NBA Mock Draft: 5 Prospects that have franchise-altering potential

Nick Smith Jr., G, Arkansas

As one of the highly-touted prospects coming out of high school, it was disappointing that Nick Smith Jr. didn’t really leave a mark during his freshman season at Arkansas. And because of an underwhelming one season in college, it’s almost impossible to predict where he’ll be selected in the 2023 NBA Draft.

Before the start of college basketball season, Smith had the talent to be a top 5 pick. Injuries and offensive inefficiency have made everything more complicated for Smith as he prepares to make the leap to the NBA. During his freshman season at Arkansas, Smith averaged 13 points on 38 percent shooting from the field and 34 percent shooting from 3-point range.

Considering that he was at one point the No. 1 high school prospect in the 2022 class, I would say that’s quite the disappointing freshman season. Despite all that, I still believe he has the potential to blossom into a star in the NBA.

And because of that, I do believe that he can have a franchise-altering impact during his career in the Association. But he’ll have to prove that. On paper, he has great size, is a good enough of an athlete, and has a natural scoring ability that few other point guard prospects do.

It’ll be interesting to look back and see how many franchise-altering prospects end up being taken in this year’s NBA Draft. But there are several in this class that will certainly have the potential.