Both Caleb Houstan, Moussa Diabate selected in final Yahoo! Sports NBA mock draft
Michigan men’s basketball will be represented by a pair of prospects in this Thursday’s 2022 NBA Draft. Forwards Caleb Houstan and Moussa Diabate decided their time was up following their freshman years and declared for the event this offseason.
Krysten Peek of Yahoo! Sports put together her final mock of the draft process with both Wolverines coming off the board. Houstan was selected with the No. 30 overall pick to the Denver Nuggets in her scenario.
“Houston has a ton of upside at the NBA level and is a lights-out shooter, even if it wasn’t put on full display during his one year at Michigan,” Peek wrote. “Teams in the first round love his size and the way he can shoot over the defense with ease. He’s not as athletic as other players his size but is far from a defensive liability.”
Diabate’s wait was much longer, but he finally came off the board at pick No. 57 to the Dallas Mavericks.
“Diabate was a five-star recruit coming out of high school and didn’t get the minutes during his one year at Michigan to showcase his talent,” she said. “He’s an athletic big who runs the floor well and can be a productive after a couple of years of development at the NBA level.”
Background on the Michigan guys
Houstan, who was a five-star signee and No. 10 prospect in the 2021 recruiting class, started 34 games at Michigan this season. He averaged 10.1 points, four rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Houstan shot 38.4% from the field with a 35.5% mark from three-point range. He came into the season as a potential NBA lottery pick but did not appear on draft boards at year’s end. However, the pre-draft process has been positive for him with some speculating he may have a first-round promise.
Diabate was Michigan’s other five-star addition in 2021 and started 26 of 32 games for the Wolverines. He averaged nine points and six rebounds per game while shooting 52.4% from the floor. Like Houstan, Diabate was also considered a potential lottery prospect.
The departures of each opened up a pair of scholarships at Michigan. Head coach Juwan Howard used one on Duke transfer Joey Baker, while the other could be filled by international prospect Youssef Khayat.
How the rest of the draft might play out
Auburn’s Jabari Smith is projected to go No. 1 to the Orlando Magic, pairing him with former Michigan star Franz Wagner. The Big Ten could potentially have two top five picks in this draft with Purdue’s Jaden Ivey and Iowa’s Keegan Murray in the mix for consideration. Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis has been often mocked as a lottery pick.
The 2022 NBA Draft is set for Thursday evening at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN. The event is set for Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
