Former Mizzou Guard Jumps Up NBA Draft Big Board

"My time at Missouri has prepared me for where I'm at now." Bates said. 

"A lot of teams have taken notice of that, and it's helped me a lot in this process," he went on to say. "I'm more than prepared for the pre-draft process and for the NBA just because of where I played my last two years at." 

A four-star recruit for the Class of 2021, Bates played his first two seasons with the Indiana Hoosiers before transferring to Missouri. During his time in Columbia, Mo. he averaged 13.4 points per game while shooting 50.2 percent from the field. He also shot an eye-popping 93.6 percent from the charity stripe. 

Bates' success during the pre-draft process not only impressed NBA scouts, but draft gurus as well. So much so, he moved up 17 spots to No. 20 overall on NBADraft.net's latest Top 100 Big Board. 

Bates isn't ranked as high on other big boards, coming in at No. 100 on ESPN's best available and No. 74 in CBS Sports' prospect rankings. Former Mizzou teammate Caleb Grill is ranked No. 75 on CBS Sports' list.

In their latest mock draft, NBADraft.net has the Oklahoma City Thunder selecting Bates with the 24th overall pick. 

The NBA Draft tips off at 8 p.m. ET on June 25 from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.