SI:AM | Five Things to Know About the NBA Draft

For the second straight year, a Frenchman is projected to go No. 1.

Bronny James (front) is expected to provide some Day 2 intrigue at the NBA draft. / David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I’m pretty shocked at how many draft picks the Nets got in return for Mikal Bridges.

In today’s SI:AM:

🐏 Rams season preview
✉️ Tennis mailbag
🤔 Where will Klay land?

What to watch for in Brooklyn

One thing scouts and NBA executives agree on when it comes to the 2024 draft is that it’s the weakest class in years—at least at the top of the draft. Despite there being no clear favorite for the No. 1 pick throughout the pre-draft process, folks around the league think there are still plenty of quality players to be had. Here’s what to know about this year’s draft, which begins with the first round on Wednesday night and continues on Thursday with the second round.

The likely top pick

For the second year in a row, it looks like the No. 1 pick in the draft will be a Frenchman. Most mock drafts have the Atlanta Hawks taking Zaccharie Risacher with the top pick. He‘s a 6'9" small forward who is the son of a former professional hooper (Stephane Risacher). He won the French league’s Best Young Player award this season, an award previously won by Victor Wembanyama, Nicolas Batum, Evan Fournier, Boris Diaw and Tony Parker.

If Risacher goes No. 1, it would be just the fourth time in NBA history that a foreign-born player who did not play college basketball was selected first in the draft. (Yao Ming, Andrea Bargnani and Wembanyama are the others.)

Another French player, Alexandre Sarr, was at one point considered a potential No. 1 pick but is now believed to likely be selected by the Washington Wizards with the second pick. Sarr is a 7-foot center who has played in the U.S. before in the Overtime Elite league and spent last season in Australia. Sarr helped take himself out of the running to be the No. 1 pick when he canceled a planned private workout with Atlanta.

The Hawks are also said to be high on UConn center Donovan Clingan, although probably not with the No. 1 pick. Clingan could be a more likely option if Atlanta chooses to trade down in the draft.

Bronny James

The most famous player in the draft is one who won’t come off the board until the second round—if he gets drafted at all. The question of what will happen to Bronny James has been a dominant narrative throughout the pre-draft process. His father, Lebron James, had previously said that he hoped to play with his son in the NBA, although he’s been less adamant about that of late. The elder James can opt out of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers this summer and become an unrestricted free agent, which led some people to ask if a team might draft Bronny in hopes of luring his father. It’ll be worth watching whether any team tries to snag Bronny before the Lakers pick at No. 55 in the second round.

How high will Zach Edey go?

Players like Purdue’s Zach Edey are an endangered species in the NBA. Hulking centers like the 7'4", 300-pound Edey don’t really have a place in a league that favors mobile big men capable of stretching the floor. Before this season, Edey was projected as a second-round pick—or perhaps even an undrafted player. But after winning the Naismith Award as the best college player in the country for the second year in a row (the first player since Bill Walton to do that) and a strong showing at the NBA combine, Edey is now projected as a first-round pick—perhaps even a late lottery pick. He’ll still have plenty to prove in the NBA, but if he’s drafted highly, it’ll indicate that the team picking him intends to give him a real chance.

The Spurs’ big opportunity

The San Antonio Spurs’ rebuild can kick into high gear on Wednesday night. Although Wembanyama exceeded all expectations in his rookie year, the Spurs were still a terrible team, finishing next to last in the West at 22–60. Wembanyama certainly seems poised to lead a playoff-caliber team, but he needs a better supporting cast. Building that supporting cast will be aided by having two picks in the top 10 of this year’s draft. San Antonio is set to pick at No. 4 and No. 8 on Wednesday.

The Spurs’ biggest need is at point guard, making them a good fit for UConn’s Stephon Castle. Nikola Topic, an 18-year-old from Serbia, was considered among the top point guard prospects but is dealing with a partially torn ACL that could drop him down draft boards. Providence’s Devin Carter is another point guard who should be available when the Spurs pick at No. 8.

Potential trades

You’re always bound to see a few big trades on draft night. The New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets got things started on Tuesday night with the crosstown blockbuster that sent Mikal Bridges to Manhattan. Who else might look to pull off a trade?

One obvious contender to make a move is the Hawks. Atlanta is widely rumored to be exploring a trade of either Trae Young or Dejounte Murray this offseason. That, combined with owning the top pick in a draft without a clear No. 1 prospect, means a draft-day trade makes a whole lot of sense. If the Hawks are truly as high on Clingan as they’re reported to be, they might be content to trade out of the No. 1 spot and take Clingan later.

So then who might want to trade up in the draft? The Spurs at least have the assets to do so. They could package the fourth and eighth picks to vault to the top of the order. But as a team with plenty of holes to fill, they might be better off seizing this opportunity to add two top picks rather than going all-in on one player.

There’s also the potential for a real earth-shattering trade. The Houston Rockets made a strange trade with the Nets on Tuesday night in which only draft picks were exchanged. Why would they do that? Because Houston is interested in trading for Kevin Durant, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports. Even if the Rockets don’t land KD, they’re clearly gearing up to pull off a major trade of some kind.

Thompson (11) will be one of the most coveted NBA free agents this summer. / John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports

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The top five…

… things I saw last night:

5. Reds pitcher Hunter Greene puking on the mound after throwing a 95 mph pitch. He went on to surrender six runs, his most since April 10.
4. Sabrina Ionescu’s deep three.
3. Shohei Ohtani’s long home run against the White Sox. He was so caught up in watching the ball fly that he initially missed first base.
2. Mikal Bridges’s reaction to getting traded to the Knicks.
1. Mariners prospect Hogan Windish’s four-homer game in Double A.