Ranking 2023 Lottery Picks After the First Week of the Season

We are officially one week into the 2023-24 NBA season, and so far this has been one of the weirder seasons for lottery picks in recent memory. Some of the prospects are having fantastic starts to their careers, while others have barely touched the floor. It makes sense that only the most NBA ready players are playing this year, as there are more playoff contenders now than we've ever seen. That does make ranking these guys very difficult, but I'm going to give it my best shot.

14. Taylor Hendricks - Utah Jazz - Pick No.9

This feels weird for multiple reasons. Taylor Hendricks was one of my top prospects going into the draft. He's a stretch four with great size who can score outside and inside. He has fantastic defensive upside and he's a great athlete. Then my team got him in the draft and I was ecstatic. Things started to turn sour in the pre-season as he barely touched the floor, and that trend has not changed since the season started. He has seen only two minutes of playing time in only one game where he scored two points and grabbed a rebound. It looks like the issue is that he landed on a team with a good front-court rotation who are trying to make the playoffs and don't have time for a rookie. I think he'll be fine, he just has too many weapons to not succeed, but we may not see him much this year.

pc: Jamie Squire/Getty Images

13. Jett Howard - Orlando Magic - Pick No.11

Howard was probably the biggest reach in the lottery, but for a team that also had the fifth pick they felt comfortable reaching near the end of the lottery. He was brought in as a decent upside three-point shooting wing to add some spacing to Orlando's rotation. The issue is that Orlando's rotation is packed to the brim at the moment, and they don't have much room to add names to that depth chart. Because of this, Howard has only played nine minutes across two games where he has recorded two points, a rebound, and an assist. I was never super high on Howard, but I think he has the intangibles needed to make it in the league. He'll be a fine role player, but probably won't play much this season.

12. Anthony Black - Orlando Magic - Pick No.6

I guess the Magic just have no interest in playing their rookies. Black is a guy that I was very high on going into the draft. He is a huge point guard with great playmaking skills who's athleticism gives him a high ceiling on both sides of the floor. The only issue with him is that he can't shoot the three, but that's not what he will be asked to do for this team. The issue, like Jett Howard, is that the Magic have way too many guards to find playing time for. In the nine minutes that he has played over two games he has recorded five points, two rebounds, and two blocks. I think the Magic will eventually decide what players will move into the next stage of their rebuild, and I believe Black will be a part of that group. I also think there's a good chance that happens this year, and we will probably see more and more of him as the season goes on.

11. Jarace Walker - Indiana Pacers - Pick No.8

This is the last guy on this list who really hasn't gotten playing time, but it's another guy who I think will be very good. Walker was one of the better defensive prospects in the draft, but at the same time he was looked at as a serious offensive prospect as well. A player who can defend one through five and score on all three levels, there's not much he can't do. He doesn't do anything on offense at a spectacular level, but he's good enough at everything. I expected him to play a decent amount for the Pacers, but it looks like they really like the Obi Toppin and Haliburton pairing. He's only played in two games, but in those games he's averaged nine minutes. He has recorded eight points, six rebounds, three assists, a block, and a steal. He's another guy who has a good shot at breaking into the rotation, we will just have to wait and see.

pc: via Yahoo Sports

10. Gradey Dick - Toronto Raptors - Pick No.13

Gradey Dick is the lowest ranked player of those that are getting minutes in every game. He entered the draft as perhaps the top three point shooting threat of the bunch, and the Raptors snagged him with pick thirteen. He's an offensive stud for sure, as his around the rim finishing is also pretty solid. His biggest flaw is his defense, but lucky for him the Raptors are a solid defensive unit. He had a very good game against the 76ers last Saturday, recording 16 points going 5/8 from the field and 4/6 from three. Other than that game he hasn't been great, averaging 2.25 points over his other four games, making only one three across these four games. At this point it just looks like he needs reps, and it looks like the soon-to-be rebuilding Raptors are willing to give him the reps he needs.

9. Amen Thompson - Houston Rockets - Pick No.4

To put it simply, Amen Thompson has been very disappointing. He was supposed to be a can't miss prospect, especially on the offensive end, and he just hasn't been this. As a prospect he was looked at as a hyper athletic offensive fire-cracker with good defensive upside, and very few scouts would have told you otherwise. He has been below average in all four of his games so far, averaging 6.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists. This is a Rockets team that should be allowing Thompson to thrive, and so far that's just not happening. He's not involved, he's not active, and he can't shoot threes to save his life. The only thing that can help him at this point is getting shots up. He will always be athletic, and defense is all about what effort he's willing to give, so he just needs reps.

8. Bilal Coulibaly - Washington Wizards - Pick No.7

Coulibaly was one of the more interesting prospects in this year's draft, and because of that he jumped from late lottery to pick number seven on draft night. He played with Wembanyama in Europe, and he came into the draft as an elite defensive prospect. Everyone knew he needed to work on his offense, but it was clear he had a very high ceiling. Everything has come true for Coulibaly in his first few games of the season. He has looked incredible on defense, averaging 1.5 blocks and a steal a game while guarding the best perimeter player on the opposing team. However, his offense does indeed need a lot of work. He's only averaging 4.3 points and 1.8 assists over four games. This could be because he's sharing the floor with offensive vampires like Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma. I'm still very high on Coulibaly, and I think he'll be just fine.

