The Best Non-Big Bucket Getting Draft Prospects as we Enter Conference Play

While defense and rebounding are vital parts to success in the game of basketball, you can’t win if you don’t put the ball in the basket. Cerebro Sports has put together a metric that:

Blends the two major components of scoring - volume and efficiency - to create a role-neutral representation of scoring ability.
If priority were given to per game scoring at high usage, skills like cutting or spot up shooting would be undervalued. If efficiency were the more weighted element, players who are not primary creators & benefit from advantage created by others would be overrepresented.
Put plainly, we believe that a 70th percentile high volume scorer & a 70th percentile low usage creator grade out more similarly than was previously possible with a comprehensive metric.

Each skill score is graded on the same 100+ point scale – 60+ is good, 80+ is great, and 100+ is elite.

Compared to the second iteration of this series, we now have another four weeks of college basketball to identify some of the prospects that have really been scoring the ball well and impressing scouts.

Not only are players who have not been tracked for at least 14 games and average 20 minutes per game filtered out, players who are not consistently looked at as 2023 NBA Draft prospects have been filtered as well.

This time around, the focus will be more on the non-big prospects which will also leave out player’s 6-foot-9 or taller.

Kris Murray (Forward | Iowa) - 89 PSP

The 6-foot-8 Junior has been a mainstay of this series making an appearance in all three and this is his second time leading the pack.

Cedar Rapids, IA native is currently sitting at No. 23 on the Draft Digest Big Board as he is averaging over 20 points per game.

The 22-year-old Murray is doing this on 51% from the field and 36% from behind the 3-point line on over six attempts per game.

Murray is more than just a bucket getter, though. He also posts a score of 80 or better in three other Cerebro metrics including 3-point efficiency (3PE), around the rim (ATR) and defensive stats impact (DSI).

All of this combines for an impressive 12.1 C-RAM score for the twin brother of former No. 4 overall pick, Keegan Murray.

Maxwell Lewis (Wing | Pepperdine) - 86 PSP

Making his second consecutive appearance in the series is Pepperdine combo forward, Maxwell Lewis.

While his team has struggled mightily, currently sitting at a record of seven wins and 15 losses, Lewis’ scoring has not.

The Las Vegas, NV native is averaging just under 19 points per game on an efficient 51% from the field and 41% from behind the 3-point line.

The draft range for Lewis can be very drastic depending on where you choose to look but he comes in at No. 27 overall on the most recent Draft Digest Big Board.

The 6-foot-7 sophomore does not have quite the same well rounded game as Murray according to the Cerebro Sports metrics but he still has an extremely impressive overall C-RAM score of 10.5.

Mike Miles Jr. (Guard | TCU) - 84 PSP

The first prospect new to our series comes from Texas Christian University. Miles Jr., a Texas native, is averaging just under 20 points per game and doing it on an efficient 52% from the field.

That percentage is even more impressive when you consider his struggles from behind the 3-point line, 31%, and the level of difficulty of shots he is taking.

The 6-foot-2 guard is balancing that poor 3-point shooting by getting to the free throw line an impressive seven times per game.

The junior’s impact truly does revolve around his scoring, with his next highest metric being a 74 in DSI, which have left his draft stock somewhat questionable depending on who you talk to.

Keyontae Johnson (Forward | Kansas State) - 83 PSP

Also new to the series, and in some ways the 2023 NBA Draft discussion in general, is the 6-foot-5 Norfolk, VA native.

Johnson started his career at Florida, and was having a successful one before collapsing on the court caused by a heart condition, before transferring to Manhattan, KS and being cleared to play his senior season.

The Oak Hill Academy product has been making the most of it as he, and his team, have surprised the country en route to 18 points per game on 55% from the field and 39% from behind the 3-point line.

A prospect that could rarely be found on the NBA Big Board coming into the season is now a mainstay in second round discussions.

Brice Sensabaugh (Wing | Ohio State) - 82 PSP

The only freshman in our top five for this iteration of the best college bucket getters comes from the Ohio State.

Sensabaugh is also the most highly rated prospect of everyone on this list, often being ranked in the top 15 of draft boards and sometimes even the top 10. It is safe to say that at this point the Orlando, FL native is squarely in the lottery conversation.

The 6-foot-6 bulky guard is scoring over 17 points per game and doing so efficiently. He is over 50% from the field and a scorching 47% from behind the 3-point line.

The shooting efficiency continues with his 80% mark from the free throw line.

Considering the 82 PSP and an impressive 87 3PE you might expect a higher than 9.2 C-RAM score from Sensabaugh but this highlights some of the questions about his overall game outside of just scoring the basketball.

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