NBA Mock Draft: Mavs Land G League Ignite Star Using 10th Pick

After selecting Jaden Hardy out of the G League Ignite one year ago, an NBA mock draft has Luka Doncic's Mavs adding an intriguing forward from the program.

DALLAS — With there still being a week until the 2023 NBA Draft Lottery, the Dallas Mavericks still do not have official confirmation on their first-round draft positioning. For now, they hold the 10th-best odds for the No. 1 overall pick. 

The likeliest of outcomes for the Mavs is to trade their first-round selection in order to add established help to pair with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. However, it remains to be seen if they will be either one of the luckiest teams in this year's lottery that moves up sharply, or if the slightly greater than 20 percent chance they lose the pick to the New York Knicks comes to fruition. 

In their latest mock draft, USA TODAY's For The Win has the Mavs using the No. 10 overall pick to select Leonard Miller of the G League Ignite. In 24 performances, he averaged 18.0 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 1.6 assists. As far as shooting splits are concerned, he shot 55.6 percent overall, 32.7 percent from deep, and 79.2 percent on free throws.

Miller, who stands at 6-foot-10 with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, has explosive athleticism, an impressive finishing ability in the paint, and defensive upside. His ball handling talent enables him to be a real threat in the open floor and effective at attacking mismatches within the half-court. 

There are a few specific traits that stand out as being intriguing from a Mavs perspective that are worth considering. Miller is proficient at attacking closeouts and with his combination of height, athleticism, and finishing touch, he could develop into adding a more dynamic element. For a team that is limited with one-dimensional threats that aren't particularly effective at re-driving, adding Miller into the mix next to Doncic would help.

There has been some upside displayed from Miller as a creator when playing out of ball screens. He has shown some intuition and talent as far as reading different reads that come with these sequences. At his height, the upside is intriguing, but at times, he gets stuck trying to do too much, leading to turnovers.

Miller enters the NBA with a thin frame, but has the tools to effectively guard multiple positions in addition to having what it takes to make weak-side low-man rotations as a rim protector. After moving Dorian Finney-Smith in part of the Kyrie Irving trade, there has been a void in these areas. However, it's challenging to receive consistent, instant impact in these areas from a rookie and Miller would be no exception.

For as much as Miller's defensive tools impress, it's important to note, there are some shortcomings with discipline in his approach on closeouts and handling crafty offensive players that use ball fakes and counter moves.   

The primary downside with Miller is his catch-and-shoot inefficiency as teams tend to sag off him when he's spacing the floor, causing him to play out of the dunker's spot more than what a team ideally would like for a non-center. Other times, there are outright failures to quickly recognize things like making the proper switch when playing in ball screen coverage.

If a team that is confident in its ability to develop shooting mechanics wants to undertake Miller as a development project, it's easy to see why it would be an intriguing option. The strengths that he could grow into realizing at the NBA level could add intriguing dimensions to a team on both ends. 

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Grant Afseth is a Dallas Mavericks reporter for DallasBasketball.com and an NBA reporter for NBA Analysis Network He previously covered the Indiana Pacers and NBA for CNHI's Kokomo Tribune and various NBA teams for USA TODAY Sports Media Group. Follow him on Twitter (@grantafseth), Facebook (@grantgafseth), and YouTube (@grantafseth).

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