It’s been more than a week since the NBA Draft lottery was finalized, sending analysts and insiders into full gear as they gather information on how the first round of the draft could shape out this June. One of the research methods came during the NBA Combine last week in Chicago, highlighting some of the nation’s best pro prospects.
While at the combine, Tennessee star freshman Nate Ament was measured in at 6′ 9 1/2″ (without shoes) and 211 pounds. He also had a standing reach of 9′ 1 1/2″ and a wingspan of 6′ 11 1/2″.
Ament is one of the most interesting prospects in the entire class. It took him a little bit of time to find his footing during his lone year at Tennessee, but he became one of the conference’s most impactful players late in the regular season. He also got hurt late in the regular season, which limited his availability during parts of the postseason. All in all, Ament averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game last year.
ESPN’s Jeremy Woo put out a new NBA mock draft on Tuesday morning and tagged Ament at 10th overall to the Milwaukee Bucks.
“Ament was polarizing for teams all season, with some evaluators still enamored with his size and skill, while others view him as a theoretical prospect and are concerned with his struggles in college,” Woo writes. “In either case, he’s a ways away from impacting winning at the NBA level, which makes him a bit more fit-specific to teams that have minutes available and a runway to develop him. The Bucks might wind up in that position and could opt to roll the dice here.”
Milwaukee has been a fairly common early projection for Ament’s eventual landing spot. But the big thing that’ll determine the path of the Bucks’ offseason will be whether they move superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo or not. If Milwaukee winds up with another pick in the first round this June, it could shape their opinion on taking Ament with this 10th spot.
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During his freshman season at Tennessee, Ament averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 35 games. He proved to be a solid player early in the season, but he lacked some superstar moments. That was until SEC play, at least.
Starting with a blowout loss to Florida in early January, Ament’s offensive game began to solidify. That game, which took place on Jan. 10, was the start of a double-digit scoring streak that lasted through the SEC Tournament – aside from a late February game against Alabama, in which he only scored two points in 11 minutes after going down with a knee/ankle injury. As the SEC season progressed, Ament began to hunt his shot on the court. He was more assertive, more commanding, and more aggressive with his takes, whether it be from the perimeter or working to get to the foul line.
During a streak from Jan. 24 to Feb. 18, Ament went for 20+ points in six out of eight games, including 29 at Alabama, 28 against Ole Miss, 29 at Kentucky, and 29 against Oklahoma. And while he only scored 13 points on 3-of-13 shooting in the next game against Vanderbilt on Feb. 21, Ament had one of Tennessee’s most clutch late-game shots of the season to put the Vols over the top of their rivals in Nashville.
Jeremy Woo also had Felix Okpara projected to go 49th to the Denver Nuggets and Ja’Kobi Gillespie projected to go 54th to the Golden State Warriors.
Check out ESPN’s latest NBA mock draft here.
