Sleeper Prospects of the Week | Week 15
Stephen Gillaspie returns with some new names for his 2026 NBA Draft Sleeper Prospects of the Week!
Let’s check out who stood out in Week 15!
Ivan Kharchenkov | Arizona | Wing/Forward | Freshman | 6’7” | 230
Arizona routinely attracts blue-chip prospects. Coming into the 2026 season, the Wildcats brought in Koa Peat (who was eighth in RSCI) and Brayden Burries (who was ninth). By bringing in these names—as well as their returning prospects—Arizona figured to be one of the better teams in the country. One player who was more known overseas that Tommy Lloyd was able to bring in was Ivan Kharchenkov. Ivan had been a major contributor to Germany’s FIBA success over the past several seasons, which is what made him such a desirable prospect for the college ranks. He helped Germany win Bronze in the 2023 FIBA U18 European Championship, as he averaged 17.1 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 2.0 APG. The next year, he won Gold in the 2024 FIBA U18 EuroBasket Tournament. In that tournament, he averaged 17.5 PPG, 5.3 RPG, and 3.8 APG. The next season, Kharchenkov played a part in Bayern Munich winning the 2025 Bundesliga championship.
On the season, Kharchenkov is averaging 10.0 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.6 SPG, and 0.3 BPG. Ivan’s first game of college basketball came against Florida, where he dropped 12 points and ten rebounds. He’s also scored 12 against Auburn and ten against ‘Bama. Since the start of conference play, Ivan has averaged 11.0 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 2.2 APG, 1.3 SPG, and 0.5 BPG—with splits of 50/26/74. This week saw him score 13 points against Texas Tech and 18 points against BYU.
What immediately stands out with Kharchenkov is his size. He appears to be a legit 6’7”, and he plays with great strength. On top of the size, he also moves well. It’s easy to see his professional/Euro background, as he has a great concept of spatial awareness and off-ball movement. Even the up-fake into a quick midrange jumper reflects the amount of polish and efficiency Kharchenkov has. Though he isn’t an efficient three-point shooter or a high Free Throw Rate guy, Ivan is hitting 40.0% on his far two-pointers. He’s also hitting about 74% from his free throws. He also is ranked favorably in scoring off of cutting—ranking in the 73rd Percentile. He is a solid rebounder, as well as a connective playmaker.
Kharchenkov’s superpower is his defense. He is very adept at using his length and quick reaction to be an impactful disruptor. Ivan has a Steal Percentage of 3.3. This makes him one of only 19 Freshmen in this class with a Steal Percentage of at least 3.0 with a Minutes Percentage of at least 60. He is super quick making reads in passing lanes from opposite ends of the court, but he is also pretty good at defending at the point of attack. Arizona uses him to cover a wide range of positions, too, which NBA teams will heavily value.
One of the heavy marks against Kharchenkov is his shooting. What’s weird is that he shoots it confidently, and he gets up decent volume (5.6 attempts per 100 possessions). What hurts the projection confidence in him is that Ivan hasn’t shot over 30% from three-point at any point in higher levels of basketball. Without the threat of a shot, the projection can become a little murky. The other thing that Ivan has working against him is his lower usage. There are players in the NBA currently who had a Usage Rate lower than 17 who were drafted in the Top 30. While this is a possible needle to thread, many of those seasons of NBA players who had a Usage Rate under 17 didn’t come in the draft seasons of those players. In other words, most players who had such seasons and made it in the NBA had additional seasons with higher usage. This suggests we will see more Kharchenkov in college hoops—at least for another season. If that’s the case, NBA teams will likely provide feedback to Ivan that he must improve his jumper. If he does, he could be a legitimate lottery-level player in the 2027 NBA Draft as opposed to a defensive-only prospect.
Ian Scott | Indiana State | Forward | Grad | 6’7” | 220
Ian Scott has had a good season out of Indiana State after spending four seasons at Grace College. Ian accomplished quite a bit on his way to Indiana State. At Grace, he was one of the top Freshmen prospects in the Crossroads League—averaging 8.1 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.9 APG, and 1.1 BPG. He had a highly efficient sophomore season, where he made over 72% of his shots while averaging 9.0 PPG. The following year, Scott made the Second Team All-League—and helped Grace make a deep run in their postseason. In his final season at Grace College, Ian was named the Crossroads League Player of the Year, won the NCCAA National Player of the Year, and earned NAIA First Team All-American honors.
