TOP PROSPECTS
BALL HANDLERS & COMBO GUARDS
Last season Caleb Love entered Chapel Hill as highly touted freshman that many expected to be selected in the lottery in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft. Unfortunately, the 6'4" guard out of St. Louis had difficulties adjusting to the college game and really struggled with his shooting and decision making.
Love chose to return for his sophomore season and is looking to prove that he is still the player that intrigued NBA scouts with his combination of size, strength and athleticism.
As a freshman Love averaged a respectable 10.5 points, 3.6 assists and 2.5 rebounds per game while shooting only 31.6 from the floor and 26.6 from deep.
Expect Love to have a strong bounce back sophomore season with improved efficiency.
Jaden Hardy | N/A | 6'4" | 200 | G-League Ignite
Peyton Watson | FR | 6'7" | 180 | UCLA
Jaden Ivey | SO | 6'4" | 200 | Purdue
TyTy Washington | FR | 6'3" | 185 | Kentucky
JD Davison | FR | 6'3" | 195 | Alabama
Trevor Keels | FR |6'4" | 220 | Duke
Kennedy Chandler | FR | 6'0" | 170 | Tennessee
Andre Curbelo | SO | 6'1" | 175 | Illinois
Max Abmas | JR | 6'0" | 175 | Oral Roberts
Iverson Molinar | JR | 6'3" | 190 | Mississippi State
Caleb Love | SO | 6'4" | 195 | North Carolina
Chucky Hepburn | FR | 6'2" | 210 | Wisconsin
Hunter Sallis | FR | 6'5" | 175 | Gonzaga
Wendell Moore | JR | 6'6" | 215 | Duke
Kendric Davis | SR | 5'11" | 180 | SMU
Taran Armstrong | FR | 6'5" | 185 | Cal Baptist
Blake Wesley | FR | 6'5" | 180 | Notre Dame
Nolan Hickman | FR | 6'2" | 185 | Gonzaga
Alondes Williams | SR | 6'5" | 210 | Wake Forest
Kadary Richmond | SO | 6'6" | 200 | Seton Hall
Scoot Henderson | N/A | 6'2" | 195 | G-League Ignite* (2023 eligible)
Jordan Hall | SO | 6'7" | 215 | St. Joseph's
Terquavion Smith | FR | 6'4" | 160 | North Carolina State
Peter Kiss | SR | 6'5" | 200 | Bryant
WINGS
Arizona's Bennedict Mathurin had an impressive freshman season but flew under the radar as Cade Cunningham, Evan Mobley and Jalen Suggs received most of the national attention.
The 6-foot-7 Montreal native projects as an NBA 3&D wing that excels in the open floor. Mathurin's physical tools along with his sharp shooting makes him arguably the top returning prospect in college basketball.
As a freshman Mathurin averaged 10.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists while draining 41.8 percent of his 3 point attempts. Overall, he ranked in the top 91 percentile in jump shot efficiency while on his way to Pac 12 All-Freshman honors.
First year Arizona coach Tommy Lloyd will have the opportunity to coach Mathurin who many believe could've been a first round pick if he entered the 2021 NBA Draft.
AJ Griffin | FR | 6'6" | 222 | Duke
Caleb Houstan | FR | 6'8" | 205 | Michigan
Bennedict Mathurin | SO | 6'7" | 195 | Arizona
Max Christie | FR | 6'7" | 185 | Michigan State
Terrence Shannon, Jr. | JR | 6'6" | 205 | Texas Tech
Allen Flanigan | JR | 6'6" | 215 | Auburn
Jaime Jaquez, Jr. | JR | 6'7" | 225 | UCLA
Johnny Juzang | JR | 6'7" | 215 | UCLA
Ochai Agbaji | SR | 6'5" |215 | Kansas
Josiah Jordan-James | JR | 6'6" | 215 | Tennessee
Taevion Kinsey | SR | 6'5" | 185 | Marshall
Bryce McGowens | FR | 6'7" | 180 | Nebraska
Kendall Brown | FR | 6'8" | 205 | Baylor
Johnny Davis | SO | 6'5" | 195 | Wisconsin
MarJon Beauchamp | N/A | 6'7" | 200 | G-League Ignite
Tyler Burton | JR | 6'7" | 215 | Richmond
Christian Braun | JR | 6'6" | 215 | Kansas
Aminu Mohammed | FR | 6'5" | 210 | Georgetown
Dereon Seabron | SO | 6'7" | 180 | NC State
Ron Harper, Jr. | SR | 6'6" | 245 | Rutgers
Ryan Rollins | SO | 6'4" | 180 | Toledo
Keon Ellis | SR | 6'6" | 175 | Alabama
Josh Minott | FR | 6'9" | 175 | Memphis
Hyungjun Lee | JR | 6'7" | 210 | Davidson
Isiaih Mosley | JR | 6'5" | 195 | Missouri State
Maxwell Lewis | FR | 6'7" | 185 | Pepperdine
Malaki Branham | FR | 6'5" | 180 | Ohio State
FORWARDS
Prior to his freshman season at Arizona State, Marcus Bagley was mostly known as the younger brother of Marvin, the number 2 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.
