OKC Thunder: 3 bigs to have high on NBA Draft big board
By Mark Nilon
OKC Thunder draft prospect No. 3) Evan Mobley
The modern-day NBA requires a deep back of tricks for their big men to be able to tap into if they wish to stand out amongst the crowd and, throughout his one-and-done season at USC, Evan Mobley proved to have all the skills necessary, and then some, to thrive at the next level.
Though this year’s NBA Draft class is headlined by the likes of Cade Cunningham who, to many, is seemingly on a level of his own, the Trojan big is argued to be the clear-cut second-best talent coming into the league and, quite possibly, could also find himself slotted on an island of his own when it comes to this year’s prospects.
Measuring in at 7-0 with a stellar 7-4 wingspan, Mobley has the build of an absolutely menacing rim protector and proved as much during the 33 games he played in 2020-21, as he averaged a whopping 2.9 blocks per game, ranking him No. 1 in the Pacific-12 Conference in this category.
On top of this, the 19-year-old went about and stuffed the stat sheet by averaging 16.4 points (No. 8 in conference), 8.7 rebounds (No. 1), and 2.4 assists on 58 percent shooting from the floor (No. 6) and 30 percent shooting from deep.
With high-end NBA player comparisons ranging from Anthony Davis to Chris Bosh, it’s inarguable that Evan Mobley’s ceiling looks to be astoundingly high and, should he be available once the OKC Thunder find themselves on the clock, it would be quite difficult for Presti and co. to pass on the man.
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