In his only season of NCAA play, Ian has averaged 13.6 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.2 SPG, and 0.9 BPG—with splits of 63/39/71. Scott’s most notable game he’s played in this season came against Duke, where he scored 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting. He also had four steals, three rebounds, one assist, and one block. Throughout conference play (17 games), he has averaged 14.4 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 2.6 APG, 0.9 SPG, and 1.0 BPG—on splits of 61/34/69. His most recent games came against Valparaiso and Northern Iowa. He shot 11-of-17 in those games, while also grabbing 15 boards and dishing out six assists.
The frame of Scott jumps off the screen when checking out the film. He has the kind of squared-off shoulders that support good strength. He appears to have a decent wingspan, which has helped his rebounding and defensive metrics. As is the case with a good deal of lower-major program standouts, Ian plays up the lineup a little bit more than he likely would elsewhere. But he handles it well. He is an extremely active and effective screener. He makes decisive moves post-contact on the screens and gets himself open. Since Ian can shoot, he has been versatile in his cuts after setting a screen. He ranks in the 83rd percentile in scoring as the roll man, but he is also in the 76th percentile when cutting. He is shooting 39% from deep and is ranked in the 69th percentile when spotting up. His offensive versatility at his size has been quite intriguing.
As a playmaker, Scott has shown good connectivity. He is actually very solid as a passer out of the post, high post, and post-extended. His vision is solid, and he attempts some audacious reads. He can make some reads as the DHO facilitator as well. There are some questions concerning his live read passing, but that isn’t going to be his game. His vision and processing are very much on the level of a connective passer, as supported by his 1.3 Assist-to-Turnover ratio (ATO). Ian also has some fun defensive tools. He has shown a knack for getting involved when defending the post against other forwards, and can challenge shots well. He’s not the most agile or laterally mobile, but he does his work early to be in position.
Ian Scott is fine across the board, but there is a little ambiguity as to what his “special” skill is. He is very efficient, but is he efficient in the ways NBA teams would want to use him? While he projects as a low-usage forward who can screen, cut, and space the floor, we haven’t seen the volume to be confident in that. While he is shooting well from deep, it’s come only on 3.0 three-point attempts per 100 possessions. This is not convincing from an NBA spacing standpoint. His mobility on defense has transferred well enough to the Missouri Valley Conference, but teams will want to see if the Duke performance is repeatable. He has had some less-than-stellar games against SIU Edwardsville, Belmont, and Evansville. How translatable are the defensive and rebounding metrics? The defensive impact indicators are encouraging, but they lack high-competition validation.
Braeden Speed | Loyola | Guard | Sophomore | 6’3” | 190
Braeden Speed is the lone sophomore who will make this edition of the series. As a sophomore, Speed is in his second season with the team he committed to playing for last season, Loyola. Prior to playing for the Greyhounds, Braeden was one of the better players in the state of Arizona. He was named the All-Premier Region Offensive Player of the Year as a senior, averaging 16 PPG, five APG, and five RPG. Two years prior (as a sophomore), Speed was the Premier Region Defensive Player of the Year. As a freshman at Loyola last season, Braeden averaged 8.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.0 SPG, and 0.4 BPG as a starter. He also had shooting splits of 41/30/74.
This season, Braeden has averaged 15.4 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, and 0.3 BPG. That has come on splits of 45/36/83. Since the beginning of conference play (15 games), Speed has averaged 17.7 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 3.7 APG, 0.9 SPG, and 0.4 BPG—splits of 45/38/82. His toughest test came against Kentucky, where he scored only five points on 2-of-6 shooting. He did, however, have six rebounds in that game. His two most recent games that came this week were against Holy Cross and Army. In those games, he averaged 19 PPG, grabbed 12 total rebounds, and dished out ten assists.
