Role
The No. 2 overall pick out of Kansas is projected to start from Day 1. Will Hardy is usually patient with rookies, so that alone says a lot. Summer League showed he isn't ready to run an NBA offense yet, so he starts off the ball next to George. It's sequencing, not a demotion.
At 6-6 and 19 years old, he has the size to guard either backcourt spot and the scoring package to punish closeouts.
2026-27 prediction
The early weeks will be streaky, as they are for every teenage guard. By the All-Star break he's a legitimate Rookie of the Year candidate in a stacked class. Circle February 27 against Washington and the No. 1 pick. We'll say it now: mid-teens scoring for the year, 20-point nights by spring.