2023 NBA Draft: What To Expect On Draft Night

After a long wait, the NBA draft is finally here. There’s a lot of unknown going into today, but let’s talk about what we should expect going into draft night.

The NBA draft begins today at 8:00 PM EST. There are still quite a few hours to go and there’s still a lot of unexpected stuff that’s likely to happen. Let’s talk about what we should expect heading into the draft.

Spurs Drafting Victor Wembanyama

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In what is the most obvious thing in NBA draft history, the San Antonio Spurs will draft Victor Wembanyama with the first overall pick. The generational prospect recently finished up his season with the Metropolitans 92 after leading them to the LNB Pro A finals. The 7-foot-4 big man led the league in points, rebounds, and blocks in a one of a kind season.

The Spurs landing Wembanyama obviously changed the future of their franchise as they lacked a clear number one option but now they have that. With key pieces in Devin Vassell, Keldon Johnson, and Jeremy Sochan they should be one of the top young cores in the NBA. They had the first overall pick two other times as they drafted one of the best centers in NBA history in David Robinson and the best power forward in NBA history in Tim Duncan. The big question remains, will Wembanyama live up to the hype?

Anthony Black Won’t Fall Past Wizards

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The Washington Wizards have now traded Bradley Beal, Kristaps Porzingis, and likely won’t bring back Kyle Kuzma so it’s obvious that the team is going into rebuild mode. They have two solid young pieces in Deni Avdija and Johnny Davis. The Wizards hold the eighth pick in the draft and it’s rumored that they’re very likely to draft Anthony Black if he happens to fall to the Wizards.

Black gives them high level playmaking, great perimeter defense, and finishing ability. The major question about the Arkansas guard is the shooting as he struggles to be a consistent threat from the outside. The 6-foot-7 guard won’t be their franchise player by any means, but it would be another nice young asset moving forward as they go into their first year in rebuild mode.

Jarace Walker To Be Drafted Top Seven

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Jarace Walker is one of the most physically imposing players in this year’s draft as he stands at 6-foot-8 with a chiseled 240 pound frame. He is a defensive minded forward that showed some enticing offensive flashes throughout the season. Walker is expected to be drafted anywhere from pick four to pick seven due to his defensive versatility, high feel for the game, and flashes of shot-making ability.

The Houston forward is mostly mocked to go fifth overall to the Detroit Pistons but it’s expected he won’t make it past the Indiana Pacers at seventh. His fit on both of those teams are a match made in heaven due to the versatility he brings to the floor and the young talented playmakers on both of those teams.

Scoot Henderson And Brandon Miller

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It’s still up in the air with what happens at the second and third overall picks in the draft, but we can confidently say that Scoot Henderson and Brandon Miller should be top three picks in the 2023 NBA draft. If the Portland Trail Blazers don’t trade the third overall pick, they’re expected to draft whoever is left between Henderson and Miller. It all comes down to the Charlotte Hornets and what happens with the second overall pick.

Do the Hornets go best player available and draft the G League Ignite guard who brings elite rim pressure, playmaking ability, and scoring versatility or do they value fit a little more and draft the Alabama wing who’s a high level shooting wing that showed shot-making versatility and secondary playmaking ability? It’s rumored that the Hornets are leaning towards Miller, but nothing is set in stone yet.

Amen Thompson Likely To Rockets

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There were rumors going around that James Harden was likely going to the Houston Rockets this off-season, but recently that died down as it looks like he will be re-signing with the Philadelphia 76ers. Rafael Stone has made it clear he plans on drafting the best player available and at this point, all the arrows point towards Amen Thompson at fourth overall.

Thompson brings once in a lifetime type of athleticism while being arguably the best passer in the draft. It’s a rare combination that people are looking over due to his shooting concerns and with him playing high school basketball. The special guard prospect would bring a ton of excitement to this team and pairing him up with Jalen Green would be box office for the franchise.

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