NCAA Basketball: Top 50 players from 2023 NBA Draft most likely to succeed
3. Jordan Hawkins – UConn Huskies
2022-23 season stats: 16.2 ppg and 3.8 rpg
A good case can be made that Hawkins is the best pure shooter in the entire NBA Draft. He also played a huge role in UConn winning a national title, including 20 points in the Elite 8 victory over Gonzaga. Hawkins was utilized mostly as the ultimate catch-and-shoot perimeter off-the-ball but he has even more offensive game than that. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he ends up being a 20+ ppg scorer in the near future.
2. Jarace Walker – Houston Cougars
2022-23 season stats: 11.2 ppg and 6.8 rpg
Walker is a former five-star prospect who despite having many scoring guards on offense, still managed to carve out his own role on offense. But the 6’8 power forward’s claim to fame is his already great defensive capabilities inside. Walker is a sneaky floor-spacer as well and may have the highest ceiling of any player in the entire NBA Draft and a fairly high floor as well.
1. Brandon Miller – Alabama Crimson Tide
2022-23 season stats: 18.8 ppg and 8.2 rpg
Miller was easily the best freshman in all of NCAA Basketball this past season and is the ideal small forward in today’s NBA game. The SEC Player of the Year scored in double figures in every single regular season game, including a season-high 41 points against South Carolina. He shot 38% from three-point range and 86% from the free throw line and simply has no offensive weaknesses.
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Miller is a good defender as well and while he can be streaky from deep, projects to be a 20+ ppg scorer at the NBA level. Whether he can be the No. 1 scoring option on a playoff team remains to be seen but if I had to bet on who’d be the best player from this draft going forward, I’d go with the All-American wing from Alabama.