NBA Draft 2022: 3 biggest strengths and weaknesses overall in the class

Weakness: Superstar potential

We’ve probably been spoiled with the amount of star power that has entered the league in the past few seasons. Since 2017 alone we’ve seen: Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley, Anthony Edwards, Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, Luka Doncic, and Jayson Tatum all enter the league.

This year there seem to be a consensus top three prospects (Jabari Smith Jr., Paolo Banchero, and Chet Holmgren) and I do like all of them, I just wouldn’t rank any of them higher than the aforementioned ones as prospects. It’s probably telling that at this point in the cycle, experts are split on exactly who the top prospect is.

In my eyes, Auburn’s Smith Jr. solidified himself as the top player in this class. Smith was an incredible shooter at 6’10, looking nearly unguardable at times. I think he’s an underrated defender with good movement skills for his size and the potential to slide across multiple front-court spots.

His ability to self-create with the handle is the next step up to him becoming a superstar. He’s still 18 so I’m not ruling out that possibility, and even if Smith is able to add weight, he should be able to just dislodge guys with his strength and then shoot over them. Ultimately though, I think he ends up as a plus, plus role player and not the level of star we have seen enter the league.

I feel similar about the projections of Duke’s Banchero, and Gonzaga’s Holmgren. Banchero has the ball skills, but the shooting waned throughout the year. He had a tendency to be a bit of a ball stopper at times, and I’m not sold on him being a plus defender. That’s not to say he couldn’t thrive in a complementary role, but again I don’t see a superstar in him.

I like Holmgren marginally less than the top two. He’s the best defender of the group, possessing legitimate potential to be one of the league’s best rim protectors. But, his offense isn’t quite at the level of a star. He shot it better at the end of the year, but his offensive projection is best in a complementary role as a spot-up guy or in the dunker spot.

The interesting wildcard here is Purdue’s Jaden Ivey. Pick the right game, and Ivey looks like a special guard prospect. He’s got incredible athleticism, both with the ball and vertically, and has some wild pull-up shooting flashes. But Ivey can play out of control at times and doesn’t quite have the handle or decision-making yet to be a true primary. I’d also like him to be a bit better defensively given the tools.

All of that isn’t to say that those aforementioned are bad prospects. I think they’ll all succeed in a specific role in the NBA, but right now I have some doubts about how many all-stars this class might produce.