The Smoking Cuban
FanSided

NBA mock draft 5.0 – Best available player edition

By Kohl Rast

CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 22: Jaren Jackson Jr. #2 of the Michigan State Spartans is seen during the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at State Farm Center on January 22, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 22: Jaren Jackson Jr. #2 of the Michigan State Spartans is seen during the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at State Farm Center on January 22, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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CHICAGO, IL – MAY 15: NBA Draft Prospect, Deandre Ayton poses for a portrait during the 2018 NBA Combine circuit on May 15, 2018 at the Intercontinental Hotel Magnificent Mile in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
CHICAGO, IL – MAY 15: NBA Draft Prospect, Deandre Ayton poses for a portrait during the 2018 NBA Combine circuit on May 15, 2018 at the Intercontinental Hotel Magnificent Mile in Chicago, Illinois. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /

Pick Analysis. Arizona. Deandre Ayton. 1. 66. Scouting Report. C

Deandre Ayton was not the unanimous selection at first overall, but the lowest he was ranked was 4th. Of the 11 staff members who turned in their picks, eight of us had him in the top two players. This really should come as no shock considering he has been viewed as the top prospect for months. His fit in Phoenix makes sense and adding him to the young core of Devin Booker and Josh Jackson will make this team pretty entertaining for years to come.

Look for Ayton to likely be sitting in exactly this draft position come Thursday. I don’t anticipate any surprises at this point.

Real Madrid. Luka Doncic. Scouting Report. G/F. 84. Pick Analysis. 2

Luka Doncic is quickly becoming a Mavs fan favorite and for good reason. The youngster from Slovenia can ball. In the staff rankings, the lowest Doncic was ranked at was sixth, but six staff members had him as their number one prospect.

The fit for Luka in Sacramento would be interesting with De’Aaron Fox already running the offense there. That said, they pretty much need help everywhere else, so Luka would not be a bad pick by any means.

Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. PF/C. Duke. Marvin Bagley III. 3. 125

For the third pick, the Atlanta Hawks would be selecting Duke big man, Marvin Bagley III. Bagley was once viewed as the top prospect in the draft before Ayton and Doncic eventually jumped him. In the staff rankings, Bagley’s lowest slot was seventh but six of us had him in our top three players.

As far as fit goes, Bagley would be an interesting pairing next to Collins, but they should be able to work fine with each other. Bagley would be more of the stretch player with Collins holding it up in the middle but boy they would have a solid rebounding tandem.

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