Final Houston Rockets 2024 NBA Draft lottery big board

13. Rob Dillingham, G, Kentucky

As a general rule, Kentucky guards pan out in the NBA. With that said, the Rockets didn't have much luck with TyTy Washington.

Now is not the time to be superstitious. Dillingham has a much higher ceiling than Washington. He's typically mocked significantly higher than this. Do we dislike Dillingham?

No - but we suspect Ime Udoka may. Dillingham looks like a professional scorer, but he may have defensive limitations at the NBA level. This competitive Rockets club doesn't seem like they'll have much patience for (another) guard who struggles to prevent points.

12. Ja'Kobe Walter, G, Baylor

By contrast, Walter shouldn't have a problem getting stops. He's 6'5", has long arms, and seems to play with focus and effort on the defensive end.

To the naked eye, Walter looks like one of the best shooters in this class. He can knock down triples off of the catch or dribble and hit difficult contested shots. Unfortunately, the numbers don't suggest the same.

Walter shot just 34.1% from deep for Baylor this year. The Rockets don't need more shot creation - they need more floor spacing. Still, Walter could be worth a flyer if this front office is intrigued by his two-way potential.

11. Kel'el Ware, C, Indiana

Dillingham's low placement was the first hot take in this piece. This is the second one. You will find few big boards with Ware flirting with top 10 status.

What can we say? We're free thinkers. For some reason, we like a 7-footer who can space the floor (42.5% from deep this year) and potentially defend in space.

There are questions about Ware's motor. Ordinarily, that would be a larger concern. We'd be intrigued to see if Ime Udoka can coach Ware into a high-effort player in this weak draft.