9. R.J. Hampton, Combo Guard
Current Team: NZ Breakers (NBL, Australia)
The start to the trend to jump overseas instead of taking the college route starts here with the Texas native 6-foot-4 combo guard RJ Hampton. The anticipation for the college decision (between blue blood powerhouses like Duke, Kansas, and North Carolina) slowed to a halt when Hampton became one of two guards to take his talents to Australia in the NBL.
So far with the NZ Breakers in the NBL, Hampton isn’t off to the best start and nothing really sticks out from his skill set yet. The stock for Hampton right now is still keeping him close enough within the range of a top-10 pick, or falling in the lottery at the very least.
One thing that Hampton needs to do is put on size. He’s just 175 pounds.
The slashing and facilitating abilities of Hampton were supposed to be his big draw points. But not even those translated to a subpar team that he’s a part of in Australia. He’s also not shooting all that well from the field or from range. But that’s a trend that sticks out for both big time guards in the NBL at the moment.
Nonetheless, stout ball handling and reliable two-way capability as a lengthy floor general makes it so that Hampton has a pretty high floor in this draft class. Hampton is also pretty lengthy and athletic, with a wingspan of about 6-foot-8. He’s also good in tight spaces which makes him lethal as a primary-ball handler within two-point range.