5. How Long Until A Center Is Picked?

The landscape of the NBA is ever-changing. Right now, we are in the middle of a positionless era as teams are looking for as much versatility as they can find. Smaller lineups are being deployed as coaches want as much 3-point shooting and switchability on the court as possible.

As a result of that, we are seeing fewer and fewer traditional big men. While there are still some teams that rely on a center as the focal point of their team, such as the Denver Nuggets with back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic and the Philadelphia 76ers with Joel Embiid, it is getting rarer and rarer.

That makes it more difficult for big men in college to figure out if they should declare for the NBA Draft or not. There is plenty of excellent back-to-the-basket bigs playing collegiately, but their fit and transition to the next level are cloudy.

Right now, two players would fall under the category of traditional centers that could sneak into the lottery; Mark Williams out of Duke and Jalen Duren out of Memphis. How high or low they go in the draft will paint a picture of how the big man is being valued this offseason.

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A decade ago, there was a chance that both players would be locks for the top of the draft based on what they bring to the table. Both can be elite rim protectors, defensive anchors on that end of the court that provides some interior scoring.

But, that is not what teams are looking for nowadays. There is a chance no traditional center is selected in the lottery, as the New York Knicks, who pick 11th, are the only team routinely mocked a big man along with the Charlotte Hornets, who will be selected 13th and 15th.