Purdue Boilermakers senior Braden Smith will be entering as one of the top point guards for 2026, as he is an elite playmaker with excellent ball-handling and passing. He is a pure point guard but a bit undersized, listed at 6’0, but could be a few millimetres shorter. This short stature may land the senior guard late into the first round, possibly around the late 30’s or early 40’s.
That being said, some possible teams may need a playmaker like Braden Smith, who may be small, but his ball-handling is top-notch. What he lacks in size, he makes up for in court vision and a high basketball IQ. Matched with those ball-handling and passing skills, he could make for an excellent backup point guard for a rookie.
Top 5 Possible Landing Spots for Purdue PG Braden Smith
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls may have Josh Giddey right now, and they have a guard-heavy rotation, but they barely have pure playmakers as point guards at the moment, and they might get Braden Smith as a solution. He would be a very good playmaker coming off the bench, finding the open man or lobbing an alley-oop in transition. Simply put, the Purdue guard could deepen the Bulls’ backcourt and be a good backup for Giddey.
Washington Wizards
As a rookie, teams would probably pick Braden Smith as a backup point guard, but right now, the Washington Wizards need one. They have Carlton “Bub” Carrington as their starter, but he is not really one who could be considered a pure point guard. While the Wizards could initially add Smith as a backup for Carrington, he could soon take over as a starter.
Utah Jazz
The Jazz are having point guard problems right now, as starter Keyonte George is out with an injury, with the team struggling at the moment with an 18-39 record. While they have a good frontline in Lauri Markkannen (who is also injured) and Ace Bailey, they are struggling to find a pure playmaker, and this is when Smith could come in as one of their backups.
Charlotte Hornets
LaMelo Ball might be very good, but he might need some backups, especially with Coby White currently injured. For next season, the Hornets could look into the draft for a solution, and they could get a pure PG in Smith.
Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies’ backcourt is facing some injury troubles, especially with Ja Morant being out with a shoulder injury. The team needs a deeper backcourt, but with rumors that the team may soon be moving on from Morant, Braden Smith might be a good rebuild option.
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