Sam Dekker Declares for NBA Draft, Should He Be a Lottery Pick?

Sam Dekker has decided to forego his senior season at Wisconsin and declare for the NBA Draft. Jason has had Dekker at or near the lottery in his mocks for a year now, and has said Dekker reminded him of Gordon Hayward. Dekker bolstered his stock with big NCAA Tournament games against North Carolina, Arizona, and Kentucky. However, he went a 14-minute stretch in the second half without scoring in the Finals against Duke, and went 0-6 from 3-point range in the game.

My knee-jerk opinion is that if I were an NBA GM, I’d prefer to have Frank Kaminsky on my team. Any player’s success will be more reliant on his teammates, coaches, and front office than is generally given credit. While Dekker projects better athletically, I think a smart team with good ball movement could turn Kaminsky, who is a much more consistent player, into a formidable weapon. After watching Dekker carefully for the past three years, I personally do not think I would spend a lottery pick on him. I sincerely hope he proves me wrong.

Wisconsin could have a rough go at it next year. They’ll have Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig back, but they’re losing Dekker, Kaminsky, Josh Gasser, Duje Dukan, and Traevon Jackson. To even compete in the Big Ten, the Badgers will need major leaps from Zak Showalter and Vitto Brown.