2018 NBA Mock Draft: Luka Doncic could be the first piece of the Memphis Grizzlies’ rebuild
player. 156. . F. Duke. Marvin Bagley III. 6
Each time I watch Bagley, I come away with a vaguely similar opinion. It’s been a while since he’s surprised me.
He was a monster against North Carolina over the weekend, scoring 21 points and grabbing 15 rebounds in a revenge victory over his team’s biggest rival. It was, by all accounts, one of the bigger games of his short career. Particularly in the second half, as the teams were trading baskets and Theo Pinson was starting to bust Duke’s zone defense, Bagley shut the door.
The freshman is unspectacular, still, on defense. I saw a few people on Twitter this weekend compare him to Domantas Sabonis, which is a worrisome comparison for someone so productive on offense and explosively athletic. Sabonis is a safe baseline for Bagley, but you’re hoping he’s a lot better than that if a team takes at this point in the lottery.
The ACC and NCAA tournaments will be big for Bagley, going up against incredible competition each night with quite a bit to prove leading a young roster. How Bagley fares against the likes of De’Andre Hunter, Luke Maye and the rest of the country’s best forwards will be an interesting barometer of his development.