NBA Draft: Five under-the-radar recruits who could be one-and-done players
The 2023 NBA Draft saw players like Taylor Hendricks (No. 9 to Utah), Jett Howard (No. 11 to Orlando), Noah Clowney (No. 21 to Brooklyn), and Brice Sesnabaugh (No. 28 to Utah) jump from outside of the top 20 in the 2022 industry rankings and into the first round after just one year of college.
Things have to go just right for these players, a perfect storm of circumstance, development, spotlight, and picking up the system. However, these jumps into the first round seem to happen every draft cycle.
Here are some players to watch for the upcoming 2024 NBA Draft. Players that the industry ranked outside of the top 20 of the 2023 On3 Industry Ranking could be potential one-and-done candidates if circumstances serve the right.
2023 On3 150 | 2023 On3 Industry Ranking
Michigan State SF Coen Carr
Height/Weight: 6-6/200-pounds
High School: Greenville (SC) Legacy Early College
On3 150: No. 23 / On3 Industry Ranking: No. 32
Coen Carr is on the short list of most explosive players in the class. His in-game bounce is hard to ignore, as he brings fans to their feet on both ends of the floor. The explosive and physical attributes bring forward glowing conversations involving his defensive upside. With his size, length, and strength, Carr will have no issues guarding down a lineup. With his quickness, he should also be able to slide his feet and guard up a lineup. The defensive attributes, especially playing for Tom Izzo at Michigan State, are very intriguing.
However, Carr is more than just an intimidating athlete. He has an underrated feel for the game, along with processing ability with the ball in his hands. His Georgia Stars EYBL team and his Legacy Early College NIBC team both ran sets and actions through Carr, lined up at the top of the key or the high/mid-post areas. The three-point jump shot will need to be solidified, as the jump shooting is his swing skill. He showed vision and touch on his passes. He is also an excellent off-ball cutter.
Duke PG Caleb Foster
Height/Weight: 6-5/200-pounds
High School: Sherman Oaks (CA) Notre Dame
On3 150: No. 20 / On3 Industry Ranking: No. 20
Duke is loaded this season, there is no denying that. And for Caleb Foster to shine, things are going to have to break right for the 6-foot-5 point guard. However, there is no denying the skill set that Foster possesses. At 6-foot-5, he is a smooth shooter, knocking down 44.4 percent from three during Nike’s Peach Jam last year. While Foster was not ranked outside of the top 20, he was No. 20, the reigning MaxPreps California Player of the Year was not named to the McDonald’s All-American game, so I made an exception to put him on this list.
He has good court vision and plays with excellent pace with the ball in his hands. Foster is an excellent pitch-ahead passer and is equally adept at moving the ball around as he is at scoring. He is at his best when in a situation to do both.
With his physical attributes and his skill set, Foster is capable of playing on or off the ball. A lot of eyes will be on Jeremy Roach and Tyrese Proctor in the backcourt, and Foster will have to share minutes with fellow freshman Jared McCain; however, Foster is a noted competitor, and the skills are very intriguing looking toward the NBA Draft.
Rutgers SF Gavin Griffiths
Height/Weight:6-8/195-pounds
High School: West Hartford (CT) Kingswood-Oxford High
On3 150: No. 33 / On3 Industry Ranking: No. 43
Gavin Griffiths is a noted sharp-shooter, and basketball has a good track record in the NBA Draft with 6-foot-8-plus players who can really shoot the ball. Griffiths fell under the radar because of an injury he suffered toward the end of his junior year. Griffiths missed multiple months recovering after being poked in the eye, it took him a few months after that to regain his strength and balance, as well as get used to playing in goggles.
As his senior season progressed, Griffiths continued to pick up right where he left off. He has positional size, with good length and sneaky burst toward the rim. As he continues to add on weight, he has the mindset and the frame to be a solid positional team defender. He plays with toughness and brash confidence. And then there is the shooting. Griffiths is capable of stepping into his shots, knocking down jumpers off two-dribble pull-ups, and getting set and shooting off movement. How quickly he gets caught up to the speed of the game and becomes familiar with his teammate will play a role here, but Griffiths checks a few boxes.
Louisville SF Trentyn Flowers
Height/Weight: 6-8/190-pounds
High School: Lincolnton (NC) Combine Academy
On3 150: No. 29 / On3 Industry Ranking: No. 29
A quick look on the periphery of Trentyn Flowers, and you quickly see he has all the tools. Flowers is a 6-foot-8 wing, who has good explosion, and he can handle, shoot, and pass it. That is a good start, especially when you add in the toughness he showed last season at Combine Academy, playing, at times, in a hybrid four-man roll and rebounding and defending close to the rim.
Flowers will need to continue adding strength to his core and base, as well as continue shoring up the finer aspects of his footwork and understanding of his spots on the floor and how to get there. But the physical tools are in place, along with a foundational skill set to continue building on. Then you add in the age factor, Flowers will play his freshman season at 18 years old; there is a lot of intrigue. Will he be able to adjust to being a/the focal point of an ACC team? That could go a long way in his NBA Draft conversation.
Kansas PG Elmarko Jackson
Height/Weight: 6-3/200-pounds
High School: South Kent (CT) Academy
On3 150: No. 19 / On3 Industry Ranking: No. 22
When On3 first moved Elmarko Jackson into the top 20, it was based on his size and speed combination. His father was a running back and temple, and his uncle, Marlon Jackson, was a Super Bowl champion and first-round draft pick as a cornerback. So it should come as no surprise that the 6-foot-3, 200-pound point guard was one of the fastest players in the country with the ball in his hands.
However, after we made that jump to put him in the top 20, Jackson started to become more comfortable with the position. Instead of just taking off and finishing everything at the rim, he learned pace. Jackson will need to steady the jump shot, especially the three off the catch, but he played a lot of his senior year out of the pick and roll, and the reads continued to grow. Now, with the same size, length, and speed, Jackson is playing at a comfortable pace and making confident and accurate reads.
The Kansas team will be good, and the Jayhawks will return reigned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Dejuan Harris at the point and bring in former five-star guard Arterio Morris and two-time first-team All-CAA shooting guard Nick Timberlake as transfers. But there are some natural tools and competitiveness in place that could allow Jackson to shine with opportunity.