1. Vernon Carey Jr, Duke
Vernon Carey Jr. is expected to go right around the Los Angeles Lakers’ selection in the 2020 NBA Draft. Tankathon ranks Carey as the 28th-best prospect in the 2020 NBA Draft while ESPN ranks him 32nd on their big board.
Carey put together some solid numbers for the Duke Blue Devils in his freshman season. Carey averaged 17.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in just 24.9 minutes per game. His per-36 minutes’ numbers are some of the best in the entire draft.
The only prospect in Tankathon’s top-40 who had more points per-36 minutes than Carey’s 25.7 was James Wiseman, who is one of the elite prospects in the draft that only played three games with Memphis this season.
The most exciting thing about Carey is his physical presence. The Lakers have utilized the size at the center position very well this season and Carey is a rookie that already has NBA size and strength.
Carey is not the most skilled big man we have ever seen and he is not someone who is going to stretch the floor or provide much finesse. However, he is someone with a noticeable physical presence that can quickly adapt to the NBA game, especially in the Lakers’ scheme.