New information for the 2022 NBA Draft is in short supply right now. The college basketball season is over. The NCAA Tournament Champion has been crowned. Most overseas leagues have concluded play. The G League Ignite and Overtime Elite have wrapped things up.
In a few weeks, many of the top prospects will arrive in Chicago for the NBA Draft Combine, providing the next wave of information to process. For now, the relative quiet allows for the perfect time to order one’s thoughts on this draft class.
The 2022 NBA Draft class is packed with talented prospects. In laying out the top 30, three players stand above the rest to form Tier 1 in our Big Board 1.0
What follows is the 2022 NBA Draft Big Board 1.0, a ranking of the top 30 players in the class, with short blurbs on each to provide an overview of what each player offers an NBA team. In the coming weeks, this order is sure to change, as the tape is evaluated, some players return to school and others show out at the NBA Combine and in workouts. We will also dive deeper into evaluating each player, both in future iterations of this article and elsewhere on the website.
For now, however, this is an excellent starting place. When looking at the 2022 NBA Draft, a class of prospects being maligned for a lack of stars and a lack of starters, you will see a large number of wings and forwards, the league’s most valuable commodities. That could lead to this class being better than many expect.
We’ll lay the class out in tiers, starting at the very top. Three players encompass that top group on this Big Board; which of the consensus top-4 gets left out?
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 1
1. Chet Holmgren, Big, Gonzaga
Statistically, Chet Holmgren looks to be everything you could want in a player, a big man with elite rim protection and a weaponized 3-point shot. There is an outcome where Holmgren is Rudy Gobert defensively and Dirk Nowitzki on offense; that’s obviously a best-case scenario for Holmgren, but the foundational skill set is there. The big concern is his rail-thin body, an NBA frame the league literally has never seen succeed.
2. Paolo Banchero, Forward, Duke
The draft’s best isolation scorer also happens to be 6’10” and weighs 250 pounds, or roughly 55 pounds more than Holmgren. He has an advanced bag of scoring skills, boasts a tight handle for such a tall player, and against elite defenses in the NCAA Tournament showed he can find his shot against anyone. Will he develop into a knockdown perimeter shooter? Could his good passing turn into great passing, enough to make him the centerpiece of a good NBA offense? Defensively will he hurt or help his team? These questions are present, but they are all pieces of an already impressive puzzle.
3. Jabari Smith, Forward, Auburn
There was a point during the season when Jabari Smith was No. 1 on the Big Board, and he could absolutely regain that spot over the next two months leading into the draft. He has a versatile and accurate shot that, at 6’10”, is nigh unblockable. He has a high motor, is solid defensively and can generate some offense himself. Yet what was clear among Auburn’s high-profile losses was that Smith can be taken out of a game if his teammates can’t get him the ball in advantageous situations, and he lacks the scoring “bag of tricks” of a guy like Banchero to overcome that. That ultimately makes him a somewhat dependent player, at least right now, so he slides down to No. 3.
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 2
4. Jaden Ivey, Guard, Purdue
Jaden Ivey resides in the top four of most NBA Big Boards, but almost always in that fourth spot. He stays there on this Big Board but outside of the top tier. Ivey is absolutely dynamic with the ball in his hands, with the strength to finish and a smooth jumper. What holds him back from the top tier is a shaky perimeter shot and a complete lack of effort defensively. You have to be a really special guard offensively to overcome the lack of an outside shot and defensive impact; Ivey may be that special, but those are major red flags.
5. Shaedon Sharpe, Wing, Kentucky
Shaedon Sharpe is the newcomer to the draft mix, although many expected him to enter the 2022 NBA Draft when it began to be reported that he would be eligible based on his graduation date. At 6’6″ with elite athleticism, Sharpe is the ideal prospect for the modern NBA. He has excellent length, a pure jumpshot and has grown tremendously as a passer over the past few seasons in high school. The concerns all center around Sharpe’s lack of high-end competition; he didn’t play at Kentucky, and his high-school career didn’t afford many big games. The theory of Sharpe is amazing, but it hasn’t been tested like some of the other players.
6. Keegan Murray, Forward, Iowa
One of the breakout stars of this past college season, Murray was barely on NBA radars coming into college; ESPN’s first 2022 mock draft in December of 2020 didn’t mention him in its top-60 (although its top-3 were the same top 3 as this big board, interestingly enough), and coming into this past season most were targeting Murray as an intriguing late-round sleeper. Now he is a consensus top 10 draft pick after an All-American sophomore season for the Iowa Hawkeyes forward.
