After one season at Tennessee, former Vol star Nate Ament is officially heading to the NBA. The freshman wing announced his draft declaration through a lengthy social media post on Thursday night, thanking his teammates, his coaching staff, and the fans from his time on Rocky Top.
During his lone campaign with the Volunteers, Ament averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists for Tennessee in 35 games. He continued to improve throughout the season and ended the regular season as one of the SEC’s best players. While Ament was limited with an injury during the SEC and NCAA Tournaments, he still helped lead the Vols to the Elite Eight back in March.
The 6-foot-10, 207-pound prospect will be an interesting study in the draft because of his future potential and ceiling. While Ament may not have fully lived up to extremely lofty preseason projections, he did show that he could figure things out on the fly over the course of the season. The biggest improvement that Ament had was his aggressiveness and willingness to hunt his shot on the offensive end of the court.
The deadline to enter the NBA Draft is Friday, which means that a full new round of NBA Mock Drafts is surely just around the corner when the class locks in. But there have been a handful of mocks released this week to give an idea on Ament’s range moving forward. It’s not a stretch to say that we should get more clarity on his positioning in the coming weeks as NBA Draft prep moves into overdrive.
More From RTI: What Tennessee Basketball’s Nate Ament Said In Post Declaring For The NBA Draft
These projections were all released before Ament declared on Thursday, but here’s an idea of what the early picks have been for his draft status:
Yahoo Sports‘ Kevin O’Connor (Apr. 22)
- No. 18 – Charlotte Hornets
- “If Ament stays in the draft, he could very well end up in the lottery as he was expected to prior to the season. But there’s also a strong possibility he slips. It would be hard for the Hornets to pass at this point, though. Players who can handle, shoot off the dribble and stand at 6-10 don’t grow on trees. This physical foundation kept Ament in lottery consideration even after a dreadful start to his freshman season when he struggled to score efficiently and make an impact defensively. But over the second half of the year for Tennessee, he flipped a switch and shots began to fall. He averaged 23.8 points over a six-game stretch in January and February that reminded everyone why he was a top recruit in the country.”
Sports Illustrated‘s Logan Struck (Apr. 22)
- No. 10 – Milwaukee Bucks
- “Nate Ament was once seen as one of the top five prospects in this class, but questions arose about his NBA outlook. While Ament had a productive freshman season at Tennessee, there are concerns about how his game will translate with a struggling jumpshot, minimal shot-creation, questionable defense, and a skinny frame. The Bucks, though, could be in a position to take the chance on Ament. If he develops well, he could be a legitimate starter with high-level offensive tools, but it remains a risky pick nonetheless.”
Bleacher Report‘s Jonathan Wasserman (Apr. 21)
- No. 13 – Miami Heat
- “Nate Ament had a mixed postseason, highlighted by shotmaking flashes, creativity, issues converting drives and struggles against physical defense. There will always be demand and patience when it comes to 6’10” wings with shoot-dribble-pass skill sets, and Ament has at least 19 made field goals in ball-screen, isolation, spot-up and movement off-screen situations. He’s getting to the line at a strong rate, yet he isn’t a black hole, averaging 2.3 assists. The case against Ament questions if the shooting will be good enough to offset projected issues around a lack of explosion and strength for turning the corner and finishing.”
USA Today – AI Projection (Apr. 22)
- No. 9 – Chicago Bulls
- There’s no analysis for the AI-generated projection from USA Today Sports. One interesting nugget about this projection, though – If Ament does wind up with the Bulls, he will begin his NBA career in the same arena that his collegiate career finished in with a win in the Sweet 16 and a loss in the Elite Eight.
ESPN‘s Jeremy Woo (Mar. 11)
*Note: This projection came before the SEC and March Madness tournaments. ESPN has not released a new mock draft in over a month.
- No. 9 – Chicago Bulls
- “He turned his season around in conference play after a slow start, averaging 19 points in 16 league games and reminding teams why he was so highly rated coming into the season. He has at times left evaluators wanting more, but checks valuable size and skill boxes that should make him a long-term NBA fixture. Whether Ament can take a star leap hinges on the evolution of his shot-creation skills. The Bulls cleared out their roster at the trade deadline and should be in a best-available mindset moving forward, with a clear need for more perimeter shooting.”
