Ranking the Top NBA Draft Prospects Social Media Game
#6 - Obi Toppin
Toppin's social media presence isn't bad at all, I just think it could be more personable. His Instagram is filled with professional pictures of him on the court, and of course, they look awesome, but I also would find it nice to see some pictures taken on an iPhone to give it less of a “someone is running this account for me” vibe.
This is a sweet highlight mixtape.
This post for his mom’s birthday was so sweet.
He also is on Twitter but seems to mostly use it to retweet other accounts’ posts. Toppin has 60.4K followers on Instagram and 8.8K followers on Twitter.
#5 - Deni Avdija
Avdija does a nice job mixing on the court and off the court photos on his Instagram. You could tell some of his posts were taken by a photographer while others were possibly taken by someone who was hanging out with him at the time of the photo.
Like Toppin, Avdija has a Twitter but seems to use it mostly to retweet other’s posts. Avdija has 58.6k followers on Instagram and 1.9k on Twitter.
#4 - Anthony Edwards
Edwards is the first player to make an appearance on this list with an Instagram following of over 100K. Currently, his Instagram page has 182k followers. The former Georgia star has a handful of highlight mixtapes on his page, but one of his most recent posts has to be my favorite.
This is so relatable, just lying in bed with your dog with some snacks, who hasn’t been doing this these past few weeks? Post like this can only grow Edwards fanbase.
Like all the previous players on this list Edward’s activity on Twitter is mostly pressing retweet. He has 7.3K followers on the platform.
#3 - James Wiseman
Prepare yourself, we are going to talk about TikTok…..James Wiseman was one of the first basketball stars I saw on TikTok. He has 125.8K followers on the platform and just under 1 million likes. His videos range from him working out to him, dancing to him in a skit.
Wiseman goofing around on TikTok definitely makes him relatable to the kids and just likable in general. He reminds me of Juju Schuster Smith of the Pittsburgh Steelers, what they have in common is both are not afraid to have fun and be themselves on social media.
If TikTok makes you cringe you can stop cringing because we are going to talk about his Instagram now. Wiseman’s Instagram is filled with professional-looking photographs. His page is a pretty different vibe than his Tik Tok.
The framing of this photo is creative; I like it. Also, I have that shirt in Navy (shout out Stranger Things, great show)
Right now, he has just under 200k followers on Instagram and might surpass that by the time this article is uploaded.
Wiseman has 25k followers on Twitter and seems to use it more to Tweet his own thoughts, rather than retweet, then the players previously listed.
#2 Cole Anthony
Cole Anthony jumped on the TikTok hype train a few days later than James Wiseman. Anthony has been very active on the platform during the quarantine. His TikToks range from dances to kind of chaotic skits, where I don’t really know what’s going on but it’s still funny.
Anthony’s Instagram has 605k followers. His page has this really nice aesthetic because of the number of photos he posts wearing that iconic Carolina blue.
If you like that Carolina Blue, this grid is a work of art to you.
Anthony is also sharing how he is helping out his New York City community during this difficult time.
On Twitter, Anthony has 51.6k followers. He is relatively active on the platform retweeting and tweeting his own tweets.
#1 - LaMelo Ball
LaMelo Ball has been in the public spotlight for a few years now, his Instagram following reflects that as he currently has a whopping 5.3 million followers. His influence is massive, clearly with a following like that he is doing something right on social media. Also having just your nickname @melo as your Instagram handle with no underscores or anything is one of the coolest flexes out there.
From posts of him chilling with his pup to him on the court Melo’s Instagram has a ton of variety.
This is some wholesome content
Ball's TikTok “status”, I guess you could say, is a bit more confusing than the other players on this list. He has posted TikTok videos on his Instagram with the hashtag #imnotatiktoker.
