Washington Huskies basketball: Final Mock Draft Consensus on Isaiah Stewart
Chip Clark
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Prospects 3.0
By all accounts, Stewart was a hit when interviewing with prospective teams. That’s why it’s strange how much he fell between mock compilations. Stewart wasn’t a first-round pick in 14 of 40 mocks.
As far as the 26 mocks he appears on, opinions are highly varied. New Orleans at 24 and New York at 27 came up the most in one spot, with for each. Boston has three first-round picks, and Stewart’s name came up to join the Celtics seven times (14th, 26th three times, and 30th three) just at different picks.
Stewart fits in well with Boston’s “make them pay on the boards” philosophy. The Celtics have many interchangeable parts at the power positions. Where he fits in among them is a separate question. Boston is a favorite in the Atlantic Division. How much time can a rookie get there?
New York is an intriguing option. Stewart would be stuck behind Julius Randle, Bobby Portis, and Taj Gibson. Then again, Gibson has a $1M buyout, Portis has a team option for 2020. Additionally, this is the last guaranteed year of Randle’s contract. He has a $4M buyout for 2021-22. The Huskies big man could find himself as a starter at Madison Square Garden in a year.
Other places Stewart might end up: 17th – Minnesota, 19th – Brooklyn, 20 – Miami, 22nd – Denver, 23rd – Utah, 25th – Oklahoma City (2), 28th Oklahoma City (2), 29th Toronto (2), 36th – Philadelphia, 37 – Washington, 39th – New Orleans.
This time all mocks that went through two rounds included Stewart.
Stewart is a bit undersized but has very long arms and probably came second only to Bane in terms of interview raves – everyone loves him. – John Hollinger, The Athletic.
Imagine how awesome the Washington Huskies basketball team would be if McDaniels and Stewart stuck around for one more year.