NBA Mock Draft 2017, Week 14: Markelle Fultz is still no. 1

Villanova’s Josh Hart is a senior shooting guard who checks all of the boxes in terms of production. At 6-foot-5, he is averaging 23.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per 40 minutes with a 63.0 true shooting percentage. KenPom has a feature that identifies similar college seasons based on statistical production. Hart’s closest comparable is 2016 draft steal Malcolm Brogdon. Buddy Hield he is not.

In four seasons of college basketball, Hart is shooting 38.8 percent on 488 3-point attempts. He’s made 2.0 per 40 minutes and shot 72.9 percent from the free throw line, although he has been better than 75 percent the last two seasons. Hart has also turned himself into a fantastic pick-and-roll ball-handler. He’s not super explosive and doesn’t have a ton of crafty dribbling moves, but he changes speed well and knows how to attack angles in order to get to the basket or the foul line.

Hart is also an intriguing defensive prospect. He creates a few steals (1.5 per 40 minutes) and grabs quite a few defensive rebounds, but mostly he is just solid about staying in front of his man. Hart is a switchable option on that end because of his strength, which is obviously intriguing in the modern NBA.

So, why is Hart higher here than he is elsewhere? Two reasons. First, it’s hard to see Hart failing completely. At worst, he’s going to be a quality two-way wing who can come off the bench and give your team a little bit of everything. Second, he’s exactly what Oklahoma City needs alongside Russell Westbrook, a quality shooter who is willing to do the dirty work to help his team win games. That’s enough for me to think the Thunder should take him above some of the younger prospects on the board.