NBA Draft 2019: 10 best prospects from Big Ten Basketball

DES MOINES, IOWA - MARCH 23: Charles Matthews #1 of the Michigan Wolverines celebrates a basket against the Florida Gators during the second half in the second round game of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena on March 23, 2019 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

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BLOOMINGTON, IN – JANUARY 14: Romeo Langford #0 of the Indiana Hoosiers walks down the court after a turnover in the 66-51 loss to the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Assembly Hall on January 14, 2019 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /

1. Romeo Langford – Indiana – 6’6, 19 years old

Langford was once a projected top five pick, but a season marred by injury and effort concerns have deflated his stock a bit. Nonetheless, he is clearly the best Big Ten prospect of the bunch.

Langford actually had a pretty good season statistically for the Hoosiers, scoring over 16 points per game. He was nearly unstoppable getting to the rim and finishing. Using his 6’11 wingspan and long strides, Langford gets to the hoop with ease and can finish with either hand. He’s also an excellent isolation player. Langford plays low to the ground and uses advanced jab fakes and step backs to create space.

The questions on the offensive end stem from his shooting. He shot a horrific 27 percent from three this season and his jumper looked unnatural. However, Langford had been playing through an injury to his shooting hand all season so that may have had some effect. But, Langford was not known as a knockdown shooter in high school. Additionally, Indiana’s offense was unbalanced and failed to get Langford open looks from three which makes him really hard to evaluate.

Defensively, Langford has all the physical tools to be a great defender but the effort was lacking. He had a hard time staying attached to his man off the ball. Effort in general seemed to be somewhat of an issue for Langford who seemed disinterested at times.

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Ultimately Langford has a gifted body with natural scoring skills. If the shooting comes along then he can be a go-to scorer on an NBA team. You don’t see many guys with his natural ability to score one on one. His effort concerns me a little but I think he can overcome those issues and is worth the risk. Any team that takes him is banking on the shot improving but the physical gifts are there at a minimum.

His current draft range is late lottery to early 20’s. There is a group of teams that need guard depth/wing depth at 14/16 and if Langford slips out of there, then I can see him sliding.

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