2018 NBA Draft Rumors: Deandre Ayton, Marvin Bagley III 'Locked In' as 1-2 Picks
June 21, 2018
While uncertainty throughout the past few months left the 2018 NBA draft wide open, the top of the first round is reportedly set.
According to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports, the Phoenix Suns will select Arizona's Deandre Ayton with the first overall pick, while the Sacramento Kings will take Marvin Bagley III out of Duke at No. 2.
Marc J. Spears of ESPN provided more detail on the decision:
Marc J. Spears @MarcJSpearsESPNThe Kings took very strong looks at Luka Doncic and Michael Porter before zeroing in on Marvin Bagley for second pick barring a late change, sources said. Bagley and a healthy Harry Giles, who has secretly looked great, can give the Kings a strong 1-2 big man punch for years. https://t.co/teBWLZ0C4h
Ayton has long been considered the top choice for the Suns, but the Kings have pondered a variety of options at No. 2 before apparently settling on Bagley.
Bryan Kalbrosky of Hoops Hype reported Wednesday the Kings were split between Bagley and Slovenian guard Luka Doncic.
Sam Amick of USA Today also noted there was a "very real chance" the team would take Michael Porter Jr. with the second pick, although he added that medical concerns could hold them back.
Per Charania, Sacramento will go with the "safe" choice of Bagley, a big man who looked dominant during his one college season at Duke. Still, Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman listed him as the No. 6 overall player in the class in his final big board.
This could open the door for the Atlanta Hawks to draft Doncic at No. 3, which has been their plan, per Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. The Real Madrid guard was named MVP of both the Euroleague and ACB League this past season in Spain.
Of course, all this could change during the draft Thursday night, especially if teams start offering trades to the top teams on the board.
The safest pick remains Ayton at No. 1 after he impressed the Suns throughout the predraft process.
"We've been looking for a center to kind of anchor our team offensively and defensively," general manager Ryan McDonough said Wednesday, per Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic. "We think Deandre has that kind of potential."