The race to be the top prospect in the 2024 NBA Draft is wide open after all. After staking a strong claim for that distinction during the beginning of his highly anticipated freshman season with USC basketball, Isaiah Collier's recent struggles have led to him tumbling down mock drafts, with ESPN currently ranking him as the eighth best prospect in June's draft.
The 6'5 point guard was listed at No. 1 in ESPN's previous NBA Draft rankings, but Collier's recent individual struggles coupled with the Trojans' team-wide labors have caused him to slide toward the bottom of the top-10.
“Collier had a difficult December, struggling to score (11.8 PPG) with middling efficiency (50% true shooting), as USC dropped five of its past six games,” writes ESPN draft guru Jonathan Givony. “Collier has been well scouted by opponents, as it's clear he wants to drive left and finish with his right hand at seemingly all costs, missing teammates consistently and not having a midrange game to fall back on. He has made just 21% of his 3-pointers in December after a promising start to the season as a shooter and has been inconsistent with his defensive intensity as well, even if he has trended upward in that area recently.”
Collier is averaging 15.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.3 steals per game on the season, shooting 56.1% on twos and a disappointing 31.6% from beyond the arc on low volume. Just as notable as his inefficient scoring ability of late has been Collier's penchant for turnovers. He's doled out 16 assists compared to 14 turnovers in USC's last four games against non mid-major opponents, coughing up five giveaways during the Trojans' disappointing blowout loss to Oregon State on December 30th.
Expect Isaiah Collier's draft status to continue fluctuating leading up to the draft. There's no surefire No. 1 pick in the 2024 class, Collier battling with Serbian star Nikola Topic—up to fifth in ESPN's latest prospect rankings—to be the first primary playmaker to hear his name called on June 27th in New York City. French big man Alex Sarr, playing in Australia, for the NBL's Perth Wildcats, is ESPN's new top overall prospect.
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