ESPN mock draft

[Jaxcat]

JQ to the Bulls at 15 (IIRC) - preposterous, imo. When he came to UK, he was viewed as a rebounder and potential rim protector but still needed a lot of work to develop on the offensive side. With ongoing knee problems that seemingly have taken way longer to heal than many expected, I believe taking him in mid-first round is a big stretch.

Moreno projected at #43, mid second. If that's what he's expecting, does he stay in the draft or return to UK and a nice, fat check?

[Matt Dillon]

JQ at 15 and Moreno at 43 just seems so wrong to me. I still believe the chance that Moreno returns 1s about 55-45.

[UKHoops01]

Here is the ESPN NBA mock draft the OP is referring to, released last Monday (5/11)

https://www.on3.com/pro/news/2026-nb...after-lottery/

Yeah, JQ at 15 is hilarious to me. Aside from all the skill and developmental questions, there's the huge injury concern. If I was a GM, I wouldn't even think about drafting him.

Moreno SHOULD return to Kentucky if he's projected at #43. Period, end of story.

Allen Graves is projected at #22, so his college days are likely over, and Momcilovic is projected at #35, which would put him in the second round. Hopefully that would signal a return to college and Kentucky would be his destination.

[Cawood86]

Mock drafts are usually way off...at least NFL mock drafts are ....I don't care at all about the NBA so my perspective might be off

[bthaunert]

Here is a consensus draft board that was updated on May 16th that combines the rankings for tons of mock drafts together. https://www.rookiescale.com/2026-consensus-board/

This one has JQ at 15 and Moreno at 42. I would be shocked if Moreno stayed in the draft to be a mid second rounder. Maybe pre NIL and rev share, but I don't believe it would happen now.

[EKYCat]

Here is a consensus draft board that was updated on May 16th that combines the rankings for tons of mock drafts together. https://www.rookiescale.com/2026-consensus-board/

This one has JQ at 15 and Moreno at 42. I would be shocked if Moreno stayed in the draft to be a mid second rounder. Maybe pre NIL and rev share, but I don't believe it would happen now.

Yeah, I don't think Moreno is staying in the draft. Kind of like Oweh last year. I'll be interested to see what the roster looks like after the withdrawal deadline. It's still possible UK could put something decent together but it'll depend on the ability to close the deal on a guy like Milan!

[Jload]

It's really hard to judge a coaches ability to " close the deal: when the average fan has no clue how much money is being offered to these guys OR how much is even available from UK. I have heard wildly different speculation from " sources" about how much we offered someone or how much money is actually available for basketball recruiting. I read that several " whiffs" by UK were actually because another team offered more. I also read alot of nonsense about Pope's inability to "close" when he has a kid on campus. If you are an agent representing a client in high demand why would you accept an offer until you have seen wether someone else will match or exceed it.

[KentuckyWild2020]

I know it sucks JQ and the drama, who knows if he could play or not?

Who knows if his knee will every really hold up?

One thing I do know, his offense isn't there yet but at some point he will be able to shoot the basketball pretty decent in my opinion, he doesn't have that funky big man form shooting the ball, that will serve him well next level.

For the 16 minutes we saw him this season, i don't know how many minutes it was for real but he really reminded me of a Shawn Kemp type player with one exception, I do think he will be a better shooter and scorer.

I hope he slips down to Boston and they take him, don't let me lie...

[KentuckyWild2020]

When I see Moreno in clips of him working out, always seems like he's just standing behind the arc and shooting 3's.


I like the NBA but this whole thing is a joke now, nothing but a stand around circle blank everybody shooting 3's. A few teams would still be playing if they would realize when the 3 isn't falling, get to the rim., it's crazy...

[Cawood86]

The NBA is zero draw for me....its not entertaining or fun to watch