Re-Drafting Ja Morant, Zion Williamson and the 2019 NBA Draft | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors
Mia Horton 15. Max Strus (Originally Undrafted)
Vaulting Max Strus into the top 15 on the back of one good season may be premature, but 2021-22 was one heck of a season for him.
Strus averaged 10.6 points and 2.7 threes in only 23.3 minutes per game while shooting 41.0 percent from deep. Doing that for a contender is enough to establish him as one of the game's more interesting three-point shooters, and backing it up with similar marks in the playoffs solidifies that.
14. Grant Williams (Originally Picked 22nd)
Grant Williams has become a strong three-and-D power forward for the title-contending Boston Celtics. He has established that reputation on a brighter stage than most of the other players detailed so far.
Williams already has 46 playoff games under his belt, and he's hit 42.7 percent of his three-point attempts in those contests. The Celtics' willingness to match him up with superstars like Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant shows a lot about his defense, too.
If Williams gets a bit better off the bounce, he could become a staple in the Celtics' starting five after Al Horford retires. But his bread and butter will likely be defense and catch-and-shoot spacing for years to come.
13. De'Andre Hunter (Originally Picked 4th)
A lot of the wings and forwards you'll see from here on out lag way behind those already detailed in most advanced stats, but they get a bit of a pass due to their higher workloads.
Take De'Andre Hunter, for example. His career box plus/minus is well below average, but he's asked to do more than a lot of others in this class, particularly on defense. He spends significantly more time matched up against starting-caliber players, too.
Hunter's minuscule rebound, assist, steal and block rates are concerning, but his 13.2 points per game and career 35.9 three-point percentage as a full-time starter is encouraging.
He can add the less glamorous stuff as he continues to develop. Scoring and being trusted to defend opponents' No. 1 options is nothing to sneeze at.
12. Rui Hachimura (Originally Picked 9th)
Much like Hunter, advanced numbers are down on Rui Hachimura, but he's also spent a lot of his playing time against starters. And over the last two seasons, he's established himself as a potentially high-end floor spacer.
Last season, Hachimura hit a sizzling 44.7 percent of his threes. If you're worried about how his smaller role may have contributed to that, his 38.5 percent mark since the start of 2020-21 is still intriguing.
But that isn't all that Hachimura does offensively. His shot diet is spread out all over the floor, and he scored with above-average efficiency out of the post in 2021-22.
11. P.J. Washington (Originally Picked 12th)
Over the last two seasons, the Charlotte Hornets are plus-1.2 points per 100 possessions with P.J. Washington on the floor and minus-3.0 with him off. That impact is the result of one of the NBA's more well-rounded (though maybe not prolific) games.
Since the start of 2020-21, Washington has put up 11.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.7 threes, 1.1 blocks and 1.0 steals per game. No one matches or exceeds all six marks in that span, and the only players to clear them all in any two-year stretch are DeMarcus Cousins, Kevin Durant and LeBron James.