NBA Draft 2023: Overall takeaways and key grades from draft results

Utah Jazz: B

Taylor Hendricks – 1.9

Keyonte George – 1.16

Brice Sensabaugh – 1.28

In a vacuum, I liked all three of the Jazz’s selections relative to my board and the pure talent. Hendricks finished fifth on my board and is a versatile wing/four that can score in low-usage ways, hit shots from deep, and protect the rim to a degree. But on Monday, they traded for another power forward in John Collins. Hendricks should theoretically be able to play some three, but there’s a bit of a logjam there with Hendricks, Collins, Lauri Markannen, and Walker Kessler.

George is a prospect I went back and forth on all cycles, but ultimately finished with him 16th on my board. He is a score-first combo guard that has some tough shot-making and creation ability. He reminds me a bit of Jordan Clarkson and Collin Sexton, who ironically are also on this team. As of now, the Jazz’s point guard duties will be handled by Kris Dunn and Talen Horton-Tucker. While I thought the Jazz could have gone with a more traditional point guard, there weren’t many available. I like George more than Jalen Hood-Schifino, Nick Smith, and Brandin Podziemski, so I didn’t have too many qualms with it. It will be interesting to see how the roster shapes up and how the backcourt minutes are divided.

Sensabaugh is one of the most efficient scorers in the draft. He will need to get healthy and improve defensively, but for a team that lacks true wing depth and shooting, he definitely fills a need. He’s a score-first player, so it will be interesting to see how he meshes with other score-first players on their team.

Denver Nuggets: B-

Julian Strawther – 1.29

Jalen Pickett – 2.32

Hunter Tyson – 2.37

Fresh off their title run, the Nuggets traded some future assets to acquire a few more picks, in search of ready-now players on cheap rookie deals. That’s what they did, going for three older prospects in Strawther, Pickett, and Tyson. All three were taken a bit higher than where I had them ranked, but should theoretically be able to contribute right away. Strawther is my favorite of the group, a three-and-D marksman who played in a lot of big games at Gonzaga. Pickett was probably the most confusing pick, but the Nuggets front office’s love for him was not a super well-kept secret. Ironically, he was like the Big10 version of Nikola Jokic last season, obliterating smaller defenders in the post and being an elite passer. How he holds up defensively and without the ball in his hands a ton will be worth watching.

Tyson was a pre-draft riser after some impressive showings at both the Portsmouth Invitational and G-League Elite camp. I have some questions about him in terms of tools, but he should be able to space the floor and play off the ball. The hope here is that any mix of these guys, plus last year’s 30th pick Peyton Watson are ready to take the leap and become NBA contributors. These aren’t the players I would have taken but they fit what Denver wants and it seems silly to question this front office.

Charlotte Hornets: C+

Brandon Miller: 1.2

Nick Smith: 1.27

James Nnaji: 2.32

Amari Bailey: 2.41

The Hornets entered the draft with six picks and walked away with an interesting crop of four players. Miller at two was fine to me. Smith at 27 may be seen as a steal by some, but this is right around where I had him on my board. While he also battled knee injuries all season, his lack of burst, and ability to create easy looks for himself and others concerned me. They took Amari Bailey later, another former five-star, athletic combo guard, who hasn’t proven himself as a super reliable shooter.

I liked the James Nnaji pick in a vacuum. A super toolsy, athletic center who projects as a rim-running five. Unfortunately, he seems to overlap quite a bit with Mark Williams, who they selected in last year’s lottery.

Miller should start on the wing for them right away, but I would have tried to add another wing piece in the 30’s, especially with a few defensive-minded ones on the board (Julian Phillips, Andre Jackson, and Jordan Walsh). The Hornets have a lot of high-RSCI, athletic, interesting talent bets…I just worry about the fit and maturity of the locker room.