NBA Draft 2018: 5 prospects with All-Star potential

As demonstrated by the last two rookies All-Stars, making the cut isn’t always just about being the best player all-around player. Unless the selection format changes, fans play into at least part of the determination so “most exciting good player” can go a long way.

There are definitely some holes in Ayton’s game and even if I expect him to improve he’s still going to be one of the most freakishly athletic young players in the league and the guy who most often looks like he’s about to hit his head on the rim. He could very easily be this year’s Blake Griffin. And as a likely top two pick, he’s also going to see a ton of playing time immediately on a pretty bad team and he’s going to be one of the two or three most closely followed players, especially early on. It could mean that his put-back dunk in transition is played over and over on SC Top 10 but it’s a double-edges sword and could just as easily translate to fans seeing a never-ending loop air-balled free throws or falling over after getting crossed-up.

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As we saw with Blake as a rookie, DeMarcus Cousins for his entire career, Carmelo Anthony most of his career, or Porzingis this season, contributing to a winning team or playing consistent two-way basketball, are nice things to have but don’t necessarily move the needle. Ayton has a good chance of getting an All-Star nod simply by putting up 15 to 20 points a night and producing a handful of highlight plays throwing down put back dunks or swatting opponents’ layups into the fifth row of the stands.

The fact that he’ll likely play in the Western Conference where eight or nine of the top players are guards also helps his case.