Where the Wildcats stand in Yahoo Mock Draft

The Kentucky Wildcats have a plethora of stars that will enter the 2020 NBA Draft. However, it’s unlikely that all five will actually be drafted. Many of the players like Immanuel Quickley and Nick Richards have seen their stock fluctuate tremendously over the last few months.

As for point guard Tyrese Maxey, ever since he was brought into Kentucky, he was destined to be a lottery pick after just one season. Maxey’s potential stardom was obvious early on in his career at Kentucky.

The Wildcats kicked off the season against the Michigan State Spartans. That game, Maxey dropped 26 points and, in theory, won the Wildcats the game. His ability to score is the No. 1 reason why scouts are craving Maxey.

Likely a lottery pick, Maxey was recently projected to go 11th overall to the San Antonio Spurs in the most recent Yahoo! Sports mock draft.

“Maxey struggled a little bit at Kentucky this year but found ways to get better off the ball once his teammate Immanuel Quickley started getting hot late in the season. He’s a great scorer who has the ability to change games and make his teammates better. Maxey scored 20 or more in six games this season on a very talented Kentucky team,” Yahoo! Sports’ Krysten Peek wrote.

To be fair, with Dejounte Murray and Derrick White, the Spurs adding Maxey doesn’t make too much sense.

That said, Maxey wasn’t the only SEC star that was placed as a lottery pick. Freshman phenom Anthony Edwards was the top-overall selection. Seventh and then ninth were Vanderbilt forward Aaron Nesmith and Auburn forward Isaac Okoro respectively.

Projected to be a top-five pick entering the college basketball season, Maxey has continued to slip in rankings, so it’ll be interesting where he’ll be headed in the June 25 draft which will almost certainly not be on June 25.

As for other Wildcats, Immanuel Quickley nearly heard his name called in the first round, but he goes 31st overall to the Dallas Mavericks.

Ashton Hagans is up next, as he went 37th overall to the Washington Wizards, where he could be the heir to John Wall’s throne.

Finally, Nick Richards goes 56th overall to the Charlotte Hornets, where he would team up with former Cats PJ Washington and Malik Monk.

As has been the case in every mock draft, EJ Montgomery does not hear his name called.

Which of the potential landing spots do you like most for the Wildcats in this year’s NBA Draft?