Inside Former Vanderbilt Basketball Standout Tyler Nickel's NBA Predraft Process – Sports Illustrated

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From now until NBA Draft night, life is a sprint for former Vanderbilt wing Tyler Nickel.
Nickel knows that if he’s going to have a chance to achieve his NBA dream, he’s got to do everything to chase it. He’s an underdog in this scenario more than he ever was throughout his college career, and he’d be naive to think otherwise. If the draft were to start today, Nickel likely wouldn’t be selected. 
He’s not letting that deter him, though.
Nickel participated in his fourth NBA workout on Wednesday with the Golden State Warriors, and said that he had as many as 12 workouts remaining on his schedule. Nickel is running a gauntlet these days, but he knows that’s the only way forward. 
As long as Nickel has a platform to show NBA people what he can do, he’s going to use it. 
“My intensity, my competitiveness,” Nickel said in regard to what he wants to show NBA teams throughout the workout process. “You’ve just got to control your intensity, your competitiveness and what you’re great at, what you show.”
For a number of prospects, these workouts are a mere breeding ground of familiarity with teams, a platform for internal speculation. That’s not the case for Nickel, though. He needs a job. He needs to show everyone involved that he’s got a chance to do something if he gets one.
NBA evaluators appear to be intrigued by Nickel’s combination of shotmaking, size and improved defensive profile, but his age is working against him and evaluators question whether his game can translate.
Nickel has always possessed a strong, outward facing self-confidence. Love him or hate him, he’s himself and he believes that he’s good enough to do what he sets out to—whether anyone else thinks he is or not. He says he’s an NBA player, and he believes it wholeheartedly.
“My skill on the court, my ability on the court is what makes me an NBA player,” Nickel said, “And I think what a player at this level needs to have is an insane level of confidence—to a point of almost delusion. People have said that about me. They told me that I was never going to be a high major basketball player, and hard work to give myself to a point of almost insanity got me there, and then from then on, just being consistent, getting better every year, it's been the same thing and just believing in your path, running your race. I think that my work and everything that I am, and everything that I do is put me here and it's not gonna stop now.”
Nickel described himself as “fearless” in an exclusive interview with Vandy on SI during the season and says that he comes from a town that doesn’t produce all that many Division-I athletes despite the amount of real talent in the area. Nickel is one of the few, and now he’s got the chance to represent Harrodsburg, Virginia, as a professional. 
For a second in his Wednesday press conference, Nickel took a second to reflect on his career trajectory as a college basketball player. Nickel played sparingly as a freshman, transferred to Virginia Tech to become a rotational piece but still didn’t look the part of a potential NBA guy. In Nickel’s final two seasons at Vanderbilt, though, he says came into his own. Now, he’s got a chance. 
Nickel worked out with the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday and could see himself playing for an organization that’s prided itself on elite shotmaking over the years. Nickel is a 40.0% shooter from 3-point range himself and believes that his movement shooting will translate to the next level. He also believes his passing–which he said was an underrated aspect of his game while at Vanderbilt–can translate at a higher level than his 1.2 assists per game in 2025-26 indicate. Nickel says he believes he’s been able to demonstrate that throughout the predraft process. 
The process will continue to stretch Nickel and what he believes he can do throughout the next month, though. NBA teams will continue to see him in his rawest form, with no crowds present and a general lack of rest. Nickel knows this isn’t stopping anytime soon, though. 
As a result, he’s putting all his chips in and working to endure his unorthodox lifestyle. 
“Taking care of your body's a lot of it,” Nickel said, “You're trying to put your best food forward everywhere you go, and the number one thing that is key to doing that is to make sure you're making sure your body is good. It’s about putting your best foot forward.”
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Joey Dwyer is the lead writer on Vanderbilt Commodores On SI. He found his first love in college sports at nearby Lipscomb University and decided to make a career of telling its best stories. He got his start doing a Notre Dame basketball podcast from his basement as a 14-year-old during COVID and has since aimed to make that 14-year-old proud. Dwyer has covered Vanderbilt sports for three years and previously worked for 247 Sports and Rivals. He contributes to Seth Davis' Hoops HQ, Basket Under Review and Mainstreet Nashville.
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