2018 NBA Mock Draft: Predictions for Prospects Who Will Sneak into 1st Round
For all the focus mock-drafters put on the top of the NBA big board, talent can emerge from any spot.
Last season's All-Rookie first team featured a pair of second-round picks in Malcolm Brogdon (36th) and Willy Hernangomez (35th in 2015). This season's should be more top-heavy, but it's still likely to have one player drafted outside the top 10 (Donovan Mitchell, 13th) and another taken outside the lottery (Kyle Kuzma, 27th).
Draft position might reflect raw ability and perceived potential. But the Association's best weren't all high-profile, drool-worthy lottery picks.
With that in mind, we will spotlight three sleepers who could sneak into the opening round after running through a mock.
2018 NBA Mock Draft
1. Phoenix Suns: Deandre Ayton, C, Arizona
2. Memphis Grizzlies: Luka Doncic, SG, Slovenia
3. Dallas Mavericks: Mohamed Bamba, C, Texas
4. Atlanta Hawks: Jaren Jackson Jr., PF/C, Michigan State
5. Orlando Magic: Marvin Bagley III, PF/C, Duke
6. Chicago Bulls: Trae Young, PG, Oklahoma
7. Sacramento Kings: Michael Porter Jr., SF
8. Cleveland Cavaliers (via Brooklyn Nets): Collin Sexton, PG, Alabama
9. New York Knicks: Wendell Carter, C, Duke
10. Philadelphia 76ers (via Los Angeles Lakers): Mikal Bridges, SF, Villanova
11. Charlotte Hornets: Miles Bridges, SF/PF, Michigan State
12. Los Angeles Clippers (via Detroit Pistons): Robert Williams, C, Texas A&M
13. Los Angeles Clippers: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, PG, Kentucky
14. Denver Nuggets: Kevin Knox, SF, Kentucky
15. Washington Wizards: Anfernee Simons, SG, IMG Academy
16. Phoenix Suns (via Miami Heat): Zhaire Smith, SF, Texas Tech
17. Milwaukee Bucks: Lonnie Walker IV, SG, Miami
18. San Antonio Spurs: Dzanan Musa, SG/SF, Bosnia and Herzegovina
19. Atlanta Hawks (via Minnesota Timberwolves): Troy Brown, SG, Oregon
20. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Oklahoma City Thunder): Khyri Thomas, SG, Creighton
21. Utah Jazz: Keita Bates-Diop, SF/PF, Ohio State
22. Chicago Bulls (via New Orleans Pelicans): Mitchell Robinson, C, USA
23. Indiana Pacers: Aaron Holiday, PG, UCLA
24. Portland Trail Blazers: Chandler Hutchison, SF, Boise State
25. Los Angeles Lakers (via Cleveland Cavaliers): De'Anthony Melton, SG, USC
26. Philadelphia 76ers: Jerome Robinson, SG, Boston College
27. Boston Celtics: Bruce Brown Jr., SG, Miami
28. Golden State Warriors: Jalen Brunson, PG, Villanova
29. Brooklyn Nets (via Toronto Raptors): Jontay Porter, C, Missouri
30. Atlanta Hawks (via Houston Rockets): Hamidou Diallo, SG, Kentucky
Jerome Robinson
There's often an inverse relationship between volume and efficiency. Apparently, no one bothered to tell Jerome Robinson.
He went from sidekick to focal point over his three seasons at Boston College and managed to hike up his percentages too. In 2015-16, he averaged 11.7 points on 42.9 percent shooting (38.1 percent from deep). This past season, he went for 20.7 points a night—tops among ACC guards—and converted 48.5 percent of his field goals, plus 40.9 percent of his triples.
As Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman noted, Robinson dazzled on and off the ball:
Robinson is a proven three-level scorer, and he has the size and skills to play multiple positions and fill multiple roles. Teams won't target him for upside, but they should have confidence that a late first-rounder invested in him would provide immediate dividends by way of bench scoring and shooting.
Jalen Brunson
Only in the forward-focused world of NBA drafting would Jalen Brunson be on the first-round bubble.
He just played the same college basketball season as most of the other players who will hear their names called on draft night. In that campaign, he quarterbacked the country's most efficient team, Villanova, and was named its men's player of the year. Oh, he also started for a national champion for the second time in his three-year career.
As FanRag Sports' Jon Rothstein observed, careers like Brunson's are rarely seen:
Brunson won't wow scouts with size, speed or athleticism. But he thinks the game as well as he plays it, and he plays it at an extremely high level.
Had he fared a little better at the stripe, he could have been a 50/40/90 shooter. As it stands, he settled for a .521/.408/.802 shooting slash while scoring 18.9 points per game and nearly tripling his turnovers (1.8) with assists (4.6).
Jontay Porter
Before the season, Jontay Porter was just a sibling of the main attraction—older brother Michael, the top player on many draft boards before a back injury essentially wiped out his season. But Jontay is generating NBA buzz after compiling a contemporary stat line at Missouri.
Modern NBA bigs are asked to do a ton. Porter did most of those things as a Tiger, evidenced by his per-40-minute marks of 16.1 points, 11.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 2.7 blocks, 2.0 threes and 1.4 steals.
Porter, who reclassified to spend this past season with his brother, doesn't turn 19 until November. That only adds to the impressiveness of his skill and polish.
He needs to excel in those areas because he's not particularly long or athletic. But teams have been quick to snatch up big men who can do it all on offense, and Porter fits that bill.
Statistics courtesy of Sports Reference and KenPom.com.
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