Bryce Hopkins is a right-handed forward who has improved his physical conditioning as he has matured. Hopkins is a powerful one-on-one player with a long history as a high-level prospect. He was a big-time recruit after being named Illinois High School Player of the Year in 2020-21.
Hopkins averaged 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.1 steals per game this season at St. John’s. He shot 36.3% from three-point range and 71.3% from the free throw line. At 6'6" with a 6'10.5" wingspan and 219 pounds, Hopkins will enter the NBA with positional size as a small forward. Hopkins spent his freshman season at Kentucky, played parts of three years at Providence, and finished with a grad season at St. John’s. He tore his ACL badly in January 2024, and he has shown tremendous perseverance to move as well as he does today. He posted good lane agility times at the NBA Draft Combine and jumped a 37.5" max vertical. Hopkins has always had a knack for drawing fouls. He can bully opponents who do not possess his strength, and his 1.53-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio was good for a forward. His DDiff was minus 1.5, so the defensive impact still needs to be better. We do not think Hopkins will be drafted. Still, he is a trustworthy grinder with strength, scoring instincts, positional size, and enough shooting improvement to stay interesting. We think he could potentially stick as a mid-tier reserve small forward in the NBA.
