Possible downside for 8 prospects mocked to Spurs

With two picks in the top ten, the San Antonio Spurs can come out of the 2024 NBA Draft with a haul of potential cornerstones. But every pick in this class carries some level of risk. Here's what the Spurs should be looking out for in each player.

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Dalton Knecht

Spurs could add a proven but one-dimensional player

If the Spurs want to take a straight-line approach to addressing their three-point deficiencies, drafting Tennessee's Dalton Knecht is the easiest way to do it. The 6'6 SEC Player of the Year is the best shooter in the draft but doesn't bring much else to the table.

It's important not to undersell Knecht's shooting ability. He shot almost 40 percent from behind the arc last season, has a quick trigger, repeatedly showed he was comfortable pulling up well past NBA range, and has proven to be comfortable creating for himself. His offensive game is developed and versatile and he can deliver a scoring impact from day one.

Defensively, he's no traffic cone, but he's going to be targeted at the NBA level. He's 6'6 but has a lighter frame; he can be bullied by bigger wings. He's not a lazy defender, but there's nothing about his impact on that end of the floor that would lead you to believe he's going to be anything but an average defender at best.

Knecht has drawn pre-draft comparisons to Doug McDermott, and it's not hard to see why. It's not a bad comparison! McDermott has had a very successful NBA career up to this point. But should the Spurs really be using the 8th overall pick on Gen Z Dougie McBuckets? It just feels like a bit of a reach.

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