Speed is a sub-6’4” guard, which today makes him a small guard. Despite the size concerns, Speed is well-built. He has good mass and definition, and a stocky build that can absorb contact. His wingspan appears to be plus, too. Braeden is driving on about 22% of his possessions, which is about what we have seen Freshmen like Darius Acuff Jr. doing. He is ranked in the 95th Percentile scoring out of Pick-and-Roll sets. Even shooting out of those sets, he is hitting about 40% of his threes as the ball handler. That sort of self-creation with his frame bodes well for Braeden. He can play well off of other guards, as evidenced by his 36% shooting catch-and-shoot threes. Speed can make good plays for others by using his dribble cadence to manipulate not only his man, but also the deny and help defenders. His passing angles are pretty good, too. He has a solid in-between game, which is accentuated by the herky-jerky, stop-start movements that he can get to. He isn’t super efficient at the rim, but he does a good job of balancing his bend and strength to snake his way into the paint.
Speed hasn’t been a lockdown defender, but he does show plenty of flashes that demonstrate why his defense was highly regarded in high school. His length gives him the ability to contest and smother other guards that he is matched up against. He does play passing lanes like a ball-hawking safety—shooting gaps to get into transition. His activity and recognition give him some utility to be an irritant on defense despite being a smaller guard.
College is full of guards who can hoop—especially at Speed’s height. What separates Braeden from other potential transfer-up guards is his strength and his size. He would do well to use that positional length and strength to be more active on the boards. He’ll need to show how well he can do in an environment that will allow him to play with similarly-skilled players. Additionally, he’ll need to show that he can do well against higher-level guards, too. If he can bring his touch up to a higher major school and lock in to being more of an ancillary player, we will learn a bit more as to the sort of player he can be moving forward.
Wyatt Fricks | Marshall | Forward/Big | Senior (RS) | 6’10” | 216
Wyatt Fricks has done his best Randy Orton “From Out of Nowhere” in his final season of college hoops at Marshall. Fricks played high school basketball in Lawrenceville, Georgia. In his Senior season, Wyatt averaged 19.0 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, and 2.4 BPG. He was named All-State as a senior and was nominated as Male Athlete of the Year in the Athens, Georgia area. Fricks was redshirted in the 2021-2022 season after appearing in two games. From the 2022-2023 season to last season with the Thundering Herd, Fricks averaged 5.0 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 0.6 BPG, 0.4 APG, and 0.4 SPG. In those three seasons, he played anywhere from 29 to 31 games in a season (starting in just five) while averaging 13.9 MPG. In other words, Wyatt was a rotational player, but not a pillar for the squad.
That has changed this year. Fricks has started in 26 of the 27 games he has played in. He has averaged 15.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 1.5 BPG, 1.4 APG, and 0.8 SPG. He’s done this on shooting splits of 55/36/70. He has had one game against a Power Four school in Virginia. He only scored six points on 1-of-7 shooting. Though his scoring was off, Wyatt logged three steals, grabbed two rebounds, blocked one shot, and got an assist. In his last 16 games (conference game stretch, plus two non-conference games), Fricks has averaged 16.6 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 1.6 BPG, 1.1 APG, and 0.7 SPG.
Fricks is leading the Thundering Herd in points by more than 20 points. This is fascinating considering what his role has been the previous three seasons. There is some real “funk” to Fricks’s game, as he can do some “inside-out” scoring. Wyatt ranks in the 98th percentile on cuts, which is reflected in the film. Marshall will swing the ball around the perimeter a lot, and Fricks has been solid at finding his way to the rim on back-cuts. Wyatt is constantly moving—either by cutting or by being involved in screen actions. Those screen plays work well with him, as he is in the 91st percentile as a roll man scorer. He can also pop out and shoot off the catch. Fricks is shooting 39.5% on his open catch-and-shoot looks. For someone who plays the 4, Wyatt is a good connector. Should his rim pressure attract a little extra attention, he is capable of finding an open teammate. He’ll also look to advance the ball after corralling defensive rebounds.
