Spurs Select Malaki Branham Using No. 20 Overall Pick in 2022 NBA Draft
The San Antonio Spurs started off their 2022 NBA Draft haul by selecting Jeremy Sochan out of Baylor with the No. 9 overall pick. They followed it up by selecting Ohio State guard Malaki Branham with the No. 20 pick.
Branham stands at 6-foot-5 with a 6-foot-10 wingspan. He played one season of collegiate basketball and averaged 13.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.0 assists. He had an efficient scoring profile and shot 41.6 percent from 3-point range.
Branham showed a lot of potential over the final 10 games of his season with the Buckeyes. During that span, he averaged 20.2 points per game and shot 57.0 percent from the floor.
"He's got a high ceiling as a player. He's just tapping into what he can be, and I think that's what people see at 19 from Malaki," Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann told 97.1 The Fan.
It was a common projection for Branham to land near the top 15 in NBA mock drafts. Some had him going as early as No. 15 overall to the Charlotte Hornets or No. 16 to the Atlanta Hawks, but often not making it past the Chicago Bulls at No. 18.
The Spurs have addressed the perimeter in their previous two drafts and continued the trend with the selection of Branham. San Antonio's two previous picks on the wing iclude Devin Vassell with the No. 11 pick in 2020 followed by Joshua Primo at No. 12 overall in 2021.
With Lonnie Walker IV set to reach restricted free agency, it appears likely for the Spurs to favor moving on from him as opposed to negotiating a new contract.
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