Ranking and projecting the top 24 NBA Draft prospects with a 5-tier system

23. Noah Clowney, Big, Alabama

Noah Clowney is an interesting prospect. His numbers don’t pop off the screen immediately, yet analytical models absolutely love him. The reason why is there’s more to his game than simple counting stats.

First, Clowney is good at all of the traditional big man skills, as he is a great rim finisher and a strong rebounder. He’s also a good rim protector, though he wasn’t allowed to do this that often playing next to Charles Bediako.

Second, He is a mobile big who can defend in space and has legitimate upside as a long-distance shooter. He took 120 threes at Alabama and shot 64.9% from the free-throw line. If he becomes a good three-point shooter, he could be an incredibly valuable two-way player who gives teams a lot of versatility in the way they build their roster and set their lineups.

24. Jaime Jaquez Jr., Wing, UCLA

Jaime Jaquez Jr. is a big wing with a well-rounded skillset on both ends of the floor. Offensively, he is a solid scorer who dominates opponents as a mid-range shooter and can finish at the rim at a decent level. He’s also a solid passer who makes good decisions with the ball in his hands.

Defensively, he is a good rebounder who wreaks havoc and generates steals and blocks at a high rate. To make things even better, his defensive impact metrics in college were very strong during his last two seasons.

Jaquez was a great college player, but there are a few reasons to believe he won’t translate to the next level. First, he isn’t a good three-point shooter, and he primarily relies on mid-range jump shots. That makes his fit in modern offenses a bit tricky. Second, he is not a great athlete, which means his rim-finishing and overall defensive output may not translate to the NBA.

These are significant issues to consider, but Jaime Jaquez Jr. is simply too good to ignore. I’m willing to bet on him succeeding in the NBA.