The NCAA Tournament has been a great time for NBA Draft prospects to put their names on the national radar.
Luckily, NBA Scouts and analysts like myself have been evaluating this class for a long time. I already have formulated opinions and lots of notes about the players in this class.
Still, this sans-March Madness season will have major implications on the Draft.
Without the tournament, players who could have potentially boosted their stock will get drafted way later than they deserve. There will be no Carsen Edwards or Donte DiVencezno-type risers, which is unfortunate.
The timing of the NBA Draft may get thrown off as well.
The NBA season has been suspended for at least 30 days. If the NBA decides to finish playing out the entire regular season, it’s possible that the NBA Finals won’t take place until August.
That would obviously throw off the dates scheduled for the NBA Draft and Free Agency.
It makes a lot of sense for the NBA to just call in the regular season now and hold the playoffs when they would normally be held. This would allow the league to maintain its current calendar.
But this scenario isn’t fair to bubble playoff teams like Portland, New Orleans, Sacramento, and San Antonio. It also causes a problem for fans who have already bought tickets to cancelled games.
I have no idea what will happen. None of us do. This is uncharted territory. There has never been anything like this, and hopefully there never will be again.
Photo: Sports Illustrated
