2024 NBA Mock Draft: Isaiah Collier, Ja'Kobe Walter on the rise early

The college basketball season started with a bang. The freshmen standouts lie on the perimeter, with USC point guard Isaiah Collier (20.0 points, 4.0 assists per game) and Baylor swingman Ja'Kobe Walter (18.0 points, 4.5 rebounds per game) erupting out of the gates.

Collier is a strong, bursty guard with a knack for tearing up the middle of a defense. Walter is a shot-maker extraordinaire, possessed with unshakable confidence and potentially elite versatility as a shooter.

With college basketball in full swing, the NBA Draft picture will evolve at a rapid-fire pace. Each game presents a new opportunity for a player to break into the limelight. Scouts will be hard at work all season, scouring gyms nationwide to evaluate potential future draftees.

Here's an updated (early) look at the landscape, with the lottery order determined by Tankathon simulation. The Charlotte Hornets get lucky and are on the clock.

There isn't a clear-cut frontrunner in the 2024 draft, but Ron Holland is easy to project in this spot due to his ability to impact winning both ways. He's a tremendous wing defender at 6-foot-8, possessing advanced instincts away from the ball and the necessary attitude to stack stops at the point of attack.

On offense, Holland doesn't necessarily profile as a go-to scorer right away. He's a bursty driver who should thrive next to an elite ball-handler, such as LaMelo Ball. The 3-pointers appear to be falling and he flashes enough pull-up shooting to suggest long-term upside. He's not your traditional No. 1 pick in terms of imminent stardom, but Holland has the potential for a long and fruitful career on the wing.

Matas Buzelis has a passivity issue, but it's not difficult to decipher the appeal for NBA teams — potentially starting in the No. 1 spot. Buzelis is 6-foot-9 with the ability to fluidly attack downhill, create in transition or splash 3s. He needs to get stronger, but the defense should come around eventually.

The best case for Buzelis would be advancements as a pull-up shooter and rim finisher, allowing him to develop into a legitimate offensive alpha. Worst case, he's a skilled connective passer and additional ball-handling arm that can slide across positions, making him easy to project as a high-level starter, if not a perennial All-Star. The Cavs have an elite frontcourt and backcourt. Buzelis can slide into a significant role on the wing.