From stars like Ja Morant to end-of-rotation contributors like AJ Green, each year, a new crop of mid-major talent finds its way into the NBA. To be deemed worthy of one of the 450 spots in the league is a tremendous accomplishment for anybody, but it is especially impressive when a mid-major player, many of whom have been passed over by high-major schools, is able to work his way onto the radar.
So who are this year’s heroes of our blog? Who will carry our mid-major flag with them to the highest level of basketball?
I discussed many of these prospects, and more, with NBA Draft writer for NoCeilingsNBA.com Maxwell Baumbach on the Mid-Major Hoops Podcast.
DaRon Holmes II (Dayton)
No. 18 on NoCeilingsNBA.com Final Big Board
Holmes isn’t the typical story of an unheralded high schooler making a name for himself over four years at a mid-major program and sneaking his way onto NBA Draft radars late in the process. He was a four-star prospect in high school who committed to a program just one year removed from having the national player of the year, in Obi Toppin, who was selected in the top 10 of the 2020 NBA Draft.
From the very beginning at Dayton, it was clear that the 6-foot-10 Holmes would one day make it to the NBA, finding himself projected in the lottery before his sophomore season. He didn’t quite have the breakout that NBA scouts were hoping for, so he decided to return to Dayton for his third year.
He came into the 2023-24 season a different man. Holmes, who was once just a post-up and dunk threat, evolved into an all-encompassing offensive engine, shooting threes, driving the lane, and even bringing the ball up at times.
Over the course of his career, the consensus All-America selection added multiple skills that will help him play a role in the NBA.
Nearly all projections agree that Holmes will be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft, which would make him the fourth player in Dayton history to do so.
Dillon Jones (Weber State)
No. 34 on NoCeilingsNBA.com Final Big Board
Jones has been on the periphery of NBA radars for a few years now thanks to an illustrious career at Weber State. He made three consecutive All-Big Sky teams, including winning the Player of the Year in that league this past season.
Despite standing just under 6-foot-5 and not being a strong vertical athlete, Jones finished second in the country in defensive rebounding rate in 2023-24. Even though he carried an inordinate offensive load for the Wildcats, he was…
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