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2018 NBA Draft: Best team fits for 5 of the top prospects

By Mason McFee

CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 22: Miles Bridges #22 talks with Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans late in the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at State Farm Center on January 22, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 22: Miles Bridges #22 talks with Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans late in the game against the Illinois Fighting Illini at State Farm Center on January 22, 2018 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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EAST LANSING, MI – JANUARY 31: Miles Bridges #22 of the Michigan State Spartans dunks the ball during a game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Breslin Center on January 31, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI – JANUARY 31: Miles Bridges #22 of the Michigan State Spartans dunks the ball during a game against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Breslin Center on January 31, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /

Best Fit #2: I’d Walk 720 Miles Just to See You Play…. for Memphis

Miles Bridges: Memphis Grizzlies 

DUN NUN NUH NUH NUH NUH

Oh, what’s that? We’re back? My bad guys, sorry.

When Miles Bridges notified the media that he had an announcement to make last year, many were expecting him to declare for the draft. He had a solid year as a freshman, averaging 16.9 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game. Most draft pundits had him getting drafted no later than the tail end of the lottery, and while that’s still where he’s projected to go, it shouldn’t be viewed as a a slight against his talent level – it should be motivation.

Averaging nearly 17 points a game in college basketball is nothing to sniff at – even if these young guns make it look easy. Averaging a double-double as a freshman as a player that analysts still don’t have a definitive position for? Even better. While the playmaking ability is a nice bonus, it’s Bridges’ scoring that scouts are drooling over – and that reminds me of Rudy Gay/Tobias Harris. You know what team is really missing a scorer on the wing, one they really haven’t had since the likes of Rudy Gay? THE MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES!

Don’t get me wrong – Memphis has tried to fill the void Gay left. They have traded for the likes of Courtney Lee, Jeff Green, signed Vinsanity – but none of them turned out to be anything more than stopgap options…. until the next stopgap option rolled around. While players like James Ennis and Dillon Brooks have been a pleasant surprise, Ennis is now in Detroit, and Brooks is better suited coming off the bench. Chandler Parsons has played in (what feels like) as many games as I have in the NBA the past few seasons – (0, in case you were wondering) – and he’s getting paid nearly 20 million dollars a year. Do you see the problem?

The nice thing about this projection (if you will) is that Bridges could very well be on the board around the time Memphis picks, and as tempting as it would be to grab a Marvin Bagley or Kevin Knox, they need to go with more of a sure thing. Bridges fills that gap as Memphis enters Marc Gasol’s twilight years, and give Memphis a building block when he leaves.