Christian Anderson's explosive sophomore season transforms Texas Tech's guard into a highly-touted NBA prospect, boosting his draft stock significantly.
The college basketball season is well underway, which means that mock drafts of the upcoming 2026 NBA Draft are going to start flying left and right.
Texas Tech has been one of the best teams in the nation, and is currently ranked at No. 11 in the AP Top 25. Many would point to the play of their star JT Toppin as the reason for their success, but the team's point guard has also been playing great.
And Bryan Kalbrosky of USA Today recognizes that as well.
In his recent mock draft, he has Topping going to the Denver Nuggets at No. 27, but he thinks another Red Raider will go ahead of him. At No. 22, he thinks the Minnesota Timberwolves should draft sophomore guard Christian Anderson.
"Another notable breakout player on mock drafts and big boards right now is Texas Tech sophomore Christian Anderson," Kalbrosky writes. "Now playing point guard, Anderson is recording more than twice as many assists per 100 possessions as a sophomore now compared to when he was a freshman. He has turned himself into one of the best scorers and most prolific 3-point shooters in the NCAA and his game should scale well to the next level."
Anderson played some very solid basketball in his freshman season with the Red Raiders at 10 points per game, but he did not play a huge role.
But that has all changed in his second season with the team.
He is playing the most minutes per game of anyone in the Big 12 Conference at 38.5, and he is doing great things with those minutes. Anderson is averaging just under 20, and he is also distributing the ball very well at 7.5 assists per game.
And he is doing all of this with some great shooting percentages.
He is shooting 48 percent from the field, but it is his three-point prowess that is most impressive. Anderson shoots an absurd 44 percent from beyond the arc, and he does so with a very high volume of just under eight attempts per game.
This is something that NBA teams are probably salivating at, as the three-pointer is bigger now than it ever has been.
If Anderson can continue his spectacular play, he could prove to be a solid option for any team looking for a point guard in the upcoming draft.