On defense, Fricks gives a lot of effort. There is a little bit of Grant Nelson to his game, where Wyatt can block shots at the rim. He isn’t crazy fluid or uber-laterally gifted, but he plays well vertically, sliding his feet and defending with his chest. There is some subtle lift to his contesting, too. He doesn’t possess wild reach, but Wyatt gets by on his positioning and effort defensively—which comes in handy alongside another big.
Fricks has had a fun and productive year for Marshall, but this has been our first “real” look at him. Unfortunately, we haven’t had much time assessing him against higher levels of competition to see how sustainable this production can be. The size and effort are there, which is going to go a long way for Wyatt. He’ll likely have to work his way through a rigorous combine process to get real looks to garner Exhibit 10 or Two-Way consideration. Even if he isn’t a lockdown defender, NBA teams have shown to give looks to bigger forwards who can offer some offensive versatility and floor spacing.
Christian Bliss | Delaware | Guard | Freshman (RS) | 6’4” | 190
The last player that will be included in this piece is Delaware guard Christian Bliss. While he is listed as a redshirt freshman on Delaware’s site, Bliss graduated from high school in 2023. In his last year of high school, Christian averaged 20 PPG, five APG, and five RPG—shooting 56% from the floor and 44% from deep. He was named First Team All-State and was named to the First Team All-Peach Jam prior to going to college. Bliss was recruited heavily by Xavier, Miami, Villanova, St. John’s, and Penn State, but he ultimately committed to play for Virginia. He was redshirted there while dealing with a foot injury that drew some criticism during his time with Virginia. While spending two seasons with the Cavaliers, Bliss would transfer to Delaware as a redshirt freshman.
In his first season with the Blue Hens (and in college in general), Christian has been impactful. He has averaged 16.1 PPG, 6.0 APG, 5.5 RPG, 1.7 SPG, and 0.1 BPG—with splits of 42/40/84. The most high-profile game Bliss has played in this season would have been against BYU, where he scored 18 points on 7-of-17 shooting. In that game, he also grabbed six rebounds and added five assists and two steals. In conference play (the last 15 games), Christian has averaged 17.3 PPG, 5.7 APG, 5.2 RPG, and 1.7 SPG. He’s recorded shooting splits of 46/42/83 in those games. His most recent performance came against Western Kentucky, where he scored 24 points on 6-of-10 shooting. He also recorded the second-most assists of the season for him, with nine.
Bliss is leading his team in scoring by about 50 points, and a lot of that comes by way of his natural gifts. Sure, Christian isn’t a jumbo initiator, but he has very long arms, which allow him to shoot over the top of his man. This also allows him to keep the ball low on his drives. He’s shifty and able to “twitch” his way into his spots, and rise up for midranges and floaters. He’s patient and crafty in how he waits for his teammates to set screens and also works his way around those screens. Christian consistently plays under control—even when the defense is pressuring him. He can split and even shoot over doubles, while also maintaining awareness of where his teammates are. He can even score without a screen—and he ranks in the 95th Percentile scoring out of isolation. What helps Bliss’ projection as a guard is how well he can score off the bounce. He is shooting over 40% on his dribble jumper three-pointers on almost 90 attempts on the season.
Christian can make an array of passes as the lead guard at Delaware. Even off the bounce, he can dribble one direction and stop on a dime to whip the ball to an open teammate. He does a solid job of looking his teammates open, and working the weakside defense with his eyes. The variety of passing angles and levels he can deliver from makes him a credible offensive threat. On defense, Christian does enough to be pesky. He will make digs and poke for the ball when he is on-ball. When off-ball, Bliss will try to intercept passes for transition opportunities.
When watching Christian, it’s easy to see why bigger schools recruited him coming out of high school. Transferring down with some conversations surrounding his foot injury may have raised some speculation for other teams, but Bliss has done well to show himself as a capable and productive college guard. The length is good, but he could stand to get a bit stronger. The on-ball skill gives him some real allure in projection, but it would be nice to see him work with larger and more athletic big men to help project him moving forward.
Honorable Mentions
Elijah Jones | UTEP
Kevair Kennedy | Merrimack
Hank Alvey | Lehigh
Amon Dorries | Bucknell
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