NBA Mock Draft: Miami Heat Selects TJ Leaf From UCLA

SB Nation's NBA Network conducted a mock draft with bloggers from each team site making team's pick. To continue the 2017 NBA Mock Draft, Hot Hot Hoops takes TJ Leaf from UCLA.

By Dakota Schmidt@Dakota_Schmidt Jun 15, 2017, 6:30pm EDT

NBA Mock Draft Pick #14: TJ Leaf, Power Forward, UCLA

SBNation’s Miami Heat blog Hot Hot Hoops explains their pick:

TJ Leaf provides the Heat with relief at an immediate need. Leaf is a 6'10 PF that can put the ball on the floor and shoot from the outside. He's talented as a spacer for a big and is a decent rebounder. His defense will determine his playing time. He immediately can fill the role that Luke Babbitt played last year and have much more upside. Miami has plenty of guards, so going big is the right choice for them and Leaf should develop into a good rotation player in the NBA.

Ridiculous Upside Analysis

At this point in the draft, it’s probably the best idea to select the player that has the highest upside while also being able to fit into your team’s rotation. The crew at Hot Hot Hoops did a good job of that with their selection 6’10 power forward T.J. Leaf. Although Leaf played second fiddle at UCLA under Ball, he shined as a pretty well-rounded offensive weapon. AT UCLA, he showed himself to be capable as an offensive rebounder and post-up threat while also showing some touch from beyond the arc. That perimeter potential is evident by Leaf shooting 47% from beyond the arc on 1.6 attempts per game.