The Miami Heat's recent stretch of losses could push them inside the lottery. This draft is expected to have one of the most stacked draft classes in terms of depth. Players such as Darryn Peterson, A.J. Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer and Caleb Wilson are being viewed as generational talents. They will presumably be picked inside the top five draft selections but the surrounding draft class is still making some real noise.
Bleacher Report released their latest mock draft as the Sweet 16 is underway in the NCAA tournament. In their projection, Miami holds the No. 14 selection, the last pick of the lottery and select Tennessee Volunteers forward Nate Ament. The 19-year-old's pro comparison is Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher, the first overall pick of the 2024 NBA draft. Risacher has had growing pains since joining the NBA.
"Though not always efficient, Nate Ament was looking like a more confident and decisive scorer before going down with an ankle injury," the article wrote. "He was getting to spots cleaner, elevating in traffic and stepping into threes. There will always be demand and patience when it comes to 6'10" wings with shoot-dribble-pass skill sets, and Ament has at least 12 made field goals in ball-screen, isolation, spot-up and movement off-screen situations. He's getting to the line at a strong rate, yet he isn't a black hole, averaging 2.5 assists."
Ament and the Volunteers are still in the NCAA tournament. Throughout the season, he is averaging 16.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists. Ament was viewed as a five-star recruit and was the No. 4 recruit in the ESPN recruitment rankings heading into this season.
"The case against Ament questions if the shooting will be good enough to offset projected issues around a lack of explosion and strength for turning the corner and finishing," the article added. "Even while he's been far more productive lately, he's still at just 51.3 percent on layups during conference play. The case for him shows a diverse shotmaker who can get his shot off cleanly at will due to positional height and release point."
Miami could use another forward, especially if the team parts with Andrew Wiggins this offseason. Ament has the skillset but just needs to improve his efficiency for the next level.
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