Indiana basketball center Kel’el Ware a ‘riser’ as NBA Draft approaches: ‘Ware has done a good job of addressing some of the red flags in his profile.’

The 2024 NBA Draft is about one month away and once again, Indiana basketball is pretty much guaranteed to have presence. With Trayce Jackson-Davis and Jalen Hood-Schifino being drafted last year, Kel’el Ware will more-than-likely be the next Hoosier to hear his name called in the NBA Draft.

In his lone season with Indiana basketball, Ware averaged 15.9 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, 1.5 assists and shot 56.8 percent from the field on the season which lead him to an All-Big Ten Second Team selection. He went from being an afterthought during his freshman season at Oregon to being a legit first-round pick in this year’s upcoming draft.

While it is likely that we see Ware get his name called in the first round of the 2024 NBA draft, when exactly the 7-footer will hear his name called has been the interesting case. In many mock drafts, Kel’el Ware has been projected anywhere from late lottery to late first round.

The promising thing right now for Kel’el Ware is that it seems that his NBA draft stock has seen a little bit of rise since the NBA combine that took place last week. Not only did Ware really show out at the combine, he ended up finishing with the highest score of any center in the database of the NBA combine and earned a perfect score of 100.0. The record was previously held by Damian Jones. Ware also finished with a raw score of 81.1.

Not only is Ware a top 100 prospect in the 2024 NBA Draft class, he is listed as a top 25 prospect by many, as well.

“With a dearth of big-men prospects, teams drafting in the bottom half of the second round are closely studying the candidacy of Ware, who has plenty of things going for him with his tremendous size (7-1 in shoes), length (7-4.5 wingspan), reach (9-4.5), mobility and productivity on both ends of the floor,” Said ESPN’s Jonathan Givony when listing Ware at No. 25 in his top 100 prospects.

“Ware has done a good job of addressing some of the red flags in his profile from his time at Oregon with stronger than expected interviews and background intel, helping to solidify his standing in the first round. Like most players in this range, Ware’s workouts will be key.

Evan though last season did not go well for Indiana basketball as a team, you have to really give credit to Mike Woodson for what he was able to do in one season with Kel’el Ware. Ware really went back to basics and allowed Mike Woodson to develop him back to be an elite big man.

“In April of last year Coach Woodson and I sat in his office and he told me he was going to help me get to the next level, and if there is one thing we know about Woody, is that he is true to his word,” Ware told 247Sports National Analyst Travis Branham. “I owe a lot to Coach Woodson and the entire coaching staff, Coach Yasir, Coach Kenya and Coach Brian.”

No matter what spot Kel’el Ware gets drafted at next month, he could end up being the biggest steal of the draft when it is all said and done.

The NBA Draft takes place on June 27.

SEE ALSO: The five best fits for former Indiana basketball player Kel’el Ware in the NBA

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