The 2023 NBA Draft is a month away, meaning teams are doing their due diligence on the top prospects available to make the leap to the next level. We’re doing the same here at Hoops Habit.
While this draft class is dominated by one superstar prospect, there are plenty of gems to be mined behind Victor Wembanyama. NBA teams are always in need of point guards to command the floor and there are a handful of good to great ones available this year.
For this list, we’re going to try and stick to true point guards as much as possible, evaluating skills such as distributing, defense, and scoring. The game f basketball is less reliant on positions than ever before, but a consistent floor general remains vital – not to mention, hard to come by.
Who are the five best point guards available in the 2023 NBA Draft?
The NBA Draft Combine may have had an impact on the incoming class, both in terms of risers and fallers, though the impact is not nearly as strong as the combine the NFL hosts every year. There are still decisions to be made for college students who have maintained their eligibility, too.
The point guard that tops this list probably won’t be much of a surprise to those following the draft. The only question is whether or not he’ll be the second or third overall pick, particularly after a campaign that wasn’t seen by many.
Here are the five best point guard prospects in the 2023 NBA Draft.
NBA Draft Point Guard #5: Marcus Sasser, Houston
The Houston guard has been one of the best players in college basketball for several seasons. While his ceiling is up for debate, he should be a solid rotation player for years to come.
Marcus Sasser was an All-American last year, averaging 16.8 points and 3.1 assists per game. He also won AAC Player of the Year. Over the course of his collegiate career, he hit 36.9 percent of his three-pointers.
Sasser should be able to translate into a decent three-point shooter at the NBA level. He may even be a 3-and-D type, able to defend at an aggressive clip in the league. He’s a player who makes winning plays and inspires confidence in his teammates to perform well.
There are valid questions about Sasser’s distribution abilities at the next level. His assists total from last season, while unfavorable in the NBA, isn’t bad by college basketball standards. His 3.6 assists per 36 minutes leave something to be desired, though, as does his 0.75 assist percentage to usage rate ratio.
The big concern among teams about Sasser is his age. He’s already 22 years old and will have turned 23 by the time the 2023–24 season begins. That shouldn’t be a disqualifying factor, but being years older than some of the top prospects will inhibit his stock.
Projections for when Sasser will be picked run the gamut, but it seems like a late in the first round or early in the second round is the safest bet. While that doesn’t sound like a great spot for a point guard expected to be one of the best in his class, teams shouldn’t sweat it—just look at fellow early second-rounder Jalen Brunson.
NBA Draft Point Guard #4: Jalen Hood-Schifino, Indiana
Outside of having a great name, Jalen Hood-Schifino also has a great game. He probably could’ve elevated his draft stock if he stuck around in Bloomington for another season, but the Indiana Hoosiers’ one-and-done player is still an intriguing prospect.
Hood-Schifino arrived at Mike Woodson’s program with plenty of hype and lived up to it. He averaged 13.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game, winning Big Ten Freshman of the Year accolades.
Hood-Schifino’s most intriguing attribute may be his measurements. While playing in the style of a point guard, Hood-Schifino is big for the position at 6-foot-6 with a 6’10” wingspan, enabling him to be more physical on the defensive end with competing guards.
He’s also really strong in pick-and-roll. He has the basketball acumen to make the right pass if it’s open, but he can also pull up and shoot from the mid-range or from three, albeit with less consistency from the latter—he hit 33 percent of his threes last year.
His size hides a lack of explosiveness seen in some of the NBA’s quicker guards, like Ja Morant or De’Aaron Fox. It would be useful for him to develop some explosiveness, but not at the expense of his size and physicality, which are his keys to a long professional basketball career.
Hood-Schifino should be a good sleeper for a team in the middle of the first round. He could use more polish, but his size and ability in the pick-and-roll should prove crucial for a career that should be more akin to that of a lottery pick.
NBA Draft Point Guard #3: Nick Smith Jr., Arkansas
Nick Smith Jr. is one of the more polarizing prospects in this year’s draft. Once viewed as a surefire lottery pick, injuries, and inconsistent play have made his stock more uncertain.
