With Alabama point guard Collin Sexton choosing to make the leap to the NBA on Friday, few high-profile decisions are left on the table when it comes to the projected lottery in the 2018 NBA Draft.
Just hours later, another talented prospect made the declaration that he will be signing with an agent and heading to the next level and, this time, it is Kentucky freshman Kevin Knox.
Knox posted a video on Twitter Friday afternoon announcing that he would leave Kentucky and officially declare for the NBA Draft.
God gives us choices and we trust him to make the right one!!🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/t7RFRhljAK
— Kev (@KevKnox) April 6, 2018
Knox will be one of the youngest players in the 2018 draft, with his 19th birthday not arriving until August. The 6’9, 215-pound combo forward averaged 15.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game for Kentucky in his lone season at the college level and, while Knox was not always dominant, he displayed flashes of athleticism and upside that make him a tantalizing prospect in today’s NBA.
In addition, Knox benefits from a positional shift in the NBA game, as his versatile skill set should play well on a spaced floor and he presents the size and athleticism to theoretically defend multiple positions. It remains to be seen as to whether Knox can crack the top ten in what is shaping up to be a loaded class but there are a number of positive outcomes for his professional career and, from an NBA standpoint, that type of multi-faceted game is attractive.
It is possible that Knox won’t be the first Kentucky player chosen in June, with teammate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander rocketing up draft boards during the latter part of the college season. Still, he appears to be a player that will fly off the board within the top half of the first round and, when that is the projection, it is tough to blame any player for declaring early.
