Texas freshman Dillon Mitchell will test the NBA draft waters while maintaining his college eligibility. The 19-year-old small forward made the announcement this evening on his Twitter page.
Mitchell is ranked 34th on ESPN’s list of the best available players, but he was considered the No. 4 recruit in the nation coming into college, writes Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Mitchell played just 17 minutes per game in his first season with the Longhorns, averaging 4.3 points and 3.9 rebounds. Although he shot 64% from the field, Givony notes that Mitchell’s usage rate would be the lowest of any player drafted over the last 30 years.
Mitchell will have to rely on next month’s draft combine and workouts with individual teams to show that he’s ready for the NBA. Givony points out that his unique combination of physical skills could still make him attractive as a draft prospect.
There’s more on this year’s draft:
- Shooting guard Terrence Shannon Jr. of Illinois, ranked 39th on ESPN’s big board, also announced that he’s declaring for the draft. The senior guard didn’t specify whether he plans to forgo his remaining year of college eligibility. Shannon averaged 17.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 31 games this season.
- Marquette junior wing Olivier-Maxence Prosper (Twitter link), San Jose State senior small forward Omari Moore (Instagram link), Kentucky freshman small forward Chris Livingston (Instagram link) and Gonzaga senior shooting guard Malachi Smith (Instagram link) have all declared that they’re entering the draft. Prosper is 65th in the ESPN rankings, Moore is 81st, Livingston is 84th and Smith isn’t listed.
- Alabama forward Brandon Miller gets the edge over G League guard Scoot Henderson for the No. 2 pick in the latest mock draft compiled by Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN (Insider link). Givony calls Miller an easy fit for just about any NBA team, while Woo notes that Henderson has slipped a little in the eyes of scouts, but still offers a combination of strength, quickness and scoring instincts that make him appealing. Victor Wembanyama occupies the top spot in the mock draft, and Amen Thompson and Jarace Walker round out the top five.
I think Scoot and Miller will both be all stars in the future and both guys as rookie will be good right away. I see Miller as someone similar to PG13 who can play on just about any team, slots in as a good number 2, two way player and all that.
However I think Scoot has a higher ceiling, I think he will be a consistent 20-7-3 kinda guy but at his peak could be a near 30 points per game kinda guy, however he strikes me as more of a wanna be number 1 guy.
Think it’ll depend on who is drafting where on which way there’s two get drafted. For example if Detroit is second they don’t need Scoot with Cade so Miller would be their choice. However if it’s San Antonio they don’t need a forward with Johnson and Sochan but could do with a point guard so probably take Scoot.