[DC 86]

The G League has not had as big an impact on college hoops as previously thought. In the 2020 class, only 4 recruits opted for the G League. Jalen Green, who was the projected #1 pick heading into this past year ...

What is your source for this? Cade Cunningham was the consensus projected #1 pick going into this season and remains so. To confirm my recollection I googled "NBA 2021 mock draft" with a date range from April-October 2020, and the first eight links that came up (ESPN, CBS, USA Today, DraftValue, Bleacher Report, HoopsHype, Sports Illustrated, 247 Sports) all had Cunningham #1 and most had some combination of Green, Mobley, Suggs and Kuminga following, which is more or less how things seem to stand now. It's almost a certainty that Cunningham goes first and who follows is likely still up in the air pending individual workouts, interviews and the actual draft order.

The counter argument to college exposure is that choosing the wrong college destination (see B.J. Boston at Kentucly and dare I say our own Ziaire Williams) can have a negative effect on draft position, whereas the structure of the G-League select team (Ignite) protects its stars from negative exposure or being relegated to a bench role. College offers the possibility of a dark horse dramatically rising up on draft boards (hmm, Tyrell Terry), but Ignite protects stars from sliding down draft boards, so each has its merits vis a vis the draft depending on the individual case.

[DC 86]

The G League has not had as big an impact on college hoops as previously thought. In the 2020 class, only 4 recruits opted for the G League. Jalen Green, who was the projected #1 pick heading into this past year ...

What is your source for this? Cade Cunningham was the consensus projected #1 pick going into this season and remains so. To confirm my recollection I googled "NBA 2021 mock draft" with a date range from April-October 2020, and the first eight links that came up (ESPN, CBS, USA Today, DraftValue, Bleacher Report, HoopsHype, Sports Illustrated, 247 Sports) all had Cunningham #1 and most had some combination of Green, Mobley, Suggs and Kuminga following, which is more or less how things seem to stand now. It's almost a certainty that Cunningham goes first and who follows is likely still up in the air pending individual workouts, interviews and the actual draft order.

The counter argument to college exposure is that choosing the wrong college destination (see B.J. Boston at Kentucly and dare I say our own Ziaire Williams) can have a negative effect on draft position, whereas the structure of the G-League select team (Ignite) protects its stars from negative exposure or being relegated to a bench role. College offers the possibility of a dark horse dramatically rising up on draft boards (hmm, Tyrell Terry), but Ignite protects stars from sliding down draft boards, so each has its merits vis a vis the draft depending on the individual case.