NBA mock draft 2018: Luka Doncic is No. 1, but 4 college freshmen are coming for him

College basketball is back, and with that, we can begin evaluating the 2018 NBA draft class in earnest.

At the beginning of the process, this draft appears to be unique in that as many as five players seem to have a real chance at going No. 1 overall. They are European prospect Luka Doncic and four college freshmen — Arizona’s DeAndre Ayton, Missouri’s Michael Porter Jr., Duke’s Marvin Bagley and Texas’ Mohamed Bamba.

If you’re an NBA fan just wading into the college game, there’s no better event to watch than Tuesday’s Champion’s Classic. No. 1 Duke faces No. 2 Michigan State, followed by No. 4 Kansas vs. No. 7 Kentucky. There are nine projected first-round picks in this mock draft among those four teams.

We’ll be doing these mock drafts all season long. It will be fun to see how much this projection changes throughout the year.

Doncic deserves to be the leader in the clubhouse to go No. 1 after dominating FIBA Eurobasket and getting off to a great start for Real Madrid. It’s going to take a huge individual season from any of the top freshmen to knock him off.

Doncic is a 6’8 guard with a rare ability to stuff the stat sheet. He’s a gifted passer, a crafty scorer, a plus rebounder, and a dependable shooter:

There are questions about Doncic’s athleticism, but it’s impossible to ignore his amazing production against the top competition in Europe at just 18 years old. He looks like a special prospect.

Ayton begins his one-and-done season at Arizona looking like a center prospect with the ideal size, athleticism, and developing skill set for the modern NBA. At 7’1, 261 pounds and with a 7’5 wingspan, he’s incredibly quick both off the ground and running the floor. Simply put: The man is a physical freak.

Ayton has also flashed a projectable jump shot and hit over 80 percent of his free throws as a high school player on Nike’s EYBL circuit. The term “unicorn” fits here. The biggest question scouts have with Ayton is his motor. If he stays engaged all season for Arizona, he has a chance at being taken ahead of any other college player.

Porter has the look of the type of player every team covets: an oversized, athletic wing who can score from all three levels. He didn’t play in Mizzou’s opener because of a hip injury, but expectations are squarely set for him to average over 20 points per game and get the Tigers to the NCAA tournament for the first time in five years.

At 6’10, Porter is comfortable attacking the defense from the perimeter. His three-point stroke looks good, but scouts will be monitoring his percentage all season. The biggest need for improvement in his game right now is tightening up his handle.

Bagley might be the best pure athlete of any of the elite college freshmen. He’s impossibly fast and agile for a 6’11 big man, blessed with a quick first step and the ability to easily finish above the rim when he gets a crack of daylight:

Bagley is likely going to put up huge points, rebounds, blocks, and steals numbers for No. 1 Duke all season. At the NBA level, he’ll be a bit of a tweener who lacks the elite length and rim protection skills to be a center, or the type of fine-tuned jump shot teams ideally want out of their four. Granted: That lefty shooting stroke certainly looks nice and could end up being a weapon for him before long.

You start with the length when you talk about Texas freshman Mo Bamba. His 7’9 wingspan and 9’6 standing reach will make him one of the longest NBA players ever from the moment he’s drafted. He’s also agile for his size with the type of quick feet required to guard ball screens in today’s NBA.

Bamba’s sheer size and potential as a rim protector will draw him comparisons to Rudy Gobert all season. His offense is what will be especially interesting to track. Bamba has faith in his jump shot and also isn’t scared to attack from the high post. Right now, he easily projects as the draft’s best defensive prospect.

Jackson is a 6’10, 240-pound big man with a 7’4 wingspan who hit close to 40 percent of his threes on Nike’s EYBL circuit as a high school player. ESPN has compared him to Pacers center Myles Turner, and that’s a good place to start. If he reaches his potential, Jackson could offer a similar combination of shot blocking and floor stretching with even better athleticism.

And no — Philadelphia doesn’t need another big man. But at this point, it’s worthless to take fit into the conversation with the NBA season still being so young.

Bridges would have been a lottery pick last season, but he made the shocking decision to return to MSU for his sophomore year, where he’s the preseason favorite to win national player of the year. He’s an explosive 6’6 wing who can effortlessly play above the rim on both ends.

Scouts will want to see if his 40 percent three-point shooting from freshman year is sustainable. He’s another player NBA teams will see as a tweener: He’d be best offensively attacking slowing power forwards, but he lacks the ideal length to defend that position on the other end.

Prediction: Sexton will be your favorite college player to watch this season. He’s an absolutely fearless guard who rose from anonymity to set the single-season scoring record on Nike’s EYBL circuit last year. He’ll have the keys to Avery Johnson’s offense at Alabama from day one.

Scouts will be interested to see if Sexton can harness his passion and aggressiveness to turn into a lockdown defender. His passing and playmaking ability will also be under the microscope this season.

Brown has always been knocked as a dogged defender as a 6’5 two-guard. Now he’s turning into a complete offensive player who can shoot, pass, and dribble. All he did in his first game for Miami was turn in a triple-double:

The Thunder loses this pick if it’s outside the lottery, which it will be.

Like Bridges, Williams opted to return for his sophomore year of college despite every indication being that he would have been a lottery pick in June. He’s a phenomenal athlete with a 7’5 wingspan who projects as a rim protector and lob finisher at the next level.

