2018 NBA Mock Draft: The standings are set

The Bucks may end up getting their pick yet! After a season-long battle with themselves, Milwaukee may end up lucking into another young player because of John Wall’s injury.

It seemed a foregone conclusion at the time of the Eric Bledsoe trade that the pick would not convey until 2020, when the protections expanded to include any pick outside the top eight. The Bucks, the thinking went, would be too good with Bledsoe and an eventually healthy Jabari Parker to pick between 11 and 16 this year.

Then, for most of the year, they were exactly that good (or bad). Despite a coaching change and Parker’s return, the team’s defense was not good enough to raise it into the upper tier of the East. Wall’s injury, and the resulting chemistry challenges in Washington, gave the Bucks an opportunity to regain ground. They finished tied with Miami for the sixth-best record in the conference. A coin flip Friday will determine their draft position for conveyance purposes.

If they keep the pick, Milwaukee has the opportunity to make amends for the frustrating Thon Maker experiment by taking Porter. The mobile, stretchy big man would be a perfect frontcourt counterpart for Giannis Antetokounmpo.