Ranking the 10 best lockdown defensive prospects in the 2023 NBA Draft

Best Defensive Player #8: Jordan Walsh, Arkansas

Despite their success in the offseason with both high school recruiting and the transfer portal, the Razorbacks fell a bit short of expectations. The team was a preseason top ten team, but after a number of injuries hit the roster hard, Arkansas was lucky to upset Kansas on the way to getting bludgeoned by Connecticut.

While Anthony Black emerged as a draft prospect and Nick Smith Jr. watched his star dim due to his knee ailment, Jordan Walsh was shunted off into a smaller role than projected. Even with fewer minutes and touches on offense, Walsh’s great frame, athleticism, and defensive tools shone bright enough to lead to him staying in the 2023 draft:

The appeal of Walsh is that he’s already a good defender and he’s barely scratched the surface of his game at any level. If an NBA feels confident in his tools on the perimeter growing at the same rate as his offense, they could take him in the later first-round, but it’s likelier that Walsh will be a second-round swing by a team that’s banking on his athletic gifts and defense.