Murray can score from anywhere, mashing on mismatches in the post or taking bigs off the dribble, with great balance and a sharp pullup jumper. He is a rugged defender who should be a significant asset on that end while still providing shot creation on the other end. He will be 22 before the start of the season, which may cap his upside, but he is already a really talented two-way player at a premium position.
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 3
7. Bennedict Mathurin, Wing, Arizona
NBA teams need wings who can hit outside shots and defend the opposing team’s best perimeter players. Those players stick around in the NBA and always have a job. If you can build on that, to bring some shot creation and interior scoring to the table, then you become the kind of player who elevates a team to greater heights. Bennedict Mathurin took a big step forward this season, improving as a scorer. If his defense , which slipped some this year as he took on a major offensive role, comes back as he settles into a lower rung on an NBA pecking order he could be a highly valuable and scaleable player.
8. A.J. Griffin, Wing/Forward, Duke
A.J. Griffin was once in play for the top pick in this draft, but then multiple significant lower-body injuries knocked him out of basketball for nearly two years and seem to have sapped some of his athleticism. Even so, Griffin was one of the best shooters in the country this season, and he still has the skill set of an offensive engine with scoring and ball-handling. If he can regain most of that athleticism then he could still be a focal-point star; if not he will be a knockdown shooter, giving him a high floor as a prospect.
9. Tari Eason, Forward, LSU
The first eight players on this Big Board are likely in every major draft pundit’s top 10 or so, but here is the first deviation from consensus as Tari Eason leaps up to ninth. The LSU forward did it all for the Tigers this season, scoring 16.9 points on strong efficiency while adding 3.1 “stocks” (steals and blocks) per game. He played a lot of smallball center in college but has enough skill to slide to the perimeter, and his relentless play on both ends of the court will translate to helping his teams win. He lacks polish, is foul-prone and doesn’t have a tight handle, but the first two will come with experience and the latter just means he can’t be a team’s No. 1 option. A team that takes him and plugs him into an established offensive hierarchy will get a major return on investment.
10. Dyson Daniels, Guard, G-League Ignire
We depart the hallways of the NCAA for the top G-League Ignite prospect in this class, 6’6″ guard Dyson Daniels. One year after Josh Giddey gave his draft class an elite “big” playmaker the 2022 group gets the same in Daniels. He can make advanced reads with the ball in his hands and manipulate defenders, and his tight handle allows him to navigate his way through a defense until he is ready to dime-up his teammate. Defensively he is long and knows exactly where to be. The issues are that he lacks any sort of outside shot and isn’t an elite athlete; that combination makes it very difficult to see him as a high-level scoring threat at the NBA level.
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 4
11. Jeremy Sochan, Forward, Baylor
This draft’s version of the “big wing who can’t shoot” is Jeremy Sochan, who at 6’9″ is one of the draft’s best defenders. He rebounds, passes and finishes extremely well. The problem for taking Sochan too high is his complete lack of a shot, either from the perimeter, mid-range, post or free-throw line. He isn’t going to create his own shot; that makes him a poor fit on a team where he needs to score, but a ceiling-raising prospect on a team that just needs him to do the “glue” things. Think of Aaron Gordon in Orlando vs in Denver; Sochan needs to find his Denver to be fully realized.
12. Ochai Agbaji, Wing, Kansas
The NCAA Tournament Final Four Most Outstanding Player (say that five times fast), Ochai Agbaji developed from a defensive role player to a 3-and-D prospect to the offensive engine of last year’s Kansas team. His shooting was streaky year-to-year and even game-to-game in college, but if he can consolidate his development there he projects as an excellent high-end role player. If the shot deserts him he could struggle to find his place, which makes him a risky lottery pick.
13. Mark Williams, Big, Duke
Mark Williams is unlikely to develop a 3-point shot, or unleash a bag of tricks in the post. Williams is the ultimate role player on offense, setting hard screens and stretching a defense vertically with his athleticism and finishing ability. Defensively he is perhaps this draft’s best rim protector, with a massive wingspan and excellent instincts. At worst he is a rotation center for a long time; at best he is Jarrett Allen, who just made an All-Star Game.
