Oregon center Kel’el Ware’s freshman season got off to a relatively quiet – but still productive – start. Through the first nine games of Ware’s career with the Ducks he averaged 10.3 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks while shooting 57.1% on two pointers and 30.8% on threes.
Great? No, but totally reasonable from a true freshman playing 26 minutes per game, especially when opponents in that stretch included Houston, UConn, Michigan State, and UCLA.
Since then, however, things have been a complete disaster.
Ware only scored in double figures twice in his last 18 games, averaging just 4.8 points and 3.2 rebounds while his minutes have plummeted to just 12 per contest – including only one minute in Oregon’s recent loss to Washington State.
It’s a sharp decline for a player who showed up in the lottery of many 2023 NBA mock drafts at the beginning of the year – and it shouldn’t be a surprise to see his stock falling as well.
Compiled below are seven 2023 NBA mock drafts, all created within the last few weeks, that showcase just how much opinion of the 5-star prospect has changed as his minutes, and production, have dipped.
While many still believe he could sneak into the first round, others are removing him from their mocks all together – with one site (NBAdraft.net) including him on their 2024 mock, indicating a belief he could return to college for another year.
Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports
Site: NBC Sports
Overall: 22
Team: Miami Heat
Write-up: “A lanky 7-footer, Ware could be aided by the fact the top of the draft is thin on big men outside of Wembanyama. Ware is a solid rim-protector whose numbers look a lot better when you extrapolate them out to per-40 minutes, as he’s mostly coming off the bench for the Ducks. He seems like the type that will go somewhere between 10 and 20 to a team that is simply in need of shot-blocking.”
Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports
Site: Bleacher Report
Overall: 30th
Team: Indiana Pacers
Write-up: “Ware’s draft floor is dropping, as he’s played 15 minutes or fewer in 11 consecutive games. He’ll have a chance to win back support during workouts, where his 7’0″ size,…
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