Day: June 23, 2023

The 2023 edition of the NBA Draft was the most-watched NBA Draft ever on any network, according to Nielsen.

The first round averaged 4,928,000 viewers across ESPN and ABC, up 24 percent from last year’s first round on both platforms. It peaked with 6,085,000 viewers in the 8 p.m. ET quarter hour.

Overall, the NBA Draft averaged 3,743,000 viewers across ESPN (both rounds) and ABC (first round-only). The average audience was up 23 percent from last year. The NBA Draft started airing on both ESPN and ABC in 2021.

Cam Whitmore fell to the Houston Rockets on draft night all the way to No. 20 despite the fact that some thought he could be in play for the franchise at No. 4.

Sources tell John hollinger of The Athletic that Whitmore’s medicals were red-flagged by some teams due to concerns about his knees while his workouts and interviews were also underwhelming.

One source described Whitmore as “comatose” during the predraft evaluations.

Michael Porter Jr. was a player that recently had a draft night fall due to both medical and interview issues, but he ended up playing himself to a max contract coming off his rookie deal.

The Portland Trail Blazers selected Scoot Henderson at No. 3, which puts the future of Damian Lillard with the franchise under some level of uncertainity.

“As of right now, all signs point to Scoot Henderson being there,” said Shams Charania. “I’m told several teams, including the New Orleans Pelicans, reached out and Portland showed no interest in moving him.”

Lillard doesn’t appear to be in a rush to decide his future and will evaluate what the Blazers do during the free agency period.

“I’m told the timeline for when the future will land with Damian Lillard likely extends now between tonight and the start of free agency and into free agency,” said Charania.

Lillard turns 33 in July and is signed through at least the 25-26 season after signing a two-year, $122 million extension in 2022.

The Portland Trail Blazers kept the No. 3 pick and used it on Scoot Henderson.

Henderson hopes he has the opportunity to play with Damian Lillard, who is evaluating his options as the Blazers are at a crossroads.

“I’m hoping to get to play with Dame, for sure,” Henderson said. “Special talent, special guard. One of my favorites to watch, especially film-wise. Just to pick out how he moves off the court, as well. Yeah, it would be cool to play with him.”

Not only do the Henderson and Lillard have positional overlap, but they are on different timelines age-wise.

The San Antonio Spurs selected Victor Wembanyama with the first overall selection in the 2023 NBA Draft. The Charlotte Hornets selected Brandon Miller with the second pick, while the Portland Trail Blazers at No. 3.

First Round

1. San Antonio Spurs: Victor Wembanyama

2. Charlotte Hornets: Brandon Miller

3. Portland Trail Blazers: Scoot Henderson

4. Houston Rockets: Amen Thompson

5. Detroit Pistons: Ausar Thompson

6. Orlando Magic: Anthony Black

7. Washington Wizards (via Pacers): Bilal Coulibaly

8. Indiana Pacers (via Wizards): Jarace Walker

9. Utah Jazz: Taylor Hendricks

10. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Mavericks): Cason Wallace

11. Orlando Magic: Jett Howard

12. Dallas Mavericks (via Thunder): Dereck Lively

13. Toronto Raptors: Gradey Dick

14. New Orleans Pelicans: Jordan Hawkins

15. Atlanta Hawks: Kobe Bufkin

16. Utah Jazz: Keyonte George

17. Los Angeles Lakers: Jalen Hood-Schifino

18. Miami Heat: Jaime Jaquez Jr.

19. Golden State Warriors: Brandin Podziemski

20. Houston Rockets: Cam Whitmore

21. Brooklyn Nets: Noah Clowney

22. Brooklyn Nets: Dariq Whitehead

23. Portland Trail Blazers: Kris Murray

24. Dallas Mavericks (via Kings): Olivier-Maxence Prosper

25. Detroit Pistons (via Celtics): Marcus Sasser

26. Indiana Pacers: Ben Sheppard

27. Charlotte Hornets: Nick Smith Jr.

28. Utah Jazz: Brice Sensabaugh

29. Indiana Pacers: Julian Strawther

30. Los Angeles Clippers: Kobe Brown

Second Round

31. Charlotte Hornets: James Nnaji

32. Denver Nuggets: Jalen Pickett

33. Minnesota Timberwolves: Leonard Miller

34. Sacramento Kings: Colby Jones

35. Chicago Bulls: Julian Philips

36. Milwaukee Bucks: Andre Jackson Jr.

37. Denver Nuggets (via Thunder): Hunter Tyson

38. Boston Celtics: Jordan Walsh

39. Atlanta Hawks: Mouhamed Gueye

40. Los Angeles Lakers: Max Lewis

41. Charlotte Hornets: Amari Bailey

42. Washington Wizards: Tristan Vukcevic

43. Portland Trail Blazers: Rayan Rupert

44. San Antonio Spurs: Sidy Cissoko

45. Memphis Grizzlies: GG Jackson

46. Atlanta Hawks: Seth Lundy

47. Indiana Pacers: Mojave King

48. Los Angeles Clippers: Jordan Miller

49. Cleveland Cavaliers: Emoni Bates

50. Oklahoma City Thunder: Keyontae Johnson

51. Brooklyn Nets: Jalen Wilson

52. Phoenix Suns: Toumani Camara

53. Minnesota Timberwolves: Jaylen Clark

54. Sacramento Kings: Jalen Slawson

55. Indiana Pacers: Isaiah Wong

56. Memphis Grizzlies: Tarik Biberovic

57. Golden State Warriors: Trayce Jackson-Davis

58. Milwaukee Bucks: Chris Livingston