Smith was part of a highly-prized recruiting class for the Arkansas Razorbacks this season. A knee injury kept cropping up, however, limiting play for about half the season. He averaged 12.5 points per game and put up pedestrian assist numbers.
Teams are going to have to evaluate Smith knowing that the knee injury was a factor. He was able to play during the latter part of the season, but he didn’t look as shifty as he did at the high school level. One has to hope he’ll regain some of that ability over time.
Defense was also a bugaboo for the Razorbacks this season. Again, injury or something else? These are the questions Smith is trying to answer during the pre-draft process.
It would be a shame if Smith fell in the draft because of an injury-marred season. It can’t be discounted, but this is still a player who was an offensive disruptor during his younger playing days. He’s not that far removed from that.
Smith might be better suited as a combo guard or shooting guard, and he’s tall enough to fill that spot at 6-foot-5. But with some refined passing, his ability to score from all three levels could make him an interesting play at the point.
The projections for Smith are all over the place in terms of mock drafts, but it serves him well that he’ll be a relatively fresh 19-year-old come draft night. He could go anywhere from the late lottery to the late first round, and there’s at least a chance he’ll go after Hood-Schifino.
NBA Draft Point Guard #2: Cason Wallace, Kentucky
A former five-star recruit for John Calipari, Cason Wallace didn’t necessarily blow up the way some Kentucky Wildcats freshmen do. That should be no matter for Wallace, however, who looks like a lottery pick.
The 19-year-old started 32 games for the Wildcats this season, averaging 11.7 points, 4.3 assists, and 3.7 rebounds per game. He was a respectable 34.6 percent shooter from three, something he’ll look to improve on at the next level.
There’s a rather obvious role for Wallace to play in the NBA if he does become a better shooter. He could easily be the prototypical 3-and-D guard, as he loves to get after it on the defensive end and make life miserable for opponents.
He’s built to be able to keep doing that. He’s a strong 6-foot-4, steady on his feet while being able to shuffle both his hands and feet quickly. Wallace should be able to guard at least three positions on the court.
The bones of a good jumper are there for Wallace. His release is quick, and his movement on the offensive end of the court is fluid. There just needs to be some better consistency and shot selection, which are fair criticisms of a player so young.
His ability to drive and kick out is also appropriate for a future rotational point guard. He’s able to make plays and set up good shots for teammates, at times relishing the opportunity to help one of them become the star.
There’s a chance Wallace slips past the lottery, but that seems unlikely at this point. His ceiling is probably midway through the lottery, around No. 7 or No. 8.
NBA Draft Point Guard #1: Scoot Henderson, G League Ignite
Who else did you think it would be? While the conversation about Scoot Henderson being the first overall pick seems to be over, the debate about him being the best point guard in this draft class is, too.
While smaller than some of his counterparts on this list, Henderson is built like a point guard and can withstand the physicality of the NBA. He has measured 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, with a 6’9″ wingspan.
From a statistical perspective, Henderson dominated the G League last season. He averaged 16.5 points, 6.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.1 steals per game.
As an athlete, Henderson is shifty and explosive, able to quickly blow by defenders with a single step. He knows how to find open teammates and has no issue making the right decisions when driving to the hole. His speed and pull-up mid-range jumper also make him a pick-and-roll menace.
There’s really only one issue with Henderson’s game. It’s an important one for him to reach his potential at the next level, though: his three-point shooting.
Henderson was atrocious from three last season, hitting a meager 27.5 percent of his threes. His athleticism and elite ball skills can obscure issues, such as defenses sagging off of him on the perimeter, but his ceiling will be capped if he can’t figure it out; he’s in no danger of becoming Ben Simmons, though.
Whether or not Henderson goes No. 2 or No. 3 is a matter of team preference. There will be a very active debate in the Charlotte Hornets front office regarding Henderson’s ability to play alongside LaMelo Ball; Charlotte holds the second pick.
But there’s no question where Scoot Henderson lands on the point guard pecking order in the 2023 NBA Draft: No. 1.