The top 18 NBA Draft prospects to watch in the NCAA tournament

Playing on a likely No. 1 seed isn’t easy for most. Walker is an exception, which is a huge plus because he’s a true freshman. The 6-foot-8 forward plays consistently in a great environment that’ll prove to be valuable in the NBA, as when Houston comes to town for every other team in the American Athletic Conference, it’s their Super Bowl. And Houston won every single road conference game this season. Walker averages 11.1 points and 6.7 rebounds per game and shoots nearly 48 percent from the field. He’s definitely a methodical shooter who can do damage at the next level.

The ignition for Houston and Walker’s teammate should be selected late in the first round of this summer’s draft. He’s a 6-foot-2 guard, one of the primary scorers for the Cougars, and averages 17.1 points per game, which is a heck of an accomplishment in the AAC and with as many talented scorers as Houston has. Sasser has shown great consistency and durability in college. Outside of last season, Sasser played in at least 29 games every year. That kind of playing time should translate well to The Association.

The Alabama star has been in the news for plenty of non-basketball reasons over the last few weeks. And while his indirect involvement in the murder of Jamea Jonae Harris is up for discussion, debating whether he’s talented enough to be a lottery pick in the upcoming draft isn’t. Miller could go as high as No. 2 and has a good shot of being selected in the top five. The 6-foot-9 true-freshman forward averages just under 20 points per game this season and was also named the Southeastern Conference’s Player of the Year.

Not many in college basketball have burst onto the scene quite like Hawkins did this season. The 6-foot-5 guard did play in 27 games a year ago, but only averages 14.7 minutes per game. That’s more than doubled in 2022-23, where he now averages 16.4 points per game, which is nearly triple his clip a season ago. The shooting guard should fall out of the lottery and to later in the first round, but that’s before he has the chance to wow everyone in the NCAA Tournament.

After winning a national championship a season ago, and losing Christian Braun and Ochai Agbaji, Kansas reloaded and looks to be a top seed again with Dick being an integral part of the Jayhawks. The 6-foot-7 shooting guard will only spend one year in Lawrence, but has helped KU again lift a Big 12 regular-season title. Dick is only averaging 14.3 points per game, but is shooting better than 40 percent from the field and from beyond the arc this season. Dick is a borderline lottery pick.

The one-and-done factory in Lexington, Kentucky likely only has one first-round draft pick this season, which isn’t shocking considering how unmotivating the Wildcats have looked at times this year. Wallace is the exception and he should be a mid-first found selection. His stats aren’t wildly impressive, averaging 11.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game this season. Yet, his presence and a 51 percent field-goal percentage should yield to a successful professional career for the 6-foot-4 guard.

Here’s the first true post player on the list, who will feature heavily for UCLA in the tournament. His potential is through the roof with his size and athleticism. The 6-foot-10 forward is a rare breed of player who will focus on the interior and do all the grit work necessary to make teams better. Bona gets into foul trouble a lot, and he’ll have to work on that to be successful in the NBA. It’s not hard to see several teams believing in his upside and wanting to draft him in the first 20 picks.

Jaquez is a borderline first-round selection. This happens every year with one of the elite players in college basketball being pegged by scouts as having a repertoire that doesn’t fit well into the NBA. The 6-foot-7 senior guard averages 17.5 points and eight rebounds a game. He shoots nearly 50 percent from the floor and is one of the best players on one of the best teams in the country in UCLA. If anyone has the potential to sink or swim with their draft potential in the tournament, it’s Jaquez.

Here’s the opposite of Jaquez, where Whitehead’s game works better at the professional level than we may ever see at Duke. The 6-foot-7 freshman forward did miss some time this season with a leg injury, but has featured prominently on Jon Scheyer’s first Blue Devils’ squad. Whitehead is shooting 39.9 percent from the field and only averages eight points per game. Yet he should hear his name called in the late first round.

He’s Duke’s center and at 7-foot-1, has the height every NBA team craves. Whichever teams thought they could land Wembanyama and come up just short could look to Lively to fill that void. He is averaging 5.1 points and rebounds per game, but is shooting 64 percent from the floor. In his likely one-and-done scenario, Lively will attempt to make his mark in the tournament from the middle of the pack, as opposed to many Duke players before him playing on a higher-seeded team.

Here’s one of the under-the-radar players in the country who may light the world on fire in the tournament and shoot up draft boards. The 6-foot-6 Xavier guard has been one of the better players in the Big East this season on a solid Musketeers’ team. Jones averages 15.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game, not to mention that he has a 52.6 field-goal percentage. Jones could sneak into a lottery-pick selection, but he’ll hear his name called by pick No. 20 at the latest.

Arkansas had national-championship aspirations heading into the season, but key injuries to Trevon Brazile and Smith derailed almost all of those hopes. Smith, a 6-foot-5 guard, missed nearly two months of the Razorbacks’ slate with a knee injury, but has been playing once again for almost a month. Heading into the SEC Tournament, Smith has played in a dozen games this season and has scored at least 24 points in three of his last four games. Smith should still be a top-10 pick in this year’s NBA Draft.

While Smith has missed a ton of time for Arkansas this season, Black has been one of the Razorbacks’ ironmen. Black has played in all 31 of Arkansas’ games this season and averages 12.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. The 6-foot-7 guard is also part of the one-and-done trend that Eric Musselman has embraced to better his Razorback squads and Black is easily a lottery pick.

Wherever the Wizards end up drafting in the early-to-mid first round, it seems like George is the trendy pick to head to Washington. The 6-foot-4 Baylor freshman guard plays a huge role for the Bears despite Scott Drew having a deep, talented rotation of players. George is guaranteed to be selected as a lottery pick, as the Wizards or anyone else that can see his upside won’t hesitate to draft him.

Who is the player with the chance to improve his draft stock the most during March Madness? It’s Strawther. There’s also a floor where the Gonzaga 6-foot-7 guard could drop out of the first round. Gonzaga will likely lose before the Final Four, but as an integral player for one of the most interesting teams in the country, a boom-or-bust scenario is likely for both the Bulldogs and Strawther.

The freshman takeover is truly national as Hood-Schifino will likely go in the mid-first round of the upcoming NBA Draft. He’s been a huge part of this resurgent Hooisers’ team and is also one of the bigger guards to come out in this draft at 6-foot-6. He’ll likely end up in the mid-to-late first round.

Jackson-Davis has a similar draft outlook as his teammate, Hood-Schifino, but how they got to that point couldn’t be more different. Jackson-Davis is a senior and stuck out his time in college before a hopeful jump to the NBA. He’s the Hooisers’ double-double machine, averaging 20.5 points and 11 rebounds per game. The 6-foot-9 forward will be gone by pick No. 25.

There was talk of Murray coming out of college last year after how he sprung onto the scene, but he stayed at Iowa for another season. Murray more than doubled his minutes played and points per game by competing for another season in the Big Ten. Where he’ll fall is later in the first round, but the 6-foot-8 forward will absolutely hear his name called by pick No. 30.