Ranking and projecting the top 24 NBA Draft prospects with a 5-tier system
By Ryan McCrary
9. Dereck Lively II, Big, Duke
Dereck Lively II is a fascinating prospect, and your opinion of him will likely depend on how much you value centers and what skills you value at the position.
Lively is one of the best rim protectors in the 2023 NBA Draft, as he utilizes his 7-foot-7 wingspan to erase shots at an incredible rate. He’s also a fantastic offensive rebounder who dominates the glass on that end of the floor.
Many people will overlook him because he averaged just five points per game as a freshman, but he has legitimate skill on offense. Last season, he shot 72.1% inside the arc, and he showcased decent playmaking ability, averaging more assists than turnovers.
Dereck Lively II is not a flashy prospect, and he won’t fill the stat sheet as a scorer. This means he likely won’t become a superstar, but we’ve seen centers with this skill set have great success in the NBA (i.e., Rudy Gobert and Walker Kessler). If his passing continues to develop, he could become a pretty good two-way player.
10. Gradey Dick, Wing, Kansas
Gradey Dick is a tall 6-foot-8 wing who can light it up from behind the arc and provides value as a secondary playmaker and off-ball defender.
Dick is one of the best shooters in the draft, and he crushes opponents with his three-point shooting off the catch. He also has a very high free throw rate which signals that his elite three-point shooting at Kansas will translate to the NBA.
He’s also a decent playmaker. While his assist numbers aren’t overly impressive, he can make good reads quickly, and he does a great job limiting turnovers.
Defense is the weakest part of his game as he struggles to defend on-ball at times. However, he is pretty good at defending off-ball as he generates steals at a solid rate.
Gradey Dick doesn’t have the profile of a future star. He isn’t a great ball handler, his passing ability isn’t special, and his athleticism is just ok. However, his skillset translates to the NBA seamlessly, and he is good enough on both ends of the floor that there’s a chance he overperforms expectations and has a higher ceiling than we realize.