Who Is In The Nba Draft?
Contents
The 2020 NBA Draft is finally here! We take a look at who is in the draft and where they might end up.
Zion Williamson
The New Orleans Pelicans are the lucky team that gets Zion Williamson in the 2019 NBA Draft. Zion is a 6’7″, 285-pound power forward from Duke. He is an incredible athlete and has the potential to be a once-in-a-generation player.
High school career
Zion Williamson began his high school career at Spartanburg Day School in South Carolina. He played on the varsity basketball team as a freshman, averaging 28.5 points and 11.4 rebounds per game. The following season, he averaged 32.6 points and 13.8 rebounds per game, leading his team to the state championship game.
As a junior, Williamson averaged 36.8 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, becoming the first player in South Carolina history to be named Gatorade Player of the Year three times. He led his team to a third consecutive state championship game appearance, winning the state title with a victory over Gray Collegiate Academy.
Williamson was named a McDonald’s All-American, big-time college recruit, and received offers from several Division I programs including Duke, Kentucky, UNC, South Carolina, and Clemson before committing to play for Duke University.
College career
In his one and only season of college basketball, Williamson played for the Duke Blue Devils. He was unanimously selected to the First Team All-American, and also won several other accolades including the Naismith College Player of the Year, USBWA National Freshman of the Year, Sporting News Player of the Year, and Wayman Tisdale Award (given to college basketball’s top freshman). He set several records in his lone season at Duke, including most points in a debut game, most points by a freshman in a season, and most points through 20 games by any Duke player. Williamson helped lead Duke to a 32–6 overall record and an ACC regular season title. In the NCAA tournament, Williamson averaged 21.6 points per game as Duke advanced to the Elite Eight before losing to eventual national champion Virginia.
Ja Morant
Ja Morant was born in Dallas, Texas on February 28, 1999. Morant was drafted in the second round with the 51st pick in the 2019 NBA Draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. He is the starting point guard for the Memphis Grizzlies.
High school career
Ja Morant was born in South Carolina to Tee and Jamie Morant. He has two brothers, Justin and Javon. He began playing organized basketball in fifth grade. Morant was a two-time Georgia Mr. Basketball finalist while attending Crestwood High School in Sumter, South Carolina. As a sophomore, he averaged 28.5 points, 11.0 assists, 8.0 rebounds and 3.5 steals per game en route to being named the Class AAAA Player of the Year by the South Carolina Basketball Coaches Association (SCBCA).
College career
Morant played one season of college basketball for Murray State University. In his lone season with the Racers, Morant averaged 24.5 points, 10 assists, 5.7 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game, leading Murray State to a 29–6 record and the Ohio Valley Conference championship. He was named both the AP College Basketball Player of the Year and the Naismith College Player of the Year.
RJ Barrett
RJ Barrett was born on February 14, 2000, in Mississauga, Ontario. Barrett is a Canadian professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils. Barrett was selected by the Knicks with the third overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft.
High school career
Barrett attended Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida for high school. In his junior year, he helped lead the Eagles to a perfect 26–0 season and a No. 1 ranking in the USA Today High School Basketball poll. He averaged 22.6 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.3 steals per game that season while also shooting 56 percent from the field and 42 percent from three-point range.[12] Barrett was a McDonald’s All-American,[13] Naismith Prep Player of the Year,[14] Gatorade National Player of the Year,[15] USBWA National Freshman of the Year[16], and MaxPreps National Player of the Year.[17][18][19] He was also named to the first-team Parade All-American.[20][21]
In his senior year, Barrett averaged 28.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game.[22][23] He led Montverde to another undefeated season and their second consecutive No. 1 ranking in the USA Today High School Basketball poll.[24][25] Barrett starred alongside fellow Canadians Andrew Nembhard and Simi Shittu as well as Americans Chuck Harris and Anfernee Simons on arguably one of the most dominant high school teams ever assembled.[26][27][28]
College career
Barrett played one season of college basketball for Duke. He was named a consensus first-team All-American and the Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year, and won the Naismith College Player of the Year award. Barrett averaged 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game, shooting 45.4 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from three-point range.
Darius Garland
High school career
Darius Garland began his high school career at Brentwood Academy in Brentwood, Tennessee. He then transferred to Moss Point High School in Moss Point, Mississippi for his junior year. As a senior, Garland played for the Brad Beal Elite AAU basketball team. He was rated as a five-star recruit and was ranked as the number two point guard and number 11 player in the class of 2018 by 247Sports.com.
College career
Darius Garland played collegiately for Vanderbilt. He started his college career strong, averaging 19.8 points and 3.8 assists per game through five games. However, he tore his meniscus in his left knee and missed the rest of the season.
Coby White
Coby White is an American college basketball player for the North Carolina Tar Heels of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). He was a highly rated prospect coming out of high school. As a freshman at North Carolina, White averaged 16.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He was named to the ACC All-Freshman team and earned ACC Rookie of the Year honors.
High school career
Coby White played high school basketball for The Greenfield School in Wilson, North Carolina. In his senior season, he averaged 29.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 3.1 steals per game and was named North Carolina’s Gatorade Player of the Year.[3] On January 20, 2018, he scored a then career-high 52 points in a 111–105 loss to Oakwood.[4] On February 24, he set a new career-high with 53 points in a 116–113 overtime win over Wayne Country Day School.[5][6] He helped lead Greenfield to the NCISAA 2A state championship game where they lost to Moravian Prep.[7][8]
College career
In his freshman season at North Carolina, White averaged 13.4 points, 3.5 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game. He shot 41 percent from the field and 35.1 percent from three-point range. On December 19, 2018, in a game against Ohio State, he recorded a career-high 33 points along with five rebounds and three assists in an 84–66 road win.[19] On February 27, 2019, in a 79–70 road win over Pittsburgh, he scored 30 points for his second 30-point performance of the season.[20] He was named the ACC Rookie of the Year and earned second-team All-ACC honors.[21][22] He helped lead North Carolina to the 2019 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament as a No. 1 seed in the South Region.[23] In four NCAA tournament games, he averaged 21 points and 3.8 assists per game.[24]
