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NBA Draft prospects playing on Thursday of the NCAA Tournament

These players range from probable lottery picks to likely G Leaguers.

Arkansas v Alabama
Nick Smith Jr. driving against Brandon Miller
Photo by Brandon Sumrall/Getty Images

On the latest Bleav in Wizards podcast, Stone Hansen of the Upside Swings podcast joined me to break down the NBA Draft prospects who will be in action on the first day of the NCAA Tournament.

In my opinion, Thursday contains both higher-level prospects and greater overall depth compared to Friday’s slate of games. I’ve also bypassed the play-in games altogether as there weren’t really any noteworthy prospects.

I will go game-by-game and list the players who are currently on the radar of draft evaluators below. For detailed analysis of each, check out the podcast.

No. 9 West Virginia vs. No. 8 Maryland | noon| CBS

Maryland: Hakim Hart, 6-7 wing, late second round to undrafted

No. 13 Furman vs. No. 4 Virginia |12:30 p.m.| truTV

Virginia: Reece Beekman, 6-3 guard, late second to undrafted

Furman: Jalen Slawson, 6-7 wing, undrafted

No. 10 Utah St. vs. No. 7 Missouri |1:20 p.m. | TNT

Missouri: Kobe Brown, 6-8 forward, second round

No. 16 Howard vs. No. 1 Kansas |1:50 p.m. | TBS

Kansas: Gradey Dick, 6-8 wing, late lottery to mid first

Kansas: Jalen Wilson, 6-8 forward, late first to mid second

Kansas: Kevin McCullar, 6-6 wing, second to undrafted

Kansas v Kansas State
Jalen Wilson and Gradey Dick both trying to steal the ball from Keyontae Johnson of Kansas State
Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images

No. 16 SE Missouri St./Texas A&M CC vs. No. 1 Alabama |2:30 p.m. | CBS

Alabama: Brandon Miller, 6-9 wing, top-3

Alabama: Noah Clowney, 6-10 forward, late first to late second

Alabama: Charles Bediako, 6-11 center, undrafted (likely goes back to school)

Alabama: Jaden Bradley, 6-3 guard, second round (likely goes back to school)

No. 12 College of Charleston vs. No. 5 San Diego St.|3 p.m. | truTV

n/a

No. 15 Princeton vs. No. 2 Arizona |3:50 p.m. | TNT

Arizona: Azoulas Tubelis, 6-11 forward, late second to undrafted

No. 9 Illinois vs. No. 8 Arkansas |4:20 p.m. | TBS

Illinois: Terrence Shannon Jr., 6-5 guard/wing, late first to mid second

Illinois: Coleman Hawkins, 6-10 forward/center, second round

Arkansas: Nick Smith Jr., 6-4 guard, lottery

Arkansas: Anthony Black, 6-7 guard, lottery

Arkansas: Ricky Council IV, 6-5 guard, late first to mid second

Arkansas: Trevon Brazile (out for season), 6-10 forward, second round

Arkansas: Jordan Walsh, second round to undrafted (likely goes back to school)

Florida v Arkansas
Anthony Black and Nick Smith Jr. talking before a game
Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images

No. 9 Auburn vs. No. 8 Iowa |6:45 p.m. | TNT

Auburn: Johni Broome, 6-10 center, undrafted

Iowa: Kris Murray, 6-8 wing/forward, mid to late first

No. 12 Oral Roberts vs. No. 5 Duke |7 p.m. | CBS

Oral Roberts: Max Abmas, 6-0 guard, undrafted

Oral Roberts: Connor Vanover, 7-3 center, undrafted

Duke: Kyle Filipowski, 6-11 forward, mid to late first

Duke: Dariq Whitehead, 6-6 wing, mid to late first

Duke: Dereck Lively Jr., 7-0 center, late first

Duke: Tyrese Proctor, 6-4 guard, second

Duke: Mark Mitchell, 6-7 wing, second to undrafted (likely goes back to school)

No. 15 Colgate vs. No. 2 Texas |7:15 p.m. | TBS

Texas: Dillon Mitchell, 6-7 forward, second round (likely goes back to school)

Texas: Tyrese Hunter, 6-0 guard, second round to undrafted (likely goes back to school)

No. 10 Boise St. vs. No. 7 Northwestern |7:25 p.m. | truTV

Northwestern: Boo Buie, 6-2 guard, undrafted

No. 16 Northern Kentucky vs. No. 1 Houston |9:15 p.m. | TNT

Houston: Jarace Walker, 6-8 forward, lottery

Houston: Marcus Sasser, 6-1 guard, late first to early second

Houston: Terrance Arceneaux, 6-5 wing, second round (likely goes back to school)

Houston v Wichita State
Jarace Walker blocking a shot against Wichita State
Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images

No. 13 Louisiana vs. No. 4 Tennessee |9:30 p.m. | CBS

Tennessee: Julian Phillips, 6-7 wing, late first to early second

Tennessee: Josiah-Jordan James, 6-6 wing, undrafted

No. 10 Penn State vs. No. 7 Texas A&M |9:45 p.m. | TBS

Penn State: Jalen Pickett, 6-3 guard, undrafted

Penn State: Seth Lundy, 6-6 wing, undrafted

Texas A&M: Wade Taylor, 6-0 guard, undrafted

No. 15 UNC Asheville vs. No. 2 UCLA |9:55 p.m. | truTV

UNC Asheville: Drew Pember, 6-10 forward, late second to undrafted

UCLA: Jaime Jaquez, 6-7 wing, late first to mid second

UCLA: Jaylen Clark (out for the season), 6-5 wing, late first to mid second

UCLA: Adem Bona, 6-10 forward/center, late second to undrafted

UCLA: Amari Bailey, 6-4 guard, late second to undrafted


Of the guys that I think are unlikely to go in the first round, I’m probably higher than consensus on Jalen Wilson, Kevin McCullar, Trevor Brazile, Drew Pember, and Jaime Jaquez. I think all could provide value to the Wizards specifically if they were available in the second round.