Wilson’s NBA Projections (Individual and Team)
Player Comps: Jalen Johnson and Blake Griffin
Wilson has the potential to make an impact on the defensive end immediately, where he ends up in June’s draft.
Griffin is the best comparison to Wilson at this point, given their athleticism and power. Griffin was also an extremely good passer, superb rebounder (especially offensive), and physical defender. He didn’t become a viable 3-point threat until late in his career.
Granted, Griffin had a different body type than Wilson. But Wilson is a different kind of defender than Griffin, given his length and activity. Still, if Wilson can have anywhere near the NBA career that Griffin has, then he will be someone special to watch. Griffin, who last played in the NBA in 2023, was a six-time all-star and five-time All-NBA selection. He played 13 and averaged 19.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists with shooting splits of 49.3/32.8/65.6.
Now, while Griffin is the player Wilson resembles, it is Johnson who NBA teams would be ecstatic about turning into. Johnson and Wilson resemble each other physically and in terms of their two-way ability as well as in their respective positions. Griffin was a power forward/center, while Johnson is a combo forward.
It took Johnson, who was selected with the No. 20 pick in 2021 after one season at Kentucky, a while to develop into a polished NBA player — so teams may have to be patient with Wilson. However, injuries did slow his development. Johnson was selected to his first NBA All-Star Game this season, averaging 22.9 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 8.1 assists for the Atlanta Hawks.
