1. Gradey Dick, Kansas
There is a strong argument to be made for Gradey Dick as the best shooting guard prospect in this year’s NBA Draft. And there’s an outside chance that he ends up being taken in the top 10 of the first round. He’s a slam dunk lottery pick at the moment. At 6-foot-