14. Jalen Duran, Big, Memphis
Jalen Duran was once thought to be an elite defensive center with the offensive skillset to be something of a hub on that end; then his freshman season happened, and both ends of the court were eroded somewhat. He came through as a shot-blocker, absolutely destroying opponents who tried to score inside. Yet out on the floor he was somewhat slow-footed, he got lost easily and he was quick to foul. On offense he was an elite finisher, similar to Williams, but struggled when asked to do more. He is not Joel Embiid; the question is whether he is Robert Williams or JaVale McGee.
15. Johnny Davis, Guard, Wisconsin
This is incredibly low to have one of the best scorers in college basketball last season, but there are some glaring warts to Johnny Davis’s NBA profile. The good: Davis is an excellent tough shot-maker, he rebounds well for his size (6’5″) and played hard on defense. The bad: Davis’s lack of athleticism held him back from being a true stopper on defense, and that was against Big 10 guards. The bigger flaw is he was a wildly inefficient scorer, putting up stats on volume. The NBA eats alive middling athletes who can’t gain an advantage and just try to score over good defense. Davis could surprise again and become a great NBA scorer…but there is a lot stacked against him.
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 5
16. Malaki Branham, Wing, Ohio State
Few expected Malaki Branham to be at Ohio State for just one year, but he had a breakout freshman season and played his way at least into the first round; many would take him in the lottery. He was a knockdown shooter for the Buckeyes, with an 82.6 percent mark from the free-throw line to back it up. Great at attacking advantages and scoring, although he isn’t a great passer. Defensively he was everywhere, with both strength and lengths to defend multiple positions. Branham is one of the players who continue to rise up draft boards because he fits what talent evaluators are looking for.
17. Kennedy Chandler, Guard, Tennessee
Kennedy Chandler is fast, with and without the ball, and speed translates to the NBA. He shot a solid 37.2 percent from deep and has a smooth jumper in the midrange too, where he can slither his way into openings and hit the pull-up shot. He also plays well off-ball, cutting into space or repositioning on the perimeter. Defensively he flies around the court, snagging steals (2.1 per game) and generally getting in the way. The problem will be whether he can hold up at a small six-foot, and whether that shot improves or proves to be inconsistent.
18. TyTy Washington, Guard, Kentucky
TyTy Washington came into his freshman season at Kentucky and looked really good at first, but struggled as the season went on. Was that due to the lingering effect of injuries or because defenses figured him out? He is not a great athlete so he relies on crafty moves to find space; that part of his game is advanced, but it doesn’t give him much to fall back on. He was a really good passer and his length translates on defense, but he was also a really poor and infrequent perimeter shooter.
19. Ousmane Dieng, Wing, Breakers
Our second prospect from Oceana, the 6’10” New Zealand forward is one of the most intriguing prospects in this class. He has guard-like ball-handling despite his height, and he loves to probe a defense and either find space to pull up for a jumper or hit a teammate cutting to the rim. The problem is that when he calls his own number he rarely succeeds in scoring; he shot an abysmal 21.3 person from deep this season, He finished strong in his NBL season and his defensive upside is a significant plus, so it’s not unreasonable to think a team will take a shot on him even as high as the lottery.
20. E.J. Liddell, Forward, Ohio State
Very few juniors make their way into the NBA Draft pool; freshmen and seniors tend to dominate the list of prospects. E.J. Liddell is that rare junior who blossomed as a sophomore, returned to school to improve his NBA draft stock, and now enters the draft as a likely first-round pick. The 6’7″ forward is big (240 pounds) and strong, one of this class’s better defenders both inside and on the perimeter. His shooting is improved but not great, and while he is a good passer he doesn’t do as well passing on the move. A good outcome for Liddell is to play a role similar to Grant Williams at the next level.
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 6A
21. Kendall Brown, Forward, Baylor
Athleticism absolutely matters in the NBA, perhaps more than any other single trait. That’s why Baylor’s Kendall Brown still has a shot to be selected in the lottery. He explodes to the rim both to finish and catch lobs, and he is a great cutter who can catch and pass again if he doesn’t have the angle. He has all the tools defensively but no consistency, and his shooting was theoretically “good” in college (38.9 percent) but on a tiny number of attempts. That will be the swing skill that determines if he is a starter or an overseas player five years from now.
