NBA Draft Big Board: Final rankings of top 60 prospects from 2018 draft class

The 2018 NBA Draft is just days away, which means it’s time to lock in a final set of prospect rankings.

Heat Check: Re-Drafting the 2008 NBA Draft

There have been a few last-minute revisions to the Big Board released last weekbased on additional scouting. Overall, this group feels strong. Sure, the prospects at the top of the class have their warts, but any of the top 12 would be worthy of a top eight selection.

This class also has plenty of depth. It has the potential to bring NBA value into the 40s with a number of prospects in the middle of the class projected to play the wing, a position of significant need in the modern NBA. The margins between prospects ranked 26 to almost 50, in general, are thin.

A few notes on some of the prospects this Big Board differs on relative to others...

Players this board is high on relative to consensus:

Jaren Jackson (No. 2) — Jackson holds value as a switchable center who is also an elite rim protector. He is generally thought of as a 3-and-D prospect, but his upside is much higher.

Jackson has an underrated handle, is capable of attacking closeouts and even flashed some passing vision. As an 18-year-old, his freshman season compared statistically, per KenPom, to four starting NBA centers: Myles Turner, Karl-Anthony Towns, Joel Embiid and Steven Adams. Pretty good. That’s a prospect I’m willing to bet on.

Trae Young (No. 4) — Let’s just put this out there now. Trae Young is not Stephen Curry. That’s OK, though.

Young is the best shooter in this class when you factor in his ability to consistently knock down long range 3-pointers off the dribble. He is also its second-best passer. There are very reasonable defensive concerns about Young, but his offensive skill set has the potential to be elite. He just needs to be slightly below average on defense to be great.

Given the importance of primary creators in the modern NBA, Young’s worth the risk.

Zhaire Smith (No. 8) and De’Anthony Melton (No. 13) — I wrote a more in-depth feature on these two prospects last week. Both are young for their class, possess excellent basketball IQ indicators and compare favorably to some prior breakout players as prospects. They likely won’t travel the same path as those they’re compared to, but they have underrated upside.  

Players this board is low on relative to consensus:

Deandre Ayton (No. 5) — Ayton appears set to be the No. 1 pick on Thursday night, but he’s not the top prospect on this board. I’ve espoused my concerns about the 7-footer previously. In short, Ayton projects to be a 20-and-10 NBA center, but his ability to impact winning, particularly on the defensive end, remains a question mark.

Mohamed Bamba (No. 12) — From reworking his jump shot mechanics to impressing in interviews, Bamba has been climbing draft boards during the pre-draft process. Although the physical tools are impressive, it’s hard for me to buy into Bamba as a prospect.

If he doesn’t shoot it, there aren’t many paths for him to create offensive value. He was a mediocre screener and roller at Texas and possesses few post moves. Defensively, his rim protection is high level, but his instincts aren’t great, and he’s not a switchable big. This could prove too low if he hits his ceiling outcome, but the likelihood of that feels low.

Collin Sexton (No. 20) — Sexton’s toughness and competitiveness are second to none in this class, but his on-court production as a college freshman was concerning. His lack of steals and mediocre assist-to-turnover ratio are suggestive of subpar on-court feel.

There are prospects who have succeeded with poor numbers there as freshman — Eric Bledsoe, Isaiah Thomas and Spencer Dinwiddie, for example — but generally speaking, prospects with similar numbers have struggled in the league.

Second-rounders worth highlighting:

Landry Shamet (No. 33) — Shamet took a hit for worse than expected measurements at the combine, but he’s still a good prospect. He’s a career 43.7 percent 3-point shooter on 364 attempts, possesses an excellent assist-to-turnover ratio and can play on the ball or off it. He should be able to contribute to winning at the next level.

Jevon Carter (No. 39) — Carter is an elite defender at the point of attack and possesses the physical strength to translate to the NBA right away. He’s worked hard to turn himself into an NBA prospect, becoming a better than 38.0 percent 3-point shooter in his final two college seasons. The West Virginia guard projects to fill a role similar to Patrick Beverley in the NBA.

Gary Clark (No. 43) — At 6-7, Clark projects as a high-end team defender. He averaged 2.0 steals and 1.7 blocks per 40 minutes as a senior at Cincinnati. Although he needs to develop a consistent jump shot, his success in draft models based on prospects’ past outcomes is another reason worth betting on him.

Now, here’s the final Big Board. These are my top 60 prospects heading into Thursday night’s draft etched in stone...