BOISE, IDAHO – MARCH 05: Cedric Coward #0 of the Eastern Washington Eagles slam dunks in the second … More
The NBA Finals are over, which means we shift our focus to the NBA Draft, the two events separated by mere days, instead of weeks.
While most are aware of the top prospects projected to go in the top five, there is considerable talent to be found in the mid-to-late lottery, and even outside of it.
Over the next few days, we’ll be looking at nine players, broken down into bigs, guards, and wings, who could be seen as draft day steals down the road.
Today, we take a look at wings.
You can check out the big man piece here.
Cedric Coward, Washington State
A late riser, Coward has the size (6’7), athleticism, shooting upside, and defensive prowess to make the NBA as a rotational wing. He’s expected to go anywhere from the late lottery to the late teens.
Yes, the sample size of just six games is insanely small, but he did play 32 games last season, where his numbers (15.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 38.3 3FG%) didn’t deviate from the numbers from this year, which should hopefully be an indicator of consistency.
Coward is closing in on 22 years old already, so while it’s probably fair to say he doesn’t have endless potential, there is a chance he at least could enter the NBA as a steady presence, and maintain that for a handful of years.
Nique Clifford, Colorado State
Clifford is another older prospect, as he’ll turn 24 right around next year’s trade deadline. He’s expecting to land between just outside of the lottery, and could even find his name called in the mid-20’s if the age bit becomes too big of a distraction for teams.
As for his game, Clifford is polished, and a box score stuffer. The defensive active wing scored 18.9 points, grabbed 9.6 rebounds, and dished 4.4 assists this season, while improving his three-point shot (37.7%).
Whether he’ll ever become a starter at the NBA level is a fair question, but he should be a reliable backup, who in theory can play up three positions, thus allowing him more minutes. The consistency of the perimeter shot will be his swing skill.
Liam McNeeley, Connecticut
While his efficiency was poor in his freshman season, there’s nothing fundamentally wrong with his shot execution, making him someone with perimeter scoring upside.
McNeeley also rebounded at a fair clip (6.0 per contest), and would often out-fight larger opponents, which shows some assertiveness that’ll be necessary at the NBA level.
The 19-year-old is expected to get chosen in the 20’s, and could probably drop even more if teams don’t buy the shot. But at his age, and with his shot mechanics, there could be a steal in him.
Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.