After 30 players came off the board in the first round of the NBA Draft on Wednesday, 28 more heard their names called in Round 2 on Thursday.
But many top prospects didn’t and will have to carve their NBA paths in other ways.
Here are the best undrafted players from this year’s NBA Draft, along with analyses and summaries from my 2024 NBA Draft Guide.
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(Note: The number listed next to each player is their final overall rank on the top 100.)
NBA Draft 2024: How the two-day event unfolded
Analysis, fits for every pick: John Hollinger and Sam Vecenie’s breakdown
44. Trey Alexander | 6-3 guard | 21 years old | Creighton
𝑺𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒆𝒅@TrickyTrey23 has signed a two-way contract with the @nuggets #GoJays x #ProJays pic.twitter.com/Wf8UWgvmtc
— Creighton Men’s Basketball (@BluejayMBB) June 27, 2024
The NBA likes guys whom I call “3-and-D-plus” — players who can dribble, pass, shoot and defend. A lot of these players end up being useful. But in this case, I can’t come around on Trey Alexander to the point that I think he’s worth a first-round pick. When watching his tape, I worried about his skill translation to the NBA. Given that so much of his game is midrange-centric right now, it’s going to take an adjustment from him in terms of his style of play. He’s going to have to transition into more of an off-ball role because he’s not quite shifty enough or creative enough off the bounce to separate from his man consistently. He must be a dangerous shooter who knocks down shots at an elite level, not the inconsistent level that he did this year. On defense, he was not as much of a plus this year as he was in the past. I like his archetype, but I worry about his size blended with his athletic tools, the shooting questions and his off-ball defensive impact. I couldn’t quite get to a first-round impact level with Alexander, but I thought he was an interesting second-round pick.
45. PJ Hall | 6-8 forward/center | 22 years old | Clemson
Undrafted Clemson big man PJ Hall has agreed to a two-way contract with the Denver Nuggets, sources say. Hall had significant second-round interest, but chose Denver, which didn’t have a second, as his best situation.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
PJ Hall is one of those guys who has a real shot to stick as a fourth big in the NBA. He’s reminiscent of Mike Muscala, another big who is comfortable with the ball, effective as a shooter and smart positionally on both ends. Hall’s presence will allow his team to play five-out on offense while also providing some physicality and strength on defense. He will need to get the most out of his tools athletically and must keep improving his jumper, but the bones are there to be able to do that in time. I see Hall as a solid two-way bet to start his career, and hopefully he can survive enough on defense to get the most out of his timely ball movement and shooting on the other end.
51. Keshad Johnson | 6-6 wing | 23 years old | Arizona
Undrafted Keshad Johnson of San Diego State has agreed to a two-way NBA deal with the Miami Heat, sources said.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
I say this with affection: Keshad Johnson was one of the best garbage man/glue guys in college basketball this past season. He defended and happily took on tough assignments. He plays hard and is willing to be physical. I love the strides he made as a shooter and I love his energy and activity. Teammates just like playing with him because he has no ego about touches and will do all the stuff in the difficult areas of the court that they don’t want to do, such as crash the glass, get on the ground to chase loose balls and cut to get open looks at the rim. I wish he displayed a more natural feel for the game. I don’t know that he’ll ever be a high-volume 3-point shooter, and that’s if things go right; remember, we’re talking about a one-year, small-sample-size shooting split here. I’d love to give Johnson a two-way contract to see what he looks like after another year of development, given his athletic tools, potential on defense and growth as a shooter, but I couldn’t get to him being worth a guaranteed contract. There are just too many questions.
52. Jalen Bridges | 6-7 wing | 23 years old | Baylor
Baylor’s Jalen Bridges agreed to a two-way NBA deal with the Suns, sources said. Bridges chose Suns over several other two-way offers.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
I like the idea of Jalen Bridges as a 3-and-D wing, but wings at this age with such low usage entering the NBA have a narrow pathway toward making it longterm. Justin Holiday and Danny Green are two examples of players like this who have succeeded, but both were much more disruptive on-ball defenders coming out of college than Bridges is now. They both made All-Defense in their leagues in college, whereas Bridges did not. He’s a positive defender, but I’m not convinced that will outweigh what is almost certain to be negative offensive production because of his low usage. I like him as a depth player on a two-way contract. He’s not going to make mistakes; he can shoot and he’ll perform within a team’s scheme on defense. Players like that are useful to have around, even if they never carve out a rotational role. He’d need to become a 40 percent 3-point marksman from NBA distance on real volume to reach that threshold, which will necessitate becoming lethal shooting off screens.
56. Isaiah Crawford | 6-5 wing | 22 years old | Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech’s Isaiah Crawford has agreed to a two-way NBA deal with the Kings, sources said.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
I love the idea of Isaiah Crawford, and I loved Crawford’s tape — particularly on defense — more than I loved him as a prospect. I am confident Crawford will be capable of defending at an NBA level and could become an impact player on that end with his work away from the ball. His frame is tremendous for an NBA wing and he should be able to guard multiple different player types. I don’t think he’s twitchy enough to be an elite defender in the NBA, but I buy him bringing value. The questions I have come on offense. His game does not look translatable to the NBA, even if he has skills that constitute building blocks. A lot of his points came in the midrange after his drives were cut off before he could get all the way to the rim. On top of it, he’s not an elite finisher. Then as a shooter, which should be his bread and butter, I worry about his proficiency after being forced to speed up his release, which will be essential to him sticking in the NBA. There are many potential pitfalls for a player who will turn 23 early in his first season. Throw in the multiple ACL tears on top of that, and I don’t see a first-round grade for Crawford. It would be tough for me to give him a guaranteed multi-year contract.
58. Justin Edwards | 6-6 wing | 20 years old | Kentucky
Kentucky’s Justin Edwards has agreed to a two-way NBA deal with the 76ers, sources said.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2024
I wanted to buy into Justin Edwards as a bit of an upside swing — a post-hype wing who could come in and make some things happen for an NBA team after not fitting in well at Kentucky. I buy into his shot and like that he got better throughout the season after a disastrous start. However, his game was too limited, and he didn’t process things quick enough to project rapid improvement in the crucial areas. He’s so left-hand-dominant and doesn’t have a counter if defenses take that away. The game moves so much faster in the NBA that I find it hard to believe that Edwards will be able to keep up from day one. That means it’ll be a long process. I would rather another team work through that instead of me, if I were on the team side. I had with a clear two-way grade.
(Top photo of Trey Alexander: Justin Edmonds / Getty Images)
