2023 NBA Draft Roundtable: Top Five Guard Prospects

Our staff provides their rankings for the top five guard prospects in the 2023 NBA Draft.

Each week, our staff will be diving into an interesting topic surrounding this crucial draft for the Charlotte Hornets. 

With five picks in the top 45, the Hornets really have a chance to inject some young talent into their roster and get right back into playoff contention. The options at guard this year are both polarizing and intriguing for many different reasons. 

Our staff gave their thoughts on the top five prospects in the backcourt for this year's draft.

James Plowright:

1. Scoot Henderson - G League Ignite 

It's this simple, if Scoot was draft eligible in 2022 he would have been the number 1 pick ahead of Paulo Banchero. Scoot projects to be a two-way guard who assuming his shot improves, which I think it will due to the mechanics and work ethic, can be a three-level scorer who also competes defensively. Henderson's God-given talent is also paired with a mature work ethic and has been universally praised. 

2) Ausar Thompson - Overtime Elite

The 2-time Overtime Elite MVP is the best of the Thompson twins. Ausar is much more adaptable to different situations due to his defensive versatility and ability to play both on and off-ball. I trust Ausar's shot development more, also his ability to guard bigger wings gives him a much higher floor than other guards in this range. 

3) Amen Thompson - Overtime Elite

If the shot comes along, Amen could make a few GMs at the top of the draft look silly, but will that ever happen? I'm not sure. Amen is a LaMelo-esq creative passer, it's everything else that needs work. If he can build into being a better half-court threat and be more consistent defensively, he has an extremely high ceiling. 

4) Anthony Black - Arkansas 

The stats and highlights won't blow you away, but watch full games of Black and you see all the little things he does to help his team win. The Thunder have rolled the dice on these jumbo playmakers with questionable shots (Shai/Giddey/J Williams) and have had a great deal of success. 

5) Cason Wallace - Kentucky 

A solid ball handler, good shooter, and plus defender, there's a lot to like. Unfortunately, a back injury prevented us from seeing the best of Wallace this year. You can look at that in two ways, firstly that he has a much higher upside than people think or, why is a 19-year-old having back issues? Why didn't Calipari trust him more as the lead guard? A question teams will likely have for Wallace, but this wouldn't be the first time a draft prospect underperformed at Kentucky only to flourish in the NBA.

Schuyler Callihan: 

1. Scoot Henderson - G League Ignite 

Henderson, in my mind, is without a doubt the best guard prospect in this class. His ability to get to the rim, play make, and be disruptive on the defensive end sets him apart from the rest of the group. Hornets fans, get familiar with him. He could be the choice at No. 2.

2. Amen Thompson - Overtime Elite

Although both Thompson twins need to polish up their consistency on the offensive end of the floor, Amen is a little bit further ahead which is why I have him a few spots ahead of his brother, Ausar. In today’s game, teams value offense way more than ever and it’s hard to look at Amen’s game and not fall in love with it. 

3. Keyonte George - Baylor 

Defensive play is the thing that separates Amen Thompson from Keyonte George. The former Baylor guard can become more of a factor defensively, and getting into an NBA building might do the trick. Offensively, he’s gifted. He can hit shots in big moments and doesn’t need a clean look to see the ball go through the net. 

4. Nick Smith Jr. - Arkansas 

I’d like to see Smith be a bit more of a shot-creator at the next level as he averaged just 1.7 assists per game this season at Arkansas. He’s a good ballhandler for the most part, so it would increase his value in the league as an off-ball guard who can shoot the ball at a high clip while being able to handle it on occasion. 

5. Ausar Thompson - Overtime Elite

As previously mentioned, Thompson is a sharp defensive player who has the skill set to develop a decent offensive game. If he ends up in the right situation, I think he can be a quality starter for years to come.

Jon Yeager: 

1. Scoot Henderson - G League Ignite

What many believe is the best guard prospect we've had come through in years, Scoot Henderson is without a doubt the top guard in this year's draft. He has the athleticism and rim pressure ability comparable to Russell Westbrook or Derrick Rose coming into the league. He can not only get to the rim, but he is also effective at finishing in the paint as well. He is incredibly fast and is excellent in transition as both a finisher and a playmaker for his teammates. He has thrived in the pick-and-roll on pull-ups in the mid-range and finding open passing lanes. There are some concerns with his shooting stroke from deep in both catch and shoot opportunities as well as off the dribble, but there are just so many different aspects of his game to get excited about. It would be utterly shocking for him not to be the first guard off the board in late June.

2. Ausar Thompson - Overtime Elite

Speaking of athleticism, Ausar Thompson has that in spades. There is an argument to be had about whether Ausar is a guard or wing, but because of his versatility on both ends, I'm going to consider him as a guard prospect. The most exciting way you see his athleticism show up is on the defensive end of the floor. He has such quick feet and really good instincts to stay in front of his man in isolation situations and he has shown some flashes of being a real stopper on that end when he stays focused. He has displayed excellent passing ability and is effective at finishing at the rim, converting on over 50% of his attempts. He needs to improve on his consistency with his jump shot to really hit the ceiling he has.

3. Amen Thompson - Overtime Elite

Amen is arguably the most athletic of the three guards already listed here, and that is saying a ton given the athletes Scoot and Ausar both are. He has an elite first step and gets to the rim quickly and consistently. He has a great vertical leaping ability and that shows up often in transition with highlight-reel finishes. He has everything he needs to be an elite defensive guard and has shown a ton of flashes, but the consistency on that end is not always there. Staying locked in on defense and improving his jump shot are going to be key for him.

4. Anthony Black - Arkansas

Anthony Black is not the athlete that the first three prospects are, but he makes up for it in so many other areas. He boasted a 3.4 steal percentage and 1.8 block percentage, which is tremendous for a guard. He plays with solid effort and good instincts on that end, flashing quick hands for steals. He is really long and he uses that length to recover when he gets beat, but he has shown the quickness and toughness to stay in front of his man as well. He is a solid passer and has the ability to make extremely quick and difficult reads. He got to the foul line at an impressive rate during his freshman season, obtaining a .578 free throw rate per Sports Reference. As is the case with the top three guard prospects, he must improve his shooting to maximize his efficiency on offense.

5. Keyonte George - Baylor

It was an extremely tough call for who to place at five here, but I ultimately went with George over Cason Wallace because of the scoring flashes from all three levels. George has proven to be very effective as a pull-up shooter in the mid-range and from deep. He flashed some real NBA-level shot-making while playing in the best basketball conference in college basketball. He can also get to the rim and finishes strong among bigger defenders. He is a capable passer out of ball screens, but he needs to prove he can consistently make the right decision in those actions and deliver an accurate pass at the appropriate time. Even though he needs to improve his play-making, I'm incredibly optimistic about George's ceiling as a professional. At the very least, I could see him being a great scoring option off the bench because of his ability to get extremely hot, but I would bet on him to be more than that in the league.

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