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The NFL draft is taking all of the attention right now, but it won't be long until we'll see the NBA take center stage with the 2016 NBA Draft.
For the Kentucky Wildcats, that will once again be a huge event as three former Cats are being projected as lottery picks, possibly even top-10 selections. This isn't exactly a strong or deep draft class, which could help propel guys like Tyler Ulis and Skal Labissiere much higher than they would go in most drafts.
But whatever draft you put Murray in, he's still going early as his talent and potential is too good to let fall out of the top 10. In this draft, Murray may not even make it out of the top three, at least based on Chad Ford's latest rankings at ESPN.
3. Jamal Murray
Previous rank: No. 4
Murray continues to rise as the best guard prospect in the draft.
Coming into the combine, the more teams I speak with, the more it seems like he now has the strongest case for the No. 3 pick in the draft after Simmons and Ingram are off the board.
While his lack of elite athleticism is troubling, Murray does everything else so well that scouts are willing to look the other way.
He's looking -- barring poor workouts -- to be a lock for the No. 3 to No. 5 range in the draft.
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As for Skal, he just barely misses out on the top 10 as he comes in at No. 11 on Ford's big board.
11. Skal Labissiere
Previous rank: No. 15
No one benefited more from Ivan Rabb's decision to return to Cal for his sophomore season than Labissiere. He hasn't played a game in nearly a month, yet his stock is on the rise.
His production for Kentucky was awful, but the raw tools are all there to be a terrific stretch-4 who can protect the rim. Someone will take a chance on him.
And for Ulis, he managed to fall down a spot as he comes in at No. 17.
17. Tyler Ulis
Previous rank: No. 16
He may be small at 5-foot-9, but he also may be the best pure point guard in the draft. Ulis can see the floor, score buckets in crunch time and get at it on the defensive end.
If he were four inches taller, he'd be a top-five pick.
Over at DraftExpress, their rankings aren't too different, though they have Murray ranked at No. 6. The good news is they have Skal cracking the top 10 at No. 10, while Ulis comes in at No. 19, the lowest ranking he currently has in any major service.
At CBS Sports, Murray comes in at No. 4, followed by Skal at No. 14 and Ulis at No. 15. It looks safe to think all three Cats will make it into the first round after there was some uncertainty that Skal and Ulis would make it.
Here is the updated top 25 by DraftExpress.
1. Brandon Ingram, SF (Duke - Freshman) 18.6 years old | 6'9" | 196 lbs
2. Ben Simmons, SF/PF (LSU - Freshman) 19.7 years old | 6'10" | 239 lbs
3. Dragan Bender, PF (Maccabi Tel Aviv - International), 18.4 years old | 7'1" | 225 lbs
4. Jaylen Brown, SF (California - Freshman) 19.5 years old | 6'7" | 222 lbs
5. Kris Dunn, PG (Providence - Junior) 22.1 years old | 6'4" | 205 lbs
6. Jamal Murray, PG/SG (Kentucky - Freshman) 19.1 years old | 6'5" | 201 lbs
7. Buddy Hield, SG (Oklahoma - Senior) 22.3 years old | 6'4" | 214 lbs
8. Jakob Poeltl, C (Utah - Sophomore)20.5 years old | 7'1" | 242 lb
9. Henry Ellenson, PF (Marquette - Freshman) 19.2 years old | 6'10" | 231 lbs
