NBA Mock Draft 2017, Week 17: Portland uses three first round picks

This is the Brooklyn Nets’ second first round selection. The pick originally belonged to the Boston Celtics, but conveys to Brooklyn as a result of a pick swap. The Nets are in dire need of talent — any player with upside should be highly valued by the team as a potential piece to help right the ship. Oklahoma State’s Jawun Evans is one such player, a point guard with intriguing potential, but plenty of downside risk.

At his best, Evans can be a game-changing offensive piece because of his versatility in high ball screens. The 6-foot point guard is lightning quick, understands how to collapse defenses and is even a decent shooter over a small sample size. Evans has made 41.5 percent of his collegiate 3-pointers, but has taken just 123 attempts over two seasons. Still, his free throw shooting (81.6 percent) should make teams optimistic about his shooting projections. Evans, though, is at his best barreling towards the rim where he attempts an incredibly high number of his shots, but occasionally struggles to finish through traffic. The sophomore has the toughest part down.

The risk with Evans centers around his size. He’s on the smaller end of the spectrum for point guards and isn’t the most physical. His finishing at the rim is an example of some of the problems that he faces. Those size issues will also manifest on the defensive end where Evans is great at creating turnovers, but certainly won’t be valuable as a switchable piece.

Evans’ offensive upside is incredibly high. If he fulfills it, he can be the Nets’ starting point guard of the future, but he doesn’t come without risk.