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(Ignite: G League, 6-8)
Current overall rank: 9
Previous rank: 10 (+1)
Best rank: 3
Worst rank: 15
Ron Holland entered the G League season as a candidate to be the No. 1 pick. While the Ignite star has fluctuated between the 9-10 range in consecutive mocks, he’ll be a high lottery pick with a strong floor and potentially significant upside, depending on the situation he ends up in.
“Holland is the kind of player that’s hard for me to see as your lone ball handler,” an NBA executive told HoopsHype. “I think he’s going to have to play the two in a lot of lineups. If that’s the case, you run the risk of him becoming a player like Dejounte Murray, but stronger, where you have to play him with another predominantly good playmaker that’s small. If that’s the case, it’s going to be hard for you to switch as much and be as physical. I think he tries. He’s tough-minded. I don’t know, outside of being a transition player, if he’s going to be a halfcourt player just yet. Maybe he develops some playmaking, and the shooting becomes real. If I were him, I’d go to a team and defend his butt off and see where it goes from there.”
Holland remains one of the most versatile players in the draft who can play the two, three, or small-ball four. He’s at his best attacking downhill, has a high motor, and is always willing to guard the opponent’s top perimeter scorer. His swing skill will be his three-point shooting.
“Ron can get downhill whenever he wants,” his teammate Izan Almansa told HoopsHype at the G League Showcase. “He can change the game going downhill. He can shoot, and he hustles. He plays defense. He’s versatile and does a little bit of everything.”
Holland was also willing to share the spotlight with fellow projected lottery pick Matas Buzelis by choosing to ultimately play for Ignite after initially committing to Texas.
“Ron is a dog,” Buzelis told HoopsHype at the G League Showcase. “He’s super aggressive and will never back down to anybody. He’s got a lot of skill, but he also involves his teammates at the same time.”
MORE: Ron Holland: ‘I feel like I’m the one that stands out because of my motor’
