Two Gators Make ESPN’s Top 100 NBA Draft Prospects

Two of the top players on the Florida Gators made their way into the top rankings for the upcoming NBA Draft

ESPN’s Jonathan Givony updated his top 100 draft prospects on Tuesday, and two Florida Gators made the cut. Florida’s Alex Condon and Walter Clayton Jr. both were included on this list by Givony.

The higher of the two is Condon, landing at No. 26. Clayton comes in at No. 63.

While it might be surprising to see this given the output Clayton Jr. has had this year, the NBA takes age heavily into consideration when it comes to prospects and the former is still just 20 years old while the latter 22 years old.

Another thing going in Condon’s favor is his versatility as a big man. In his two years with the Gators, his passing ability has stood out considerably during this time. Condon is able to act as hub for this Gators offense, knifing in back door passes, slinging a ball from one side to the other and even going with some fancy no-look passes that shows off his above average passing at his position.

Condon is also a versatile defender. The Gators will switch on defense and a big reason why they’re able to is because they trust a guy like Condon to switch onto smaller guards. He has the length and is able to move his feet well enough to stay in position against nearly any position.

As for Clayton Jr. is Florida’s first ever First Team All-American. He has been nothing but a steady workhorse for the Gators this season, and even more so in the postseason.

He stepped up his playmaking role this season, going from 2.6 assists per game to a career-high 4.2. And despite not being up to that number over his last three games, he did begin the SEC Tournament with back-to-back six assists games.

However, as much as he improved himself as a playmaker, the standout area of his game is his ability to put the ball in the basket.

Clayton Jr. is as gifted as it comes in terms of scoring. In his last seven, he’s managed at least 22 points. Additionally, he’s shooting 46.8% (29-62) from deep during this span.  And these aren’t all just catch-and-shoot, many have come off the dribble and with some heavy contests.

For example, in his last game against UConn in the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament, he hit two contested 3-pointers late in the contest that the Huskies head coach pointed out after the game.

“Credit Clayton,” UConn head coach Dan Hurley said. “He made some NBA level 3s off the dribble to beat us.”

The next time these two will be on the court will be on Thursday, March 27, against Maryland.