5 NBA Draft prospects who can rise or fall in Big Ten Tournament

3. Illinois' Terrence Shannon Jr. is a projected first-round pick

Terrence Shannon Jr. continues to produce as a high level for the Fighting Illini, averaging 21.6 points and 4.2 rebounds on .469/.349/.797 splits. Inconsistency behind the 3-point line is a knock, but Shannon is plainly one of the best athletes in college basketball. At 6-foot-6, his first step and acceleration is tough for defenses to contain.

Shannon, a fifth-year senior who began his career at Texas Tech, scores on a constant parade of downhill attacks. He can score going to either side, blessed with the ability to hang mid-air and contort for challenging finishes. That, or he can finish with power, spiking the ball through the net with a force few peers can match.

Age will hold Shannon back from the upper echelon of the lottery, but he is primed to tear through March Madness with a play style that naturally attracts attention. He doesn't profile as a high-level creator for teammates, but Shannon's ability to generate advantages off the bounce and consistently tilt the defense — especially with solid positional size at 6-foot-6 — infuses his draft stock with a pervasive sense of upside, age be damned.

That said, Shannon will face trial on May 10 for a rape allegation, which led to an arrest and suspension earlier in the season. Shannon appealed the suspension and gained clearance to finish out the season at Illinois, but NBA teams will wait for the outcome of that trial to fully inform their opinion. That is far more important than what happens in the Big Ten Tournament, or on the basketball court in general.