Under Rick Barnes, getting players to the NBA has become pretty common for Tennessee. The Vols have had seven draft picks since 2021, and that number should keep growing this June. Freshman standout Nate Ament declared last week, and everything points to him being a lottery pick, something a new ESPN mock draft confirmed.
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The Mock draft has Ament going No. 10 overall to the Milwaukee Bucks. The 6-foot-10 freshman forward has a lot of hypet, but teams are also split on where he should be projected to go.
ESPN's Jeremy Woo said, “Although scouts are split on whether he has star upside or projects better as a long-term supporting player, there is still plenty of intrigue around the opportunity to select a prospect of his caliber later in the lottery. As a tall skill player with real shotmaking upside, Ament fits a player archetype that teams often love to swing on.”
Nate Ament in Milwaukee would be a fun destination
The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of Ament playing next to Giannis. Well, Ament doesn’t possess the length in the physical ability of Giannis. He does have a similar build and not as much athleticism, which does make him a match-up nightmare for some wings.
What's also interesting is the fact that some people do think Nate Ament could be a star at the next level, while some think he might just be more of a supporting player. I definitely think he has the potential to be a star, but he has some refining left to do in his game. It won’t come right away.
First off, he needs to get bigger and stronger, which will help him finish through contact at the rim. Plus, this will help him defensively and rebounding the ball. Also, he needs to work on his jumpshot and making shots more efficiently as well, but he has all the tools you could want in a young prospect, and whatever team takes a chance on him, won’t regret it.
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