10. Skal Labissiere, PF/C (Kentucky - Freshman) 20.1 years old | 7'0" | 216 lbs
11. Demetrius Jackson, PG (Notre Dame - Junior), 21.6 years old | 6'1" | 194 lbs
12. Timothe Luwawu SG/SF (Mega Leks - International) 20.9 years old | 6'7" | 205 lbs
13. Deyonta Davis, PF/C (Michigan St - Freshman), 19.4 years old | 6'10" | 230 lbs
14. Marquese Chriss, PF (Washington - Freshman) 18.8 years old | 6'9" | 225 lbs
15. Wade Baldwin, PG (Vanderbilt - Sophomore) 20.0 years old | 6'3" | 195 lbs
16. Denzel Valentine, SG (Michigan St - Senior), 22.4 years old | 6'6" | 223 lbs
17. Furkan Korkmaz, SG (Anadolu Efes - International), 18.7 years old | 6'7" | 185 lbs
18. Domantas Sabonis, PF/C (Gonzaga - Sophomore), 19.9 years old | 6'10" | 231 lbs
19. Tyler Ulis, PG (Kentucky - Sophomore) 20.3 years old | 5'9" | 160 lbs
20. Damian Jones, C (Vanderbilt - Junior), 20.8 years old | 6'11" | 248 lbs
21. Taurean Prince, SF (Baylor - Senior) 21.6 years old | 6'7" | 215 lbs
22. Diamond Stone, C (Maryland - Freshman), 19.2 years old | 7'0" | 255 lbs
23. Ivica Zubac, C (Mega Leks - International),19.1 years old | 7'1" | 265 lbs
24. Ante Zizic, C (Cibona Zagreb - International) 19.3 years old | 6'11" | 240 lbs
25. Stephen Zimmerman, C (UNLV - Freshman) 19.6 years old | 7'0" | 235 lbs
And here are the top-25 prospects by CBS Sports:
| 2016 NBA DRAFT PROSPECT RANKINGS | ||||||
| RANK | PLAYER | SCHOOL | YEAR | POS | HGT | WGT |
| 1 | Ben Simmons | LSU | Fr. | SF | 6-10 | 240 |
| 2 | Brandon Ingram | Duke | Fr. | SF | 6-9 | 190 |
| 3 | Dragan Bender | Israel | - | PF | 7-1 | 216 |
| 4 | Jamal Murray | Kentucky | Fr. | SG | 6-4 | 207 |
| 5 | Kris Dunn | Providence | Jr. | PG | 6-4 | 220 |
| 6 | Jaylen Brown | California | Fr. | SG | 6-7 | 225 |
| 7 | Jakob Poeltl | Utah | Soph. | PF | 7-0 | 248 |
| 8 | Buddy Hield | Oklahoma | Sr. | SG | 6-4 | 214 |
| 9 | Henry Ellenson | Marquette | Fr. | PF-C | 6-11 | 245 |
| 10 | Ivan Rabb | California | Fr. | PF | 6-11 | 220 |
| 11 | Domantas Sabonis | Gonzaga | Soph. | PF | 6-11 | 240 |
| 12 | Timothe Luwawu | France | - | SG | 6-7 | 205 |
| 13 | Denzel Valentine | Michigan State | Sr. | SG | 6-5 | 220 |
| 14 | Skal Labissiere | Kentucky | Fr. | PF | 6-11 | 225 |
| 15 | Tyler Ulis | Kentucky | Soph. | PG | 5-9 | 160 |
| 16 | Furkan Korkmaz | Turkey | - | SG | 6-7 | 175 |
| 17 | Marquese Chriss | Washington | Fr. | PF | 6-9 | 225 |
| 18 | Deyonta Davis | Michigan State | Fr. | PF | 6-10 | 240 |
| 19 | Taurean Prince | Baylor | Sr. | SF | 6-8 | 220 |
| 20 | Demetrius Jackson | Notre Dame | Jr. | PG | 6-1 | 201 |
| 21 | Wade Baldwin IV | Vanderbilt | Soph. | SG | 6-3 | 194 |
| 22 | Malik Beasley | Florida State | Fr. | SG | 6-5 | 196 |
| 23 | Thon Maker | Australia | - | C | 7-1 | 218 |
| 24 | Juan Hernangomez | Spain | - | PF | 6-9 | 225 |
| 25 | DeAndre' Bembry | Saint Joseph's | Jr. | SF | 6-6 | 210 |
And here are the full rankings of Ford's top 25 prospects:
1. Ben Simmons
2. Brandon Ingram
3. Jamal Murray
4. Kris Dunn
5. Dragan Bender
6. Buddy Hield
7. Henry Ellenson
8. Marquese Chriss
9. Jakob Poeltl
10. Jaylen Brown
11. Skal Labissiere
12. Domantas Sabonis
13. Denzel Valentine
14. Deyonta Davis
15. Furkan Korkmaz
16. Dejounte Murray
17. Tyler Ulis
18. Diamond Stone
19. Malik Beasley
20. Malachi Richardson
21. Ante Zizic
22. Ben Bentil
23. Demetrius Jackson
24. DeAndre Bembry
25. Jared Uthoff