NBA Draft: How did the experts do evaluating the 2020 Draft?

Evaluating the NBA Draft experts: Josh Cornelissen

Josh Cornelissen is a longtime writer at Hoops Habit and his opinion on prospects is based more on his knowledge of the NBA than anything else.

What I got right: I was the highest of the group on Saddiq Bey, ranking him 15th, and should have been even higher. I also agreed with John Hollinger on Paul Reed’s upside, slotting him 12th on my final board. I was high, perhaps even a little too high on Devin Vassell (5th), but he’ll probably be a top-10 player in this draft by the end.

I saw some concerns with James Wiseman and dropped him to ninth, the lowest of the five experts, and likewise dropped Deni Avdija to 13th. I placed Josh Green at 32nd, also the low point of the group, and that’s around where he would go in a redraft. Finally, I was the highest of the group on Immanuel Quickley, ranking him 34th overall, which was somehow way too low even still.

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What I got wrong: I will first acknowledge that I was not, and to an extent still am not, Anthony Edwards’ biggest supporter. I think he is a floor-raising gunner who can’t be a top-2 guy on a contender. That being said he earned a top-3 ranking in this class given his close to the season, and I ranked him the lowest of the group at 6th pre-draft. Mea culpa.

I was also too low on Patrick Williams, worried he would be asked to play the 3 with the skillset of a 4; thankfully the Bulls believed in him and put him at the 4, and he has shown enough to make it clear 14 was too low. International scouting is my biggest weakness as a casual draft analyst, and I am often too conservative (low) on international prospects; I ranked Leandro Bolmaro likely too low at 31. I was too high on Killian Hayes (2nd) and Obi Toppin (4th).

Finally, my Duke problem. I was the highest of the group on both Vernon Carey Jr. (27th) and Cassius Stanley (16th). Carey was a mistake, grasping onto a few straws when the big picture screamed that he was not a fit for the modern NBA. I’m still a believer in Stanley, although obviously not as a top-20 player, whose athleticism and motor should translate at some point.

Grade: C; I feel really good about my 10-30 range, and while I was right to drop Wiseman I filled in the top-10 with the wrong players.