Nikola Topic Emerging as Premier 2024 NBA Draft Candidate
The 2024 NBA Draft has long been thought of as a slightly underwhelming one, sandwiched between two highly-lauded classes with potential generational talents.
And while the class as a whole certainly still has talent, there’s been some merit to those thoughts with few collegiate prospects standing out above the rest in terms of the top ten or five.
Serbia’s Nikola Topic, however, is looking to change that narrative.
In nine games with Mega MIS of the ABA league — the same league that the likes of Nikola Jokic, Nikola Jovic, Ivica Zubac and more hailed from — Topic has scored a blistering 18.8 points, dished out 7.0 assists and nabbed 1.2 steals per game. He’s also managed to shoot a white-hot 51% overall, and 28% from beyond the arc, which is still a work in progress.
At Basketball Without Borders, Topic measured 6-foot-6 without shoes with a 7-foot wingspan — extremely strong measures for a guard who’s still set to be 18 on draft night.
His measurements, mixed with his excellent stats, have made him a hot name in the NBA Draft world.
On various expert mock drafts in the past few days, Topic has been a mainstay in the lottery, coming in at No. 13 via Sam Vecenie of The Athletic, and topping out at No. 2 on Jonathan Wasserman’s most recent mock on Bleacher Report.
Suffice to say, Topic is no longer a hidden gem in the class, but rather a lightning-fast riser who could cement his status as a top-five pick with even more consistency in the Adriatic league.
Want to join the discussion? Like Draft Digest on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest NBA Draft news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.