Carter will be described as a throwback big throughout the draft process, but don’t let that tag fool you. This is not strictly a back-to-the-basket scorer a la Jahlil Okafor. Carter is a bruising athlete who can dominate the glass, finish inside, and he already has a nice face-up game.

He’s not in an ideal position at Duke to showcase his skills because so many of his teammates also need the ball. Still, Carter does so many little things that his presence is a big reason why the Blue Devils are the preseason favorites.

As a 6’3 lead guard, Duval is an elite athlete with a 6’9 wingspan. He should be able to get into the teeth of the defense whenever he wants off a ball screen. He’s still developing as a passer. The big question is his shooting ability, which has a long way to go.

A 6’7 forward with a 7’3 wingspan who shot 43 percent from deep last season, Jackson profiles as an excellent glue guy at the NBA level because he takes nothing off the table. Scouts will want to see if he’s able to create more offensive off the dribble as a sophomore.

Another potential three-and-D prospect, Bridges combines long arms and quick feet with a lockdown mindset defensively. He made major strides as a shooter last season and should have a bigger role on Villanova this year with Josh Hart off to the NBA.

Walker is recovering from a torn meniscus but will be expected to form a devastating wing combo with Brown at Miami upon his return. He’s a physical shooting guard who can create his offense in a pinch. His 6’10 wingspan gives him the ability to be an impact defender.

Knox is an athletic hybrid forward who runs the floor and can make plays above the rim. Scouts will be closely monitoring his three-point shot and if he can use his physical gifts to turn into a great defensive player.

Diallo almost entered the NBA draft last year after enrolling (but not playing) at Kentucky to start the second semester. He’s an A-plus athlete whose 46-inch vertical leap at the draft combine was the best in the event’s history. He’s still raw skill-set-wise, but he has the length (6’11), body, and athleticism the NBA demands for a two guard.

Brown spent his formative years as a point guard before moving to the wing. It should come in handy both immediately for Oregon and down the road for his NBA prospects. At 6’6, Brown is a quality facilitator, versatile defender, and an IQ player. The Ducks lost so much from last year’s Final Four team (see: Dillon Brooks and Jordan Bell already making an impact in the NBA), so he’ll be asked to contribute right away.

Boatwright isn’t a name often cited in mock drafts yet, but he’ll have a great opportunity to improve his stock playing for a supremely talented USC team this year. The 6’10 forward is a gifted scorer with a nice touch from three-point range. He also averaged three blocks per game during a sophomore season last year that was limited by injury.

Musa is a 6’9 wing from the Croatian League who profiles as a straight bucket getter. He’s not the best athlete and only has a proportional wingspan, but he’s a skilled scorer who can fill it up from all three levels.

Robinson was the subject of the most bizarre recruiting story of the year, committing to Western Kentucky, then leaving, then coming back, then leaving again. Now he’s focused on training full time for the 2018 NBA draft. Teams should like what they see: Robinson is a bouncy center with long arms who should project as a shot-blocker and rim-runner. He’s also still raw at this point, so the team that drafts him will have to be patient.

Hachimura, who was born in Japan, spent last season barely getting off the bench for Gonzaga. That won’t be the case this year, as he should have a featured role as a sophomore after a breakout summer playing in the FIBA U19 World Cup.

At 6’9 with a great build and good athleticism, Hachimura looks like an NBA player. He’s just scratching the surface of what he can be.

Bonga is a 6’9 point-forward with long arms and impressive defensive versatility. His jump shot is the major question mark.

Richards is going to remind Kentucky fans a bit of Willie Cauley-Stein during his freshman season in Lexington. He’s a long and athletic shot-blocker who can finish above the rim.

Metu is the defensive counterpart to Bennie Boatwright in USC’s frontcourt. He’s an athletic center who scores around the rim and gobbles up blocks and rebounds. The key will be getting stronger and expanding his offensive game. He’s off to a good start: He hit both three-pointers he attempted in the Trojans’ season-opening win against CSU Fullerton.

The 6’9 shooter and scorer was projected as a late first-rounder last season before deciding to pull his name out of the draft at the deadline. We’ll keep him in the same spot for our early 2018 mocks.

Milton is a 6’6 point guard who has shot over 40 percent from three in both years at SMU. As a junior, he’ll look to show NBA teams he can get to the rim and has improved as a facilitator.

A 6’6 two guard, Evans is the star for a top-15 Cincinnati team and projects as a possible three-and-D NBA wing. The Bearcats are always known for their defense, but Evans stands out as the most talented offensive player to come through the program in some time.

The 6’7 wing is another player who fits the 3-and-D archetype. He made huge strides as a shooter during his junior year, improving from 23.1 percent to 37.7 percent from deep over one season. There are other seniors with much bigger national profiles (hello, Grayson Allen), but Hutchison could be someone who sticks in the league because he has a clearly defined role.

The son of the Shaq of the MAC, Trent has NBA bloodlines and the pedigree to match as a five-star recruit in the class of 2017. He’ll be needed as a glue guy on a Duke team with so many ball-dominant players this year, but that could only help his NBA stock. He’ll need to prove he can hit catch-and-shoot threes with consistency.