The Detroit Pistons did well in the second round of the NBA Draft last season, grabbing versatile forward Isaiah Livers, who looks like a part of the future rotation.
They will look to do the same this year, and could go in a similar direction, as versatile wings are extremely valuable in today’s NBA, especially if they can defend their position and shoot from 3-point range.
The Pistons certainly need shooting and scoring, but they also need an elite wing stopper on defense, as they were just 24th in defensive rating as a team, 25th in opponent’s shooting percentage and 22nd in points allowed.
The second round of the NBA Draft is a great place to look for players who have one elite NBA skill or who are a bit older and might be overlooked because of a lower ceiling, but who might be able to contribute right away.
In our second-round wing series, we have looked at an efficient scoring prospect in Wake Forest’s Jake LaRavia and a versatile forward Jalen Williams out of Santa Clara.
Today, we will look at Julian Champagnie, a junior forward from St. John’s who projects as a 3-and-D prospect for the second round of the 2022 NBA Draft.
Detroit Pistons draft: Julian Champagnie
Julian Champagnie is a 6-foot-8 junior forward out of St. John’s who was the Big East’s Most Improved Player in the 2020-21 season.
He came back for his junior year and put up big numbers, averaging 19.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, two assists, two steals and over a block per game.
Champagnie is a long wing with a 6-foot-10 wingspan, a quality we know Troy Weaver likes, so he will get a look when the Detroit Pistons are on the board with their 46th pick if he is still available.
He is an interesting two-way prospect who has some skills that the Detroit Pistons could use.