Identifying who the NBA Combine winners were is a key component in determining who will remain eligible for the Draft, whose stock improved, and which players will be returning to college next season. Without further ado, here are our NBA Combine winners.
Cheick Diallo, Kansas, PF
The KU big man struggled to even get on the court for Bill Self last season, mainly because Self requires his bigs to make decisions with the ball, other than whether or not to shoot. Diallo excelled in the scrimmage portions of the combine, where his athleticism and motor shined through, as was expected. Diallo is slowly working himself into a Lottery projection.
Wade Baldwin IV, Vanderbilt, PG
Baldwin posted impressive measurements, especially his height and wingspan, both of which compare favorably to his NBA point guard competition. The Commodores guard was well rounded last year, hitting over 40-percent of his threes while scoring 14.1 points and dishing out 5.2 assists per game. Can he defend? That’s the question we have, but he’s rising up draft boards rapidly.
Patrick McCaw, UNLV, Point Guard
McCaw spent much of the college season wasting away in what has become the CBB wasteland of UNLV, but had a bit of a coming out party at the NBA Combine. He’s nearly 6’7” in shoes, meaning that he has tremendous combo guard potential in the NBA. Expect to hear his name a lot leading up to draft night in regards to guys rising up teams’ boards.
Robert Carter Jr., Maryland, PF
Carter’s inconsistency at Maryland this year was a key part of the Terps not peaking at the right time of the season, but what he showed in the scrimmage portions of the combine was a tremendously developed, NBA-level offensive skillset. We’ve known he can step outside and knock down shots, while also doing enough inside to be labeled as a frontcourt guy, but he did it very efficiently last week, moving him from the undrafted category into a guy that has a chance to move further up in the second round.
