NBA Mock Draft: DeAndre Ayton joins the Hawks

We’re barely entering conference play, and Gafford is setting himself apart on his team and within this draft class.

Gafford keeps things super simple, but makes watching Arkansas very fun. He has started the last six games for Arkansas, scoring in double-digits in all but one. By feasting on a diet of layups and dunks, the freshman is shooting 67 percent from the field despite a 23 percent usage rate, uncommon for a freshman big. Remarkably, he is also over two blocks per game for the season despite tallying only 305 minutes all year.

This draft is full of prototypical DeAndre Jordan types in the bottom of the first round and top of the second round. But Austin Wiley is on the bench for Auburn amid the FBI investigation, Nick Richard is still finding his way at Kentucky, and Mitchell Robinson is out of school. Gafford is quickly rising above them all.

The freshman is one of the top players to watch going forward, in a deep SEC that will provide him many challenges. Yet Gafford has quickly risen to a prominent role and first-round status as a prospect, so expect more growth even as those challenges confront him.