NBA Draft 2018: Winners and losers

BROOKLYN, NY - JUNE 21: Luka Doncic speaks to the media after being selected third overall at the 2018 NBA Draft on June 21, 2018 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Kostas Lymperopoulos/NBAE via Getty Images) /

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LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 10: De’Anthony Melton #22 of the USC Trojans looks on supporting his team against the Colorado Buffaloes during a PAC12 college basketball game at Galen Center on January 10, 2018 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Leon Bennett/Getty Images) /

Loser No. 2: De’Anthony Melton

Another player fell pretty far in the draft, and that was De’Anthony Melton, a player we had ranked 17th in this draft class. Melton didn’t play basketball this year because he was held out by USC over a potential recruiting violation in connection with the FBI probe into college basketball, and that weighed heavily on teams, as he fell all the way to No. 45, getting picked up by the Houston Rockets.

Melton has the potential to be a really valuable player for Houston, and on a dirt cheap contract, too. He might be the best perimeter defender in this class, and his high feel for the game and improved shot mechanics mean he could be a lot closer to being a prolific 3-and-D wing than he seemed last year as a freshman. However, that all was secondary to his lack of play, which was completely out of his control. Melton wasn’t held out for anything he did, either, which is the sad part — the violation was over someone from USC paying for something with a family member or associate. So because the NCAA lives to uphold a fraudulent notion of amateurism, De’Anthony Melton got screwed out of guaranteed NBA money.

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