The top pick in the 2018 NBA Draft is all but assured, as Arizona center Deandre Ayton is expected to stay in-state and be selected by the Phoenix Suns.
However, there is far more debate about who the Sacramento Kings should and will take with the No. 2 pick, as there’s been debate for some time whether Luka Doncic or Marvin Bagley III would be their pick. Recently, Michael Porter Jr. has emerged as a possible candidate for the No. 2 pick, as the former high school star whose Mizzou career was short due to a back injury has gotten late buzz in draft circles and in Sacramento.
That wouldn’t have been a surprising thing to hear last June when he was a top high school prospect, but after missing almost the entire season following back surgery and with questions about his game beyond being a scorer, few had him projected that high through this draft cycle. The late buzz seems to be legit, although hip spasms that may be linked to that back injury forced him to cancel a recent workout and the medical reports will likely dictate where he ends up.
As for how players in the league see the 6’10 scoring machine, Isaiah Thomas offered his stamp of approval on Porter Jr. on Twitter on Thursday afternoon, calling him the best player in the draft.
Michael Porter Jr is the best player in the draft!!! No question about it… Pass on him if you want too
— Isaiah Thomas (@isaiahthomas) June 14, 2018
This isn’t a major surprise, especially given the player it’s coming from. Scorers love other scorers. It’s like a rule of the universe. And there’s reason to like Porter Jr.! It’s a fairly hot take to think he’s the best player in the draft, but 6’10 wings that can get buckets are very useful in today’s NBA so it isn’t all that far off to think he has more value than some of the bigs in this draft. That said, the medical questions are real, as are the ones about effort and defense (which, in fairness to him he didn’t really get a chance to answer at Mizzou because the glimpses we got of him playing were fresh off the injury).
