Former Syracuse basketball star Elijah Hughes is creating a buzz in NBA Draft circles. The forward is moving in the right direction with his draft stock.
The NBA season might be on hold without any definite timeline on resuming, but that does not stop teams or experts in gathering intel on the upcoming NBA Draft. One such player that teams and media experts are doing their homework on is former Syracuse Basketball leading scorer, Elijah Hughes.
Hughes might have flown a little under the radar early in his college career that began playing for East Carolina in the AAC before transferring to Syracuse. After sitting out a year Hughes showed great promise sliding in as a complementary scorer to Tyus Battle and Oshae Brissett. But after Battle and Brissett took their talents pro, 2019-2020 was all about Hughes.
Even in a down year for the ACC it should not be overlooked that Hughes was a first-team selection for the conference. Averaging 19 points a game to lead the conference, with a knack of hitting big shots from all over the court will be something teams will relish at the professional level.
So it is known Hughes can score. It became apparent during his final season at Syracuse that he can also create for his teammates. What else makes Hughes an intriguing prospect is his size. Listed by Cuse.com as 6-foot-6 and 215 pounds, that would put him roughly the same size as quality wings like the Miami Heat’s Andre Iguodala, the Los Angeles Lakers’ Danny Green, and the Brooklyn Nets’ Caris LeVert, meaning he has at least the frame to become a quality defender who can switch and guard multiple positions which mesh right with what NBA teams are looking for.
NBA draft prospect rankings such as ESPN (44) CBS (48) and Tankathon.com (46) still have Hughes ranked in the mid to late second-round range on their big boards. However, The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie has moved Hughes up to the 38th pick in the draft and believes some negatives like his lower field goal percentage from three-point range to be more of a product from his situation last year than a true indicator of his actual potential.
https://twitter.com/Sam_Vecenie/status/1228006338543771648?s=20
NBA draft analyst and former player agent Matt Babcock also hinted that Hughes could even go in the first round of the draft. While the first round might be ambitious, because teams seem to all slide players like Hughes down for being in college for four years because of their age, Hughes at least being discussed is a good sign of what at least some teams see in his value.
As we've taken a deeper dive, Syracuse's Elijah Hughes has emerged as a potential 1st rounder. At 6'6" and a strong 215 lbs., Hughes can create off the dribble, shoot with deep range, is deceptively athletic, and most importantly, he's tough.
— Matt Babcock (@MattBabcock11) May 2, 2020
Credits: @BabcockHoops @dmurrayNBA pic.twitter.com/TWOTOZGuqu
It is tough to say where Hughes’ stock will end up come the draft. It could be even more challenging with uncertainty around how and if teams will be able to see players work out, as the draft nears and the league postponing the Draft Combine and Lottery. As of right now, the draft is still scheduled for June 25. Whenever the draft may take place, it seems more and more of a lock that Hughes’ name will be called, and maybe even earlier in the draft then it was projected to start the year.