22. Patrick Baldwin, Wing/Forward, Milwaukee
Patrick Baldwin was one of the top players in his high school class, but every year there is a player or two who absolutely plummets in draft stock after an abysmal freshman season; some of those bounce back once they reach the NBA (Cole Anthony, perhaps B.J. Boston) and others do not (Harry Giles). Baldwin played for his dad at Milwaukee rather than choosing a larger school (he was connected with Duke) and that was a mistake for everyone, as Baldwin suffered through injuries and inconsistency all season and his father ended up fired. That balance between potential and production lands Baldwin around here, in the final third of the first round.
23. Christian Braun, Wing, Kansas
If Ochai Agbaji was Kansas’ best player in the NCAA Tournament, Christian Braun was the gun who went off when the Jayhawks needed him to during their title run. He is an excellent athlete, which he leverages at both ends of the court, and has a solid shooting stroke even if his percentage has fluctuated each year. He looks like a classic 3-and-D wing, with a sliver of upside to become something more if things work out.
24. Wendell Moore, Wing, Duke
Scoring? Passing? Rebounding? Defense? Leadership? Wendell Moore offers all of that and more, a player who can do everything even if he isn’t truly elite at any one thing. The Duke wing is another junior who improved his stock in his third season, becoming one of the leaders of a FInal Four team. If his shot is as improved as it looked this season he’s a steal at 24, as he otherwise can do whatever is needed to win.
25. Blake Wesley, Guard/Wing, Notre Dame
Blake Wesley was relatively unheralded coming out of high school, in large part because of the impact COVID had on AAU and recruiting. He has the handle and passing to be at least a secondary creator, and at 6’5″ he could survive off-ball. His shooting left much to be desired, with poor mechanics and just a 31.8 percent percentage despite plenty of attempts. He is a good defender with length and has a chance to develop into a starter in the right ecosystem.
NBA Draft Big Board 1.0: Tier 6B
26. Nikola Jovic, Forward, Mega
Playing on a high-profile European club in Mega Basket it was tougher for Nikola Jovic to get minutes than a top prospect in college, but the 6’10” forward still managed to average solid numbers as something of a point forward, able to operate both sides of a pick-and-role. His shot is terrible right now, from the perimeter and as a finisher, and his defense waxes and wanes. The potential is there for Jovic to become something special or something untenable for an NBA rotation.
27. Walker Kessler, Big, Auburn
Looking for the draft’s best shot-blocker? It’s probably Walker Kessler, who averaged 4.5 blocks per game as a sophomore at Auburn. That’s right, 4.5 blocks. Kessler is essentially the archetype of a drop big who walls off the paint, sets screens on offense and finishes well. His shooting is poor, but he did show flashes of being able to handle the ball a little in the short roll, or facilitate from the elbow, if asked to do those things at the next level. Jakob Poetl represents the archetype he is projecting into, but given his work ethic and development already he could become something more.
28. Bryce McGowens, Guard, Nebraska
Despite playing at Nebraska, Bryce McGowens was able to catch the eye of draft evaluators by making high-level plays at the rim and in transition thanks to his elite athleticism and tight handle. His form is good but the shot was inconsistent; it’s reasonable to project it out but not a given. Defensively he has length and size at 6’7″ but needs to be consistent in applying those to be a true two-way player.
29. Jake LaRavia, Forward, Wake Forest
Jake LaRavia’s Wake Forest teammate, Alondes Williams, won ACC Player of the Year and is also in this draft pool, but it’s the 6’8″ forward who is rising up draft boards. A below-average athlete, LaRavia makes up for it with elite skills; he is a great passer, has a high basketball IQ and has an outside shot that should become a true weapon. His defense will need to come along, and there is plenty of downside risk too; he’ll hang around the fringe of the first round here likely for the rest of the pre-draft process.
30. Jaden Hardy, Wing, G-League Ignite
Jaden Hardy is one of the most polarizing prospects in the 2022 NBA Draft, with some outlets placing him in the late lottery and others out of the first round altogether. His shot creation is clearly special, with a smooth handle and confidence shooting from anywhere. The problem is that he did shoot from anywhere, proving unable or unwilling to recognize a bad shot. Hardy shot just 26.9 percent from deep in the G League. Some high-volume chuckers improve when an NBA team forces them to be more selective; most do not, and are on their way out a few years in. That’s the hesitancy with Johnny Davis further up the board, and with Hardy here.
There you have it, the top 30 prospects in the 2022 NBA Draft. This list will change over the next 7 weeks as more tape is evaluated and as prospects take part in the NBA Draft Combine and workouts with teams. This group is wide open and draft night could be a wild ride.