Brackets are filled out. Cinderellas headed the sweet 16 are selected. There’s even a first-round upset you know isn’t going to happen but just had to take anyway.
Now it’s time to start watching NCAA Men’s Tournament games — and seriously scouting for your favorite NBA team for the draft. NBA teams are way ahead of you; they have already done much of their work (they care more about interviews and medical reports from the NBA Draft Combine, as well as individual workouts, than the tournament games). That said, players can help or hurt themselves in the tournament, especially late first-round and second-round picks.
If you’re an NBA fan watching a ton of games this week, here are 15 names to keep an eye on.
Cameron Boozer, Patrick Ngongba II, Duke
Cameron Boozer has lived up to the hype — 22.5 points and 10.5 rebounds a game, leading the Blue Devils to the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. Scouts have noticed, and Boozer is firmly ensconced in the top tier of this draft and is almost certainly going to be taken in the top three. Watch him against Sienna on Thursday and you’ll see a polished player who is just good at everything: Shooting (with 3-point range), rebounding, setting picks, using angles, passing, all of it.
Boozer is the biggest name, but he’s not the only guy getting drafted out of Duke this year. Also, keep an eye on Patrick Ngongba II, the Blue Devils’ 6'11" center. There are teams that like Ngongba’s defensive presence in the paint and his passing skills as a big man. However, he is a divisive prospect because he’s not an explosive leaper, leading to questions about his ability to rebound and finish at the rim at the next level. That will matter less in the next few weeks, and he is going to get drafted in the first round because of what he can be as a defensive big man.
Yaxel Lendeborg, Morez Johnson Jr., Aday Mara, Michigan
You should get plenty of chances to watch this trio over the next few weeks, as the No. 1-seeded Wolverines expect a deep tournament run (they are my pick to win it all).
Michigan has been one of the best teams in the league because of their depth of talent — and their big man have skill. That starts with Yaxel Lendeborg, the 6'9" Big 10 Player of the Year. He plays bigger than his size because of his 7'4" wingspan and has the kind of versatility NBA teams crave: He can handle the ball some on the perimeter, and he can also defend guards out there for a stretch. The only reason he is projected as a mid-first-round pick is because he will be 24 before he sets foot on an NBA court.
Then there is Morez Johnson Jr., another 6'9" big man with a long wingspan (7'2"). Johnson has climbed up draft boards as the season wore on because he plays hard and he’s strong, allowing him to defend in the post. While he’s averaging 13.6 points and 7.4 rebounds a game for Michigan and shooting 63.5%, he’s not seen as a scorer at the next level, but he can score enough in the paint to be part of a big man rotation in the NBA next year. Then there is 7'3" Aday Mara, whose shot blocking has him in the mix for a late first/early second round selection (if he stays in the draft). Mara plays a high-IQ game and is a good passer, but his hands and foot speed have him going later than one might expect.
Darryn Peterson, Kansas
Peterson is must-watch — he’s an incredible shot creator, the best playmaker in this class and he’s averaging 19.9 points a game while shooting 38.7% from beyond the arc. Peterson may have missed time this year — and teams want to see his medical reports out of the NBA Draft Combine — but he is too dynamic to pass up, both for teams lucky in the NBA Draft Lottery and for fans watching the NCAA Tournament. He may very well go No. 1.
AJ Dybantsa, BYU
Another must-watch player — he was No. 1 in the first NBC Sports Mock Draft of the season. Dybantsa is averaging 24.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game, but what has NBA front offices drooling is that he’s maybe the best athlete in the draft as a 6'9" wing player, the archetype most in demand around the NBA right now. Dybantsa can get downhill, create space and hit tough shots when needed. He has great footwork for a young player, and a comfort level shooting contested shots. He will be put to the test in BYU’s opener against Texas or NC State (whichever team comes out of the first four game Tuesday).
Mikel Brown, Ryan Conwell, Louisville
I am higher on Brown than the consensus and have him going No. 6 overall in the first NBC Sports Mock Draft of the year (pretty much every team has him going in the top nine). The 6'4" point guard is built for the NBA game with its more spaced out floor and shooters all around him. Brown is very skilled as a scorer and shot creator, and he should show that off against South Florida in the Cardinals’ opener.
Conwell is a strong guard who can bully his way in the paint and finish, plus he can drain the 3. Conwell (who played at Xavier before Louisville) is a 22-year-old senior projected as a mid-second-round pick, but a strong showing in the tournament could help boost his stock.
Kingston Flemings, Chris Cenac Jr., Houston
Houston’s got a number of players who could be taken at one point during the draft, but these are the two must-watch guys — and for very different reasons. Kingston Flemings, the team’s 6'4" point guard, has steadily climbed up draft boards this season as he has shown an explosive first step and ability to get around people and to the rim. He’s averaging 16.5 points and 5.4 assists a game, and is shooting 37.6% from 3-point range. We have Flemings going fifth in theNBC Sports Mock Draft.
Chris Cenac Jr. has scouts divided, and he could go anywhere from the late lottery to the 20s. He’s 6'10" and very athletic, he’s shown off a nice jumper at points, and he’s thriving in his role with the Cougars. He also doesn’t get to the line very often and is not a shot blocker despite his size. Will he be able to fill that same role as a rim-running big man in the NBA? Will he go pro or decide to spend another year developing in college, then go pro? Watch and decide for yourself what he should do.
Darius Acuff Jr., Meleek Thomas, Arkansas
Darius Acuff Jr. is just a fun player to watch. Acuff can play on or off the ball, has a high motor, a good shot and a high basketball IQ. He is averaging 22.2 points and 6.4 assists per game, he is an old-school true point guard who is a great floor general but can also get a team a bucket. What keeps him out of the very top of this draft is his size (6'2") and the fact that he is the worst defender of any player in the lottery.
Meleek Thomas is the Razorback’s other guard, and he’s shown he is an explosive scorer in transition, can get to the rim and has a nice floater game. That said, most teams have him in the second round (or at best, late first), which means the 19-year-old likely will return to college for another year, but watch him because he is going to the NBA at some point.
Brayden Burries, Koa Peat, Arizona
Brayden Burries is a little old school. He isn’t flashy, but he is well-rounded and efficient, which has made him one of the real risers in this draft class. He can play on and off the ball, knock down catch-and-shoot jumpers, attack closeouts, and get downhill off screens, with a midrange pull-up game. He has a lot of fans in NBA front offices.
Peat is a bit divisive among those same front offices, and drafting him would be a bet on a team’s player development staff. There’s a lot to like, Peat is 6'8" and physical, he hits the boards hard, can do some playmaking and has enough versatility to keep teams interested. He is averaging 13.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. The question mark is his jump shot, he hit just 31.6% from 3-point range this season. A player of his size and skillset has to hit the 3 in the NBA. If he learns to do it consistently, he will earn his likely late lottery selection.