DFZ

One of the most fun conversations in the early stages of the 2027 NBA Draft cycle is who your No. 1 center is. Right now, the consensus is between two players: Arizona senior Mo Krivas and Duke junior Patrick Ngongba II. Both players had very impressive showings in their respective matchups on Thursday night. Let’s start with Krivas, who had 30 points, 8 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 2 blocks on 10/13 shooting from the field and going 10/12 from the FT line. Krivas is a real-life giant at 7’2”, 260 pounds who plays super physical on the inside, finishes plays well, crashes the offensive glass extremely hard, sets a mean screen, and has impressive touch around the rim and an encouraging feel for the game. He is also an elite rim protector, altering shots constantly, and has shown upside to be a backline defensive anchor at the pro level. He bullied Cal Poly on the inside all Thursday night long. The concerns with Krivas mostly come in the athleticism category. He has less-than-ideal foot speed, is mostly a drop-coverage big who gets exposed in ball-screen actions at times, and may struggle to keep up with the pace of the NBA game. He also doesn’t project as a floor-spacing threat, which in certain matchups can limit him offensively. But his incredible size makes a lot of this easy to look past when evaluating him. On to Ngongba II, who had 28 points, 9 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 block on 10/13 shooting from the field and went 2/3 from three while shooting 6/10 from the FT line. Like Krivas, Ngongba is a high-feel big who reads defenses really well and can see things well before they’re about to happen. He isn’t a giant in the way Krivas is, but has a solid center build at 6’11”, 250 pounds. He pairs that with traditional rim-protecting skills and solid mobility that make him more than a drop-coverage big that gets lost when asked to switch onto perimeter players. He has great touch around the rim and a post-scoring bag that is only getting stronger. But the biggest piece of the puzzle is his floor spacing. Through preseason and now at the start of the regular season, Ngongba is showing off more and more of an ability to space the floor and knock down open threes. If this continues to trend upward, he has true Swiss Army knife potential at the five. If Ngongba can stay healthy, continue to sharpen his tools, and continue to be a positive floor spacer, he could kill the debate between him and Krivas. Vote below for your No. 1 big in this class. Is it Krivas, is it Patrick Ngongba II, or is it someone else? Let us know below⬇️