2017 NBA Draft Board

It's that time of year again. Last year, I called Jaylen Brown, Dragan Bender, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield overrated and my most under-rated guys included Jamal Murray, Marquese Chriss, Henry Ellenson, Juancho Hernangomez, Malachi Richardson, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Dejounte Murray, Deyonta Davis, Ivica Zubac, and Tyler Ulis. The jury is out on a lot of those guys, but what was clear is that the consensus top prospect designation can be almost meaningless. With that said, here is my 2018 Top 10 Big Board:

1. Markelle Fultz - not much needed to say, Kyrie Irving skills with a John Wall body. Perhaps the best guard prospect to enter draft since Chris Paul.

2. Jonathan Isaac - the best players are the ones with the most well-rounded games, and Isaac could be a guy without any weaknesses in his prime. He's super long, ultra-athletic with very good ball-handling and shooting mechanics and high defensive potential.

3. Donovan Mitchell - watch this guy play and tell me you don't see Russell Westbrook like movements on the floor. While only 6'3, he's insanely long (6'10 wingpsan, what say you Malik Monk) and is unstoppable as a penetrator. What makes him special is his outstanding shooting ability and absolute dominance on the defensive end of the floor.

4. Frank Ntikilina - another guy with few weaknesses, which I favor strongly in my draft prospects. Outstanding size and length (7-foot wingspan) and super high basketball IQ, which portends well for him offensively and defensively. Super smooth, solid ball-handler, solid shooter, good herky-jerkiness to get to the rim, and awesome defense.

5. Zach Collins - strong, quick-twitch body for such a young guy along with advanced footwork in the post and ability to finish with both hands, along with outstanding range and shooting mechanics. Athletic, light-footed big man with good instincts on defense, as well. Again, another guy that projects to have few weaknesses.

6. Jayson Tatum - might not be as complete a player as others on this list, but he has a very high floor as a prospect. Outstanding natural scorer with brilliant footwork and scoring instincts along with silky smooth shooting mechanics (albeit he didn't demonstrate huge range in college). Has great size and length and should be an effective go-to scorer in the league, while possessing some defensive potential as well.

7. Lonzo Ball - huge upside with some considerable risks in his profile. His size, fluidity, passing, and vision are all amazing and if given space, he obviously has incredible range. However, his funky shooting mechanics do create limitations (shooting off a dribble to his right side, constantly needing to step back to create space, etc.) and he lacks the wiggle with the ball in his hand to consistently penetrate. An absurd number of his shots are super deep step-back threes and he's rarely taking it to the rack unless its a transition opportunity.

8. Josh Jackson - another huge upside guy with, wait for it, considerable risks in his profile. He's an incredible athlete, super fluid, and has one of the very best basketball IQ's in this draft. His passing and vision at the 3 spot is very impressive, however he's limited by small hands, a relatively small-ish wingspan, basic handle and inconsistent jumper. He really screams Andre Iguodala to me, which is probably better than the 8th pick in the draft, but then again, this draft is incredibly deep.

9. Lauri Markannen - a legit 7 footer with incredible shooting accuracy and release, along with some ability to pump and drive. His ability to stretch the floor is incredibly valuable and he's going to be a great offensive player, but his defense and rebounding suck.

10. Dennis Smith Jr. - I don't like rating him this low, he's got a good, strong body and is pretty much unstoppable as an offensive scorer. He can easily be a dominant scoring point guard (20-25 ppg potential), but the value of shoot-first point guards is debatable and this is a guy who might not help the team when the ball is not in his hands.