NBA Draft 2022: Final Big Board of top 60 overall prospects

13. Malaki Branham – Ohio State – Wing – 6’5.5, 195 lbs – May 2003 – Freshman

Branham emerged in conference play for the Buckeyes as an efficient bucket-getter. He doesn’t have great size for a wing and wasn’t an incredibly impactful defender, but his shooting projection is impressive. He shot 43% on long twos (but 82% were unassisted), a 60% true shooting percentage, and 41% from three.

Branham was uninspiring on defense, posting low steal and block numbers. He didn’t pressure ball-handlers well or force them into tough actions. There’s some low-hanging fruit with his 6’10 wingspan and being a good athlete, but there’s a lot of room to grow. Even if Branham is a sub-par defender, he should be able to stay on the floor with his floor-spacing ability and tertiary passing chops.

14. Ousmane Dieng – New Zealand Breakers – Wing – 6’9, 195 lbs – May 2003

After a disastrous start to his season in the NBL, Dieng played much better down the stretch of the season. He shot 27% from three on the season but was up to 40% in the last seven games (a little more than a quarter of the season).

Dieng has good positional size for a wing, and some ball-handling and passing chops, while also being young. His frame has room to add weight, and maybe an NBA weight program can help unlock some athleticism. While he has the skill, I sometimes wonder about his feel, processing, and decision-making on both ends of the floor. He should be better defensively (and added weight will help) but posted low steal and block numbers.

There is a pathway for him to survive on 2.5’s-4’s on defense in the long run. Teams are looking for big wings, and Dieng is certainly a big swing who needs more development time than others. But the theoretical upside is there, even if it ends in a solid rotational wing.

15. Mark Williams – Duke – Center – 7’2, 242 lbs – December 2001 – Sophomore

Williams was the defensive anchor for one of the top teams in the country last season. He had some elite measurements at the combine, standing at 7’2, a 7’7 wingspan, and 9’9 standing reach. He’s the ideal mold for a lob threat and rim protector.

Williams isn’t a switchy big, but there’s a handful of coverages he can excel in. He’s not a bad mover and then you factor in that he’s legit 7’2…yeah he can cover a lot of space. He doesn’t have the quickest load time and has a tendency to over-jump to block shots he won’t block, but he’s a presence around the rim.

Williams’ catch-radius is ginormous and his hands improved from freshman to sophomore year. He doesn’t pass well and can’t shoot, so he’s limited on offense. We’ve seen this mold of big have success, mainly in the regular season. Williams should be able to carve up minutes just swallowing the paint and banging with fives during the 82-game gruel.

But I have serious doubts about how impactful he can be in meaningful games. I mean Rudy Gobert is like the peak, peak outcome for Williams and the best at that archetype, and there’s still questions about him getting played off the floor in the playoffs. Williams will, likely, get picked before 15 and I understand it as some teams do need that big to fill minutes during the regular season. I just personally lower the value on a prospect with such glaring limitations.

16. Jalen Duren – Memphis – Center – 6’11, 250 lbs – November 2003 – Freshman

Duren is a well-built, athletic, rim-running center who explodes off the ground with ease and uses his reported 7’5 wingspan to alter shots and finish lobs. That alone gives him a baseline to be a rotational center in the NBA for years to come, even if he’s undersized (seeing him in person, I do not buy his listed 6’11 height). The appeal with Duren is that he is incredibly young, and showed some flashes of other offensive skills.

After struggling with decision-making in a clogged Memphis offense early on in the year, Duren’s processing and short-roll passing looked a bit better at the end of the season. I don’t think he’ll be Draymond Green in that regard but I also don’t think he will be a zero. There are some people holding out hope for Duren’s shooting…I am not one of those people. Average touch, a 62% free throw percentage, and a 36.1% on non-rim-twos have me skeptical.

Defensively, Duren won’t switch 1-5 but he should be able to handle fives on the block. He moves well laterally and can cover ground,

The hold-up is that even if he improves, is he ever better than a rotational center? And like Mark Williams before him, can he really provide value in crunch time, playoff rotations? Duren’s younger, more athletic, and has shown more ball flashes, but I’m not bullish he hits those outcomes.