Ryan Kalkbrenner selected No. 34 overall by Hornets | 2025 NBA Draft Grades & Instant Reaction

update from round two of the NBA draft on the clock presented by Jeep Hakee Dermish here with 247 sports director of scouting Adam Finkelestelestein and CBS sports college basketball insider Gary Parish And with the 34th selection the Charlotte Hornets take Ryan Kulkiner out of Kraton The big man was a force for the Blue Jays 107 dunks last season led division one A guy who can get to the bucket and a guy that’s going to defend well fourtime Big East defensive player of the year He is headed to the Charlotte Hornets And Adam they just traded away Mark Williams to the Suns Now it’s like a plugandplay here Your grade for this pick is what i think this is a pretty clear A and it’s consistent with what the Hornets have done uh for the last 48 hours Remember Liam McNeely I thought was the steal of the first round to get him late in that spot and now to get Ryan Kulkbrunner early in the second round I thought Kulkbrunner was a first round caliber talent So the Hornets are cleaning up here Caulk Brener is a drop coverage monster So he’s not going to have versatility in the way he plays pick and roll But because of his size his length his standing reach he’s going to clog the paint and be a constant deterrent just like we saw at Kraton Really a master of verticality who doesn’t need to be a great leaper to protect the rim And let’s be honest Charlotte is going to need it because although they’ve drafted really well there are significant defensive questions Also give him credit for two other things One he’s played in an advanced offensive playbook at Kraton He knows how to run good stuff and he can step right in and do it And secondly he’s durable And in Charlotte of all places that is a key key factor This is a big body that has proven he can stay healthy And that is critical in today’s NBA It is especially critical for the Hornets Yeah He’s already 23 years old He played 5 years of college basketball So he should be capable of a plug-and-play situation We need you on the court almost on night one 7 foot one the 76 wingspan 94 standing reach four-time Big East defensive player of the year Think you said it exactly right I think some people hear defensive player of the year and they think “Oh wow He’s that versatile defensive big that we hear so much about.” This is not Victor Wimyama He is going to excel in drop coverage but when he does get switched onto smaller players he can get exploited in that situation But still we uh maybe got away from it in the height of the Warriors dynasty but we’re getting back to it now Traditional centers matter Big people matter Um the Lakers tried to play in the playoffs without one and got destroyed The Oklahoma City just won a title starting two bigs They got away from that early in that series but eventually got back to it Unique big pick people like Ryan Cochrrener I like Fink thought he was going to go in the first round If I’m Charlotte I’m thrilled he fell to this spot Yeah How about this class here for Charlotte i mean already I’m gonna say they’re a winner I mean Khan Canipella at four that was obviously a slam dunk You get uh you get Liam McNeely late you make that pick and then Seion James right before Ryan Kulk Brener These are nice pieces to get in the second round Adam Yeah Seion James is an NBA player And I don’t say that lightly To get two second round picks and and be confident that they are both NBA players is a win Seion James uh embraces what it means to be a role player That’s why he went to Duke last year He came from Tain where he put up big numbers and he said “You know what i’m going to go play with Cooper Flag I know all the eyeballs of college basketball are going to be on me and I’m going to play the same role at Duke that I could conceivably play in the NBA So if I can prove that I can do it NBA scouts are going to pay attention.” And you know what that’s exactly what happened And it happened from the NBA franchise It just happens to be the closest to Duke And it’s a really smart approach that I think other people could learn from So often I think prospects believe I got to score 18 points per game I’ve got to lead somebody in scoring I’ve got to go get 30 My favorite stat fact from previous NBA drafts is that when Kentucky won a national championship under John Caliperry Anthony Davis and Michael Kilkus went first and second in the subsequent NBA draft They were fourth and fifth on that Kentucky team in shots per game Trust me when I tell you NBA people are not looking for whether you can score 25 points per game because almost none of you are going to be asked to do that at the NBA level You’re going to be asked to play a very specific role Canon James proved he could do that at Duke and that is among the reasons he’s gone very early in the second round of this draft And that’ll do it for the Charlotte Hornets What a draft class uh that they have here in 2025 their last pick Ryan Kulk Brener headed to the Charlotte Hornets As you take a look at their four selections in this NBA draft Khan Canipple out of Duke Liam McNeely from Yukon They got that in a trade uh with the Phoenix Suns in round one Seion James at 33 followed by Ryan Culbrunner out of Kraton All four of those guys winners at the college level Now trying to turn the Charlotte Hornets into a winner at the NBA level

Adam Finkelstein and Gary Parrish join CBS Sports HQ to grade Ryan Kalkbrenner being drafted by the Charlotte Hornets at No. 34 overall.

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