2024 NBA Draft Grades

Live 2024 NBA Draft Grades: Round 1 – Picks 16-30
Live 2024 NBA Draft Grades: Round 2
2024 NBA Mock Draft

1.

Atlanta Hawks: Zaccharie Risacher, F, France – B Grade
This draft is so bad that the Hawks settled for a three-and-D guy with the No. 1 overall pick, and yet it’s not a terrible selection. It’s underwhelming that the Hawks couldn’t trade down, but I’d be shocked if there was any interest from anyone to move up for him.

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Washington Bullets: Alex Sarr, C, France – B+ Grade
The Hawks could have realistically drafted Zaccharie Risacher or Alex Sarr with no complaints, so it’s at least nice that the Bullets are getting the other one at No. 2 overall. The Bullets have so many holes on their roster that they just needed to draft the best player available.

Houston Rockets: Reed Sheppard, G, Kentucky – B Grade
This was expected. The Rockets have Fred Van Vleet as their starting point guard, but he’s not a young player, so it makes sense to draft a developmental player who could be a starter in the future. This is not ideal for the third-overall pick, but this draft class stinks. Sheppard can at least help with his shooting off the bench for the time being.

San Antonio Spurs: Stephon Castle, G, Connecticut – B- Grade
The Spurs obviously have their big man, but they had nothing at guard. Stephon Castle should be able to start right away, and if he doesn’t, something will have gone completely wrong. Castle is a great defender who should be a solid role player for the Spurs. However, he can’t shoot at all. That’s not ideal at No. 4 overall, but again, this draft sucks.

Detroit Pistons: Ron Holland, G, G-League – D Grade
The Pistons were trying desperately to trade this pick, but because this draft class sucks, no one really wanted the selection. Unable to trade out, Detroit panicked and traded for Ron Holland, who should have gone in the 9-12 range. Holland has some upside, but doesn’t bring much play-making ability to the table at the moment.

Charlotte Hornets: Tidjane Salaun, SF, France – B- Grade
There were reports that the Hornets traded this pick to the Grizzlies, who would select Donovan Clingan, so I’m not sure what happened. I don’t like that the Hornets couldn’t trade down, but given that they couldn’t, Tidjane Salaun is a logical pick. Salaun has a ton of upside.

Portland Trailblazers: Donovan Clingan, C, Connecticut – A Grade
Our first value pick. Donovan Clingan could have gone a couple of selections earlier without any complaints. The Blazers have coveted Donovan Clingan for a long time, so credit them for being patient and not panicking by trading up for him.

8.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Rob Dillingham, PG, Kentucky – MILLEN Grade
Rob Dillingham was a bench player in college, so drafting him at No. 8 overall is insane. Trading up for him, even more so. He has some scoring ability, but I don’t see why the Timberwolves would waste resources like this.

Memphis Grizzlies: Zach Edey, C, Purdue – D Grade
The Grizzlies tried to trade up for Donovan Clingan. They couldn’t, so they’ve committed this reach. Wow. You could argue that this deserves a Millen grade, but Zach Edey at least fills a big need. He easily could have gone 10 picks later than this.

10.

Utah Jazz: Cody Williams, SG/SF, Colorado – B+ Grade
I had Cody Williams one pick earlier than this, but I didn’t think the Grizzlies would reach for Zach Edey like they did. Williams is a good shooter with upside, so he’s a fine selection for the Jazz to fill a need.

11.

Chicago Bulls: Matas Buzelis, F, G-League – A+ Grade
What a steal. Matas Buzelis was expected to be drafted as high as No. 5 overall, so this is a steal outside of the top 10. The Bulls don’t have a viable four, so Buzelis could find his way into the starting lineup sooner rather than later.

12.

Oklahoma City Thunder: Nikola Topic, PG, Serbia – C Grade
I mocked Nikola Topic to the Thunder, but I didn’t think Dalton Knecht would be here. I thought Topic would be a fine value choice for the Thunder, but they have a billion guards, so how will he fit?

13.

Sacramento Kings: Devin Carter, G, Providence – B Grade
The Kings aren’t getting a player with much upside here, but Devin Carter should be able to play right away as a defensive specialist. This is something the Kings sorely needed, so he should be a decent role player off the bench.

14.

Washington Bullets: Carlton Carrington, G, Pittsburgh – A Grade
The Bullets only gave up Deni Avidja for this pick, so even though they traded in, they can’t be penalized for surrendering resources. Carlton Carrington is the second-best player I had available, so he’ll help Washington with his terrific shooting ability.

15.

Miami Heat: Kel’el Ware, C, Indiana – D Grade
This seems like a terrible pick. Kel’el Ware doesn’t fill a need at all, and he’s also a reach. Ware was widely projected to go in the 20s, so the Heat should have traded down if they wanted a backup defensive center so badly.

Go to Live 2024 NBA Draft Grades: Round 1 – Picks 16-30
Sorry for cutting this into two halves; I’ve received complaints about load times and putting the mock draft on two pages saves bandwidth.

Live 2024 NBA Draft Grades: Round 2
2024 NBA Mock Draft