The expectation, even in March when Michigan basketball was chasing its second national championship, was that the star player most likely to be the first Wolverine off the board in June was going to be forward Yaxel Lendeborg. However, after the NBA draft combine, the tune is changing, and it’s doing so in a hurry.
It’s not that there isn’t excitement about Lendeborg — there is. But it’s that another has risen sharply up the ranks. And that player is former Wolverines center Aday Mara.
Mara was a force in the middle and certainly outperformed expectations after having been a bench player at UCLA. But once he showcased more of his ability in Chicago earlier this month, he’s risen sharply up draft boards. And ESPN has reacted accordingly, putting him at No. 10 overall on its NBA draft big board.
10. Aday Mara, C, Michigan
Junior | Height: 7-3 | Age: 21.1 | Previous ranking: 13
Mara’s massive combine measurements helped to validate his unique profile, with no shortage of lottery interest coming out of Chicago. He will be among the tallest players in the NBA from the get-go, entering the league at a time when size and skill remain at a premium.
While Mara’s skill set has always been compelling from an NBA standpoint, he took his game to another level in February and March, helped by the freedom Michigan played with as well as his own improved conditioning. There are few 7-footers on the planet with his ability to read the floor, deliver pinpoint passes, finish efficiently and wall off the rim, making him an outlier-type prospect on several levels. Some scouts also think he will become a passable jump shooter, although the statistical case for that happening isn’t especially strong.
Rival teams consider him to be in play as high as No. 6 for Brooklyn, with the Hawks, Warriors and Thunder also viewed as potential landing spots in the lottery. Landing with a team that wants to lean into his playmaking skills will give him the best chance to maximize his impact.
Lendeborg isn’t far behind, coming in at No. 12 overall — the same ranking he had before in ESPN’s last big board. Morez Johnson, who ended up remaining in the draft, is sitting at No. 14 overall, having moved up from 24th in the previous ranking.
Could all three Michigan NBA draft entrants be lottery picks? It’s starting to look more and more likely — which would be impressive, even for a school that has regularly put its talent into the league in the past decade and a half.
This article originally appeared on Wolverines Wire: Michigan center Aday Mara now expected to be top Wolverine in NBA draft
Reporting by Isaiah Hole, Wolverines Wire / Wolverines Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