It only took a few games for Marcus to make a name for himself and solidify himself as a bonafide NBA prospect. I was actually surprised that he decided to withdraw from the 2021 NBA draft to return to Tempe, after flirting with the transfer portal and being mocked as a late first round pick on a few draft boards.
At 6'8" 215 pounds, Bagley has the positional size, length, athleticism and perimeter shooting that NBA teams covet in wing.
Bagley returned as a sophomore to improve his draft stock after an injury filled freshman season where he only played 12 games. A healthy season and improved consistency from deep should make Marcus Bagley a lock to be selected in the first round of the 2022 draft.
Chet Holmgren | FR | 7'0" | 195 | Gonzaga
Paolo Banchero | FR | 6"10" | 250 | Duke
Patrick Baldwin, Jr. | FR | 6'10" | 205 | Milwaukee
Jabari Smith, Jr | FR | 6'10" | 210 | Auburn
Daimion Collins | FR | 6'9" | 200 | Kentucky
Jabari Walker | SO | 6'8'' | 200 | Colorado
Keegan Murray | SO | 6'8" | 215 | Iowa
Michael Foster | N/A | 6'8" | 250 | G-League Ignite
Jeremy Sochan | FR | 6'9" | 230 | Baylor
Matthew Mayer | SR | 6'9" | 225 | Baylor
Marcus Bagley | SO | 6'7" | 215 | Arizona State
Earl Timberlake | SO | 6'6" | 215 | Memphis
Justin Lewis | FR | 6'7" | 245 | Marquette
Julian Champagnie | JR | 6'8" | 215 | St. John's
Tari Eason | SO | 6'8" | 215 | LSU
Harrison Ingram | FR | 6''8" | 225 | Stanford
E.J Liddell | JR | 6'7" | 240 | Ohio State
Trayce Jackson-Davis | JR | 6'9" | 245 | Indiana
David Roddy | JR | 6'5" | 250 | Colorado State
BIGS
Auburn sophomore transfer Walker Kessler is one of the top prospects I'm looking forward to monitoring after an up and down freshman season at North Carolina.
Kessler was a highly touted recruit with an impressive resume where he was named The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Player of the Year, Mr. Georgia Basketball and Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year as a high school senior.
Last season in Chapel Hill, Kessler only averaged 8.8 minutes per game and was stuck behind Armando Bacot, Garrison Brooks and 2021 first round pick Day'Ron Sharpe, which limited his opportunities to showcase the skill set that made him a 5 star recruit.
Shortly after the season, Kessler decided to transfer close to home and play in an offense more suited for his strengths.
Jalen Duren | FR | 6'10" | 230 | Memphis
Mark Williams | SO | 7'0" | 243 | Duke
Drew Timme | JR | 6'10" | 235 | Gonzaga
Walker Kessler | SO | 7'1" | 245 | Auburn
Zach Edey |SO | 7'4" | 285 | Purdue
Kofi Cockburn | JR | 7'0" | 285 | Illinois
Moussa Diabate | FR | 6'11" | 210 | Michigan
Josh Oduro | JR | 6'9" | 235 | George Mason
Trevion Williams | SR | 6'10" | 255 | Purdue
Christian Koloko | SO | 7'1" | 230 | Arizona
Orlando Robinson | JR | 7'0" | 235 | Fresno State
Jaylin Williams | SO |6'10" | 240 | Arkansas
John Butler | FR | 7'1" | 190 | Florida State