as their good luck charm from the last time they won the No. 1 overall pick in 2007, per […]

The Charlotte Hornets are in a strange and rather unenviable position. The sale of the team — should it be completed this offseason — is strange only in the sense that NBA legend Michael Jordan has been the majority owner of the team for so long that when he first bought the franchise their mascot […]

The 2023 NBA Draft is set to take place on June 22. Over the next six weeks, young talents around the country will be looking to make their dream of getting drafted come true. A total of 242 players, including 48 international players, filed for this year’s draft as early entry candidates and can still […]

If there were any doubts as to why Victor Wembanyama should be the consensus number one pick in the 2023 NBA draft, maybe $500 million will change your mind. Even if Wembanyama hasn’t even stepped foot on an NBA court, the hype around the 19-year-old prodigy has been insane, and he’s received a lot of […]

With the Houston Rockets hiring Ime Udoka and prioritizing defensive improvement this offseason, multiple players found themselves placed under the microscope. However, none more than center Alperen Sengun, the 16th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. For all of his talent on the offensive end — the passing, the low-post scoring, the ability to […]

Will the Portland Trail Blazers go all in for a playoff push during their 2023-24 campaign? Portland finished with a record of 33-49 last season, good enough for 13th in the Western Conference and fifth in the Northwest Division behind the Utah Jazz. They finished three games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder for a spot […]

The Utah Jazz made two franchise-altering trades during the 2022 offseason, dealing away former franchise cornerstones Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert in an attempt to pivot towards a rebuilding effort. As a result of these trades, the Jazz not only received a plethora of assets, but they gutted the core of what once was a […]

Ever since nabbing Jaren Jackson Jr. with the fourth pick in 2018, the Grizzlies have seemingly mastered the NBA Draft. Of their top 10 scorers this year, nine of them were drafted by the Grizzlies or signed with them as an undrafted free agent. They’ve nabbed stars in Ja Morant, Desmond Bane and Jackson Jr. […]

The Toronto Raptors are looking to enter a new era. Following their 2019 NBA championship triumph, the Raptors have undergone a gradual decline, and it eventually led to the departure of former head coach Nick Nurse, whose differences with the front office proved to be too far of a chasm to bridge. The pieces are […]

The Indiana Pacers were close, but not quite there yet. Indiana finished a record of 35-47, good enough to put them in 11th place in the Eastern Conference and five games behind a division rival in the Chicago Bulls for a spot in the Play-In tournament. The Pacers’ most significant need will likely be a […]

The Brooklyn Nets have two picks — No. 21 and No. 22 — in the first round of the upcoming draft. Though the players selected with those picks may not have much of a chance to contribute given the amount of rotation-level talent that the Nets have under contract, the uncertainty regarding the build of […]

Will the Portland Trail Blazers be able to fight their way into NBA Playoff contention next season? Portland finished with a 33-49 record last season, good enough for fifth in the Northwest Division and 13th in the Western Conference. The Blazers ended the 2022 NBA Draft with guard Shaedon Sharpe, guard Gabriele Procida and forward […]

The Oklahoma City Thunder emerged as one of the teams in the NBA that has ascending young talent in the 2022-2023 season, and they could add to that core of players in the 2023 NBA Draft. The Thunder hold the 12th spot in the NBA Draft Lottery that is coming up on May 16. In […]

The Atlanta Hawks are an interesting team, quite frankly, but not for all the reasons a franchise should want them to be. Despite drafting one of the most talented players in their history in Trae Young and building — albeit slowly — around him over the course of five seasons, the Hawks were embroiled in […]

For the first time since Dwight Howard left in 2012, the Orlando Magic are worth caring about. Such is the power of freshly minted Rookie of the Year Paolo Banchero, a budding superstar coming off one of the most impressive rookie years in recent memory. But beyond Banchero, the Magic have an alluring collection of […]

New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson may be trying to put concerns about his durability, weight concerns and ultimately his playing future to bed. Especially with a picture of a much slimmed-down version of him circulating the interwebs. However, Zion has played just 29 games over the past two seasons. Over the course of his […]

The NBA Draft Combine is set to begin on May 16, but the NBA’s G League Elite Camp will take place first on May 13 and 14. Both events will be located in Chicago, as the top performers at the G League camp will earn themselves an invitation to the official draft combine just a […]

Duke Blue Devils freshman wing Dariq Whitehead will undergo a second surgery on his right foot in order to allow his initial foot injury — which he sought to surgically repair last August — to properly heal, according to ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski. Whitehead, a projected first-round pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, should be […]

Will the Charlotte Hornets be able to battle their way into playoff contention next season? The Hornets ended with a record of 27-55, good enough for fifth in the Southeast Division and 14th in the Eastern Conference. Guards LaMelo Ball and Terry Rozier led the team in scoring with 23.3 and 21.1 points per contest, […]

Will the Utah Jazz be able to get back into playoff contention? The Jazz ended the 2022-23 regular season with a record of 37-45, putting it in fourth place in the Northwest Division and 12th in the Western Conference. Utah was five games below the New Orleans Pelicans for a spot in the Play-In tournament. […]

It is yet another offseason of heartbreak for the Los Angeles Clippers, but approaching Year 5 of the Kawhi Leonard and Paul George era, this is certainly not the time to feel sorry for themselves. Sure, suffering one major injury after another to their top dogs is a tough pill to swallow. But at the […]

The Charlotte Hornets surprisingly found themselves in the middle of an upheaval during the 2022-23 campaign. What seemed like a team that was on the rise just couldn’t string together the fortune necessary to sustain a winning outfit, and as a result, the Hornets, after two straight seasons of making the play-in tournament, find themselves […]

The Portland Trail Blazers appear to be a franchise without a clear path forward this offseason. Under both external and internal pressure to put themselves in championship contention next season, it’s important to remember that seven-time All-Star Damian Lillard is under contract with the Blazers through the 2026-27 season, with a $63.2 million player option […]

It now feels like a lifetime away since Paolo Banchero was selected by the Orlando Magic as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. So much has happened since that faithful night, which also includes the former Duke standout bagging the coveted Rookie of the Year award. At this point, it is […]

The second round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs is officially underway, with organizations being a step closer to the coveted Larry O’Brien Trophy. Unfortunately for the Los Angeles Clippers, that is not the case anymore. They were recently eliminated by the Phoenix Suns in the first round, meaning their season is over. Now, likely with eyes […]

The San Antonio Spurs had a horrific season, finishing 22-60, dead last in the Western Conference. The good news is the Spurs’ draft pick will now be high in the 2023 NBA Draft. If the ping pong balls of the NBA Draft Lottery leave the Spurs at the No. 3 spot — where their 2022-23 […]

This is the end of the beginning for the Sacramento Kings. Whereas this year was the surreal romp of an underdog miraculously realizing that they’re as good as just about any overdog, the Kings will feel the burden of expectations going forward. Losing to the Warriors in seven hotly contested games feels like a pyrrhic […]

The 2022-23 season was supposed to be some sort of turning point for the rebuilding Detroit Pistons. After all, they decided to give Cade Cunningham, the first overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft, a reliable floor-spacing veteran in Bojan Bogdanovic. However, it’s clear that with the youth of the Pistons’ roster, rising above the […]