7. Scoot Henderson - Portland Trail-Blazers - Pick No.3

By far the biggest disappointment on this list, Scoot Henderson has looked like anything but himself to start this season. Henderson was a guy that many thought would immediately be the first option on a rebuilding Blazers team, and subsequently be a rookie of the year front runner. He hasn't been awful, but he just hasn't been what we thought he'd be. Firstly, he just doesn't seem nearly as athletic as we thought he was. He's averaging 8.8 points, 4.6 assists, and 2.2 rebounds. He also hasn't looked great on the defensive side of the ball, but to be fair not many were expecting him to be a plus defender. Scoot will figure it out at some point, it just looks like that may take longer than expected.

pc: Chris Schwegler/NBAE via Getty Images

6. Jordan Hawkins - New Orleans Pelicans - Pick No.14

The final selection of the lottery has been very impressive so far this season. Jordan Hawkins has found himself being an immediate contributor to the Pelicans, a team that seemingly drafts well every year. He came into the draft as one of the best three-point shooters in the class, and he was coming off of a national championship at UConn. His outside shooting acumen hasn't changed, as that's his primary role for New Orleans. He's averaging 9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists. He has also been decent on defense, a pleasant surprise for a guy that was not scouted as a defender. The only issue is his efficiency. He's shooting 34% from the field and 28% from three. His numbers are good but his volume is a little high, but it's nice to see him getting the shots a rookie needs to develop.

5. Cason Wallace - Oklahoma City Thunder - Pick No.10

The top perimeter defense prospect in this draft class, Cason Wallace was a very safe pick from a Thunder team looking to contend this year. At times in college it looked like his offensive game had serious potential, and so far in the league it's looking like this was definitely the case. On a team full of scorers Wallace is still putting up 7.4 points per game. With that being said, it's still his defense that pays the bills. Wallace has looked fantastic on that end of the floor, being a sparkplug off of the bench and helping to slow down opposing stars. Very few of these guys will be impact players on genuine playoff teams this year, but I can guarantee you Cason Wallace will be all season long.

4. Dereck Lively II - Dallas Mavericks - Pick No.12

Every draft class has a big surprise from outside the top ten, and this year it may be Dereck Lively. He came into the draft as a prospect focused solely on rim protection. Many thought that if the draft had better big men he may have fallen farther into the first round. Well, the Mavericks front office looks genius right now, as Lively is making a huge impact for the team right out of the gates. His defense has been great, but what has really vaulted him to number four on this list is his offensive impact. He is averaging 8.5 points, which doesn't sound like a ton, but on a team with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving he doesn't need to put up those points. If he went out there and only played defense he'd still be high on this list, but his added offensive output has been very nice for Dallas. If the Mavericks continue to succeed there's a chance Lively will throw his hat into the rookie of the year race.

3. Brandon Miller - Charlotte Hornets - Pick No.2

I think we all owe Brandon Miller an apology. Whether or not he ends up being better than Scoot Henderson we don't know, but either way he will be a fantastic player. He deserved to be the second overall pick, and right now he's playing to prove that. So far this season he is coming off the bench, but I doubt that lasts very long. He's averaging 15.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2 assists. He's doing this on great splits, shooting 47% from the field and 42% from three. He has also been above average on defense, an added bonus to his offensive output. Before the end of this season he will be the very clear second best player on the Hornets, and there's a chance he's the best player on the team before too long.

pc: Scott Fowler

2. Ausar Thompson - Detroit Pistons - Pick No.5

Now for the rookie playing the most minutes of them all, Ausar Thompson. Going into the draft Ausar just looked like the lesser version of his brother Amen. The less athletic, worse scorer, worse defender of the brothers. It's looking like we were very wrong with this line of thinking, because Ausar is very very good. Unlike his brother, he has found himself thrust into the Pistons playbook. As far as offense is concerned he's averaging 10 points and 3.8 assists. Ironically, the only thing he was supposed to be better at than his brother was shooting the three, and that's been the only thing he's struggled with so far. What puts him at number two on this list is his rebounding and defense. Averaging 9.8 rebounds, the 6' 6" wing is leading all rookies. On top of that he's been one of the best defenders in this draft class. He's been very impressive so far, and he can only get better from here.

1. Victor Wembanyama - San Antonio Spurs - Pick No.1

Obviously we know who's going to be number one. I tried to justify putting Ausar here, but I just couldn't do it. Wembanyama went into the draft as the biggest (both literally and metaphorically) prospect since LeBron James in 2003. He's a 7' 5" beast who was supposed to immediately be one of the best defenders in the league, who just so happens to shoot step back threes like James Harden. So far it seems people were right about the Frenchman, as he's been fantastic. As predicted, Wembanyama is already a top defender in the league, averaging 2.2 blocks and 1.2 steals. He's picking these blocks up near the rim and around the perimeter, as he's capable of guarding every position on the floor. On offense he's putting up 16.2 points per game. He hasn't been the greatest playmaker or rebounder, but his rebounding will obviously be fine. All in all, Wembanyama has been the best rookie so far (that is if you don't count Chet Holmgren).

pc: Rob Ferguson/USA Today Sports