Pair of Kentucky Wildcats in ESPN's Top 25 NBA draft prospect rankings
The 2024 NBA draft is still six months away, and it is clear this class is far from determined - even at the very top where there is not a consensus top pick like there was in previous years with Victor Wembanyama and Paolo Banchero.
ESPN's Jonathan Givony, with assistance from Jeremy Woo, released an update to his top 25 prospect rankings with the calendar flipping to 2024, and only a pair of Kentucky Wildcats cracked the list - and it's not the pair anyone would have expected before the season tipped off in November.
Freshman wing Justin Edwards was at one point the easy favorite to be the first Wildcat selected in June, but neither he or starting point guard DJ Wagner, or even big man Aaron Bradshaw, are among Givony's top 25 here in early January - while two guards who are coming off the bench, Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard - are the two Kentucky representatives.
Dillingham comes in at No. 7 as momentum for the 6'2 guard reaches a fever pitch. He is now no longer viewed as a fringe first round pick, but rather a borderline consensus lottery option thanks to his scorching hot outside shooting, strong passing and decision making, and overall shot creation skills.
Meanwhile Sheppard climbs from No. 22 up to No. 16, and is considered by Givony to be "the biggest surprise of the NBA draft cycle thus far". Sheppard is shooting 56% from three and his rate of steals and blocks is otherworldly, especially when considering his modest 6'2 height and 6'3 wingspan.
Whether the physical tools translate to the NBA is a bit of a question mark, but his shooting, court vision, feel for the game, and defensive instincts are top notch and make him an extremely difficult prospect to ignore when considering the relative weakness of this class overall.
As for Edwards, Wagner, and Bradshaw, all are still expected to be picked in the 2024 NBA draft and could easily be in the first round - or even lottery - conversation if their performance picks up during SEC play, which begins on Saturday when Kentucky heads to Gainesville to take on Florida. Tip-off is at 12:30 PM ET.
Takeaways and watch articles from the 96-70 win over Illinois State
WATCH: DJ Wagner makes a shifty move to get to the rim against Illinois State
WATCH: Reed Sheppard keeps draining threes against Illinois State
Takeaways: Antonio Reeves lights it up against Illinois State leading Kentucky to the 96-70 win
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