Harrison Ingram 2024 NBA Draft Profile
We are nearly two weeks away from the start of the 2024 NBA Draft. Today, we will be continuing our draft profile series with forward Harrison Ingram, who’s coming off the best season of his career with North Carolina. Without further ado, let’s hop into it!
Height: 6’5.25″ (7’0.25″ wingspan, 8’6.50″ standing reach)
Weight: 233.6
Draft age: 21.6
Position: Wing
Ingram, a five-star recruit out of St. Mark’s High School in Dallas, Texas, was a top-20 prospect in the country in the 2021 recruiting cycle, according to 247Sports. He was also the No. 2-ranked prospect in Texas, trailing Daimion Collins while being ranked ahead of the likes of Jaylon Tyson, KJ Adams and Wade Taylor. He chose Stanford over multiple high-profile programs, including Arkansas, Baylor, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, North Carolina, Marquette and Purdue, among others.
Ingram made an impact right away with the Cardinals, averaging 10.5 points and 6.7 rebounds in 31.1 minutes in 2021-22. He won the Pac-12 Rookie of the Year, made the Pac-12 All-Freshman team and earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention honors as a freshman.
His efficiency rose as a sophomore, but his role didn’t increase. He eventually transferred to North Carolina ahead of the 2023-24 season, where he really made strides as a two-way player.
Let’s dive into some of his strengths and weaknesses, shall we?
Strengths:
Ingram does plenty of things well on a basketball court, which raises his floor despite not being touted as a first-round prospect.
He made the biggest strides with his 3-point shooting as a junior, shooting 38.5 percent from 3-point range on 4.6 attempts (44.6 3PAr) after being a 31.6 percent 3-point shooter (3.5 3PA, 37.3 3PAr) in his two seasons at Stanford. I think his form is translatable and consistent, which bodes well for his long-term prospects from distance.
He’s not the quickest player, but he is physical. He’s not going to blow by players, but he will bully smaller guards and wings with his physicality. He showed flashes with his back to the basket, though primarily finished over his left shoulder, which could be scouted against at the NBA level. I also thought he was a good connector and made the right plays to make the extra plays more often than not.
I have an affinity for players who can rebound; it’s the most underrated play in basketball. Despite being 6-foot-7, Ingram was a top-15 rebounder in both the Pac-12 and ACC. Last year, he recorded 11 double-doubles and had six games with at least 14 rebounds and 17 games with double-digit boards. He even had eight games with at least five rebounds and two with a half-dozen.
He’s very smart with knowing where to position himself on the glass, but he fights on the glass. It’s effort. It’s positioning. It’s everything.
He uses that same mentality on the defensive end. Ingram was a very good defensive player and had good hands at the point-of-attack. He wasn’t the quickest laterally, but he used his strong frame and length to make up for any clear athletic deficiency.
Weaknesses:
I’m not as worried about his shooting, but he will have to prove that his 3-point shooting at North Carolina wasn’t an aberration if he plans to carve a role out as a 3-and-D player. He was only a 61.2 percent free-throw shooter as a junior and was 62.4 percent for his career; that’s not good enough and could project some shooting regression.
He has the length and skillset to defend multiple positions, but he will need to prove that he can defend quicker ball-handlers; I think he’s got decent mobility, but will need to show more footspeed (which can be improved). At the start of his pro career, he’s likely best suited to guard up rather than guard down because of his length and strength.
As I hinted at above, he’s an overly athletic player. He had a 29″ standing vertical and a 35″ max vertical with average results in the lane agility, shuttle and three-quarter runs at the NBA Combine. That could limit his overall upside if he’s in a fixed role at the NBA level.
Projection: Early Second Round
I wouldn’t completely rule out he goes in the back-end of the first-round, but I foresee him being a top-40 pick regardless. He’s got one of the higher floors in the second round and could be an impactful player if he can carve out a role as a rebounder, defender and 3-point shooter (if that sustains itself). Harrison Ingram’s a player I’d throw a dart on and try my best to develop.
He plays with his hair on fire. I like that. Give me all the competitive psychopaths who make winning plays.
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