2026 NBA draft thread

[F Gump]

I am curious at why so many mock drafts generally have Wagler 4-5 slots higher in the draft than Burries. It really feels like his Illinois team features him a little more that AZ features Burries... and maybe that's it. It's hard to imagine though that "USG" alone could separate players that much. Wagler's playmaking skills get high marks, but Illinois needs playmaking from him. AZ, on the other hand, doesn't need Burries as a playmaker as much. They need his scoring. At the end of the day, it just doesn't feel those two should be separated that much.

IMO Burries is lower rated because he's borderline as a PG (he's probably either a combo, or simply an undersized SG). The excuse that AZ is using someone else as a playmaker isn't very satisfying to me - every team always needs all the playmaking they can get, regardless of who is playing where, and when I watch, Burries doesn't really play like he's a guy who will make plays for others all that much. If you assume he can be a PG at the next level, you would think he would have some games where he's showing such skills, and they aren't there.

Add in the fact that Burries is a year older, and it's not surprising to me to see him somewhat lower in the list.