5 NBA Draft sleepers in the NCAA Tournament

3. Kenny Wooten, C, Oregon

Kenny Wooten has always been a weird prospect.  He’s not much of an offensive player, contributing basically nothing but dunks, and for all of his two-year college career, he hasn’t been the most acclaimed prospect on his own team, even after Bol Bol went down with an injury.  But Wooten is valuable. There’s a strong contention that he’s the single best defensive prospect in a class that could easily contain several other very good defensive prospects (Thybulle, Herb Jones, Brandon Clarke, etc.).  He’s a phenomenal athlete who is an elite shot blocker, but he also has the lateral agility to step out to the perimeter on switches. His defensive IQ has significantly improved from last year’s tendency to jump after everything, and ultimately he should be on the radar even without an offensive anything.

And he’s going to get one heck of a chance to show it because the Ducks have been matched up with Ethan Happ and Wisconsin in round one.  Expectations are low because it’s been a terrible year for the PAC-12, but Wooten is going to get a head-to-head matchup with one of the best interior scorers in the country.  Not only that, but Wisconsin’s slow-paced nature will likely make for a more defensive game, which should allow Wooten to be the Oregon player that has a chance to take over.