anyone who follows my draft writing knows how much I love Nique Clifford. dating back to his junior year, I was hopeful for him to declare in a draft class that was considered fairly shallow. I was worried his senior year return would backfire, but even in this stacked draft class, Clifford has only sharpened his play and has solidified himself as one of, if not THE best player in the Mountain West, and one of his school's greatest all time players. in this article I'm going to break down his game, statistics, and make my argument as to why I have him so insanely high on my big board and what I think his ceiling is. I'll also discuss why I think he's similar to other prospects who (sorry but I have to brag here for credibility) were some of my most accurate draft evaluations ever, and guys I have been proud to hang my hat on as a young full-time basketball analyst. in a pure space vacuum, there are few players I have ranked over him, and I legitimately believe he could be an NBA all-star or better.

With such a complete player, it’s hard to figure out where to even begin. But from the top- he’s 6’6 and 205 pounds with a just slightly positive wingspan of 6’8. Not explosive, but an above average athlete with exceptional muscle and vertical prowess, and is best described as incredibly coordinated and a smooth, strong, confident mover at his size. Offensively, he’s a 2.75 level scorer with the tools, production, and efficiency you would ask for from any potential NBA 1st option. He’s posted a TS% of 61% over his last two years and has been at the top of the MWC in eFG% while averaging 18.6 ppg. His scoring profile is remarkably similar to Kawhi Leonard’s, and he’s a deadly midrange and post-up threat. This is where his phenomenal footwork shines through the most, as he can comfortably get any look he wants from about almost anywhere between the arc and the block. Some of the most polished midrange scoring you’ll see at the college level. He’s become a red-hot shooter in the last two seasons, now up to 39% on almost 5 attempts a game. While wings often show a heavy preference between catch and shoot and self-created threes, Clifford tows a very healthy line of the two, and is a concrete perimeter threat.

The reason for calling him a 2.75 level scorer is because he doesn’t get to the rim as frequently as you’d like to see for a player of his usage and offensive role. POA/off-the-dribble scoring or edge creation does stick out in the film as something he lacks in. But with everything we’ve discussed up to this point, I don’t doubt at all that he could improve in this regard. Even without it, you’re left with a real-deal 1st option scorer somewhat reminiscent of a few guys including Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam, DeMar DeRozan, and more.

One of my absolute favorite traits of Clifford’s is his passing. I think the playmaking elevates his entire game, as it often does for players who hope to evolve from just a scorer to a lead offensive option. He has an intuitive playmaking mind and elite offensive recognition, which, paired with excellent mechanical passing, makes him a nightmare to defend. Much of this credit belongs to Colorado State head coach Niko Medved, who’s done a hell of a job creating a very active offense that keeps the rock swinging. The term “ice rope” is usually overused or underused by NBA draft scouts. For me, I tend to only use it for the best of the best mechanical passers- and Nique Clifford is one of them. The strength, accuracy, and creativity of his passing is immensely ahead of the curve for his position. There’s a ton of NBA value with that kind of franchise wing.

Nique is also straight up one of the best rebounders in college basketball, which is even more impressive considering he’s 6’6. Over his junior and senior year respectively, he’s averaged 7.6 and 9.8 rebounds per game, and has consistently been at the top of the REB% leaderboards, despite usually being the shortest guy on those rankings. The film backs it up- his activity on both ends of the floor is nonstop, and his motor and attention to detail constantly land him in the right place to lock down boards. This aspect of his game goes hand in hand with his defense, which I think will be one of the easier parts of his game to translate to the pros. He has what it takes to be an All-Defense level player, with nimble feet and a strong frame that swallows up any dribble drive, a quick first and second hop that fine tunes his shot contests, and most of all, DISCIPLINE. He plays the floor with such precision and so much attention to detail, whether that be on an island in space, in the gaps playing stunt-recover, or as the weakside help rotation, where he LEAPS to get some crazy highlight reel blocks.

from a player-to-team impact standpoint, Clifford’s advanced stats are up there with the very best. in any given year in the Torvik era the NCAA is usually only host to a couple dozen players with a PORPAGATU of 5+, and less than a dozen of players with that AND a 10+ BPM. Clifford is now one of them. in the last 13 years, only 90 NCAA players fill that criteria, including some great company: Stephen Curry, James Harden, Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, Anthony Davis, Trae Young, Derrick White, Zion Williamson, Kemba Walker, Mikal Bridges, Lonzo Ball, Tyrese Haliburton, Payton Pritchard and Evan Mobley. of course, these stats don’t determine everything, but it’s an extremely impressive team-impact query for him to fill.

Everything Clifford does adds up, and you’re left with a college tape and stat sheet that suggests, above anything else, Nique Clifford is on the way to being an NBA all-star. And I believe he will be.

To be quite frank- with most other prospects, there simply is not this much positive game to even talk about, and the last time I wrote this much about a player was Jalen Williams, Dyson Daniels, and Jake LaRavia. (so I’m 66% on those! lol)

in so many ways, he reminds me of Jalen. Not even necessarily mechanically, but just that he’s the star two-way wing of a mid-major team and does literally everything on the court at an elite level. Especially in terms of prospect discovery, they feel very similar. I, along with so many other scouts, saw how good Santa Clara Jalen Williams was. And as much we wanna brag about being ahead of the curve, the truth is he was so good, it essentially feels like we don’t even deserve credit for knowing that he was obviously good. And I feel the EXACT same thing happening with Nique Clifford. I’m writing this as the MWC championship is about to come to a close, and who knows how much NCAA ball the tournament will afford him, but Nique is so close to becoming that guy. I see more and more discussion about him on TV and online. Very well deserved.

While there’s still lots of time until the draft, Clifford has remained at the 4 or 5 spot on my big board, and I constantly project him in the mid-lottery in my mock drafts. If you haven’t seen this guy play, I highly encourage you to check him out. One of the most interesting and dynamic prospects I have ever evaluated, and all basketball work aside- a guy I love to watch and will be rooting for at the next level no matter what team he’s on.

thanks for the read, i really really appreciate it!