2. Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
For a while, RJ Barrett had the second pick in the draft locked up but Ja Morant had other ideas. After a very solid freshman season as Murray State’s starting point guard, Morant exploded this past season turning himself into a “Point God.”
There wasn’t one aspect of his game that Morant didn’t improve during his sophomore year. He nearly doubled both his points and assists, finishing the season averaging an absurd 24 points and 10 assists per game.
Murray State went as Ja did and they were able to pull off an upset in the NCAA tournament when they knocked off Marquette. Morant had his fingerprints all over the upset, dropping a triple-double and further cementing his spot as the second-best prospect in the draft.
Memphis fans had to be ecstatic after the lottery balls bounced their way and bumped them up to the No. 2 spot. They have a long way to go in their rebuild, but Morant could join Jaren Jackson Jr. as cornerstone pieces.
The Grizzlies shipped long-time point guard Mike Conley to Utah, in a move that made it clear the keys to the offense belong to Morant.
Stat Projections: 16.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 46% FG, 33% 3PT