NBA Draft analyst Rafael Barlowe provides insight into the names to know.
The Wizards have likely cemented a top-five pick in this June’s NBA Draft. There’s still plenty of time for prospects to raise their stock but at this point it seems like we have a pretty good idea of who will end up in their general range.
With that in mind, I had NBA Draft analyst Rafael Barlowe of NBA Big Board and the Locked On NBA Big Board podcast join me on Bleav in Wizards this week. Barlowe recently completed a mock draft that had the Wizards taking G League Ignite wing Ron Holland fifth.
Barlowe did not make that pick himself and would have taken Kentucky guard Rob Dillingham. He believes Dillingham has Darius Garland-esque upside. If that’s the case, he would certainly be an intriguing option.
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
The lottery-caliber prospects covered include: Nikola Topic, Alexandre Sarr, Zaccharie Risacher, Holland, Ja’Kobe Walter, Tyler Smith, Dillingham, Stephon Castle, Isaiah Collier, Tidjane Salaun, and Reed Sheppard. Barlowe is particularly locked into the international prospects so he provided a lot of good insight in the skillsets of Sarr, Risacher, and Salaun (who I’m particularly high on).
Photo by Aurelien Meunier/Getty Images,
We also touched on a few of my favorite sleepers in Jaylon Tyson, Ajay Mitchell, and Keyshawn Hall. All three are 6’5+ and have guard skills. Above average positional size and versatility seems like it would appeal to the Wizards new front office.
Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images
Let us know in the comments who your favorite prospects are and who you’d prefer the Wizards prioritize.