2021 NBA Draft Big Board: Cade Cunningham headlines draft class

16. Sharife Cooper, Guard, Auburn

Measurements: 6-1, 180 lbs

Sharife Cooper is one of the most polarizing prospects in this draft. He has an elite skill (passing/playmaking) but is undersized and can’t shoot (yet). He’s genuinely athletic, his scoring splits are just very, very rough.

That said, though, the most translatable skill to the NBA is passing. Sharife Cooper happens to be really, really good at it. That passing is never going to fade. It just isn’t.

Again, with his frame, he’s going to have to develop his mid-range and 3-point shooting if he wants to find consistent, night-to-night success. His passing will make him valuable, but whatever his offense turns into is going to determine how good of a player he can be.

Ceiling: All-Star
Floor: Low-level backup floor general
Median outcome: Mid-level backup floor general
Pro comparison: Current-day, (non-playoff) Rajon Rondo

2021 NBA Draft Big Board: Cade Cunningham headlines draft class

15. Jared Butler, Guard, Baylor

Measurements: 6-4, 195 lbs

Jared Butler is about as sure of a prospect as you can get. Over the past two years at Baylor, Butler has averaged 16 points per game on elite shooting splits (45/40/78). He’s the perfect prospect if a team in the latter half of the first round wants a complementary, score-first guard.

Butler is never going to ‘wow’ anyone with his passing, but he’s got a solid frame for a combo-guard, is going to be at least an average positional defender, and is ultra-effiecient with how he goes about scoring.

No, Butler isn’t going to be a sexy pick by any means, but he’s very likely going to be a solid role player for years to come, and for where he’s being considered by NBA teams (based on Mock Drafts), he’s going to be a value.

Ceiling: Top-50 player
Floor: Mid-level rotational player
Median outcome: High-level rotational player (4-6th man in rotation)
Pro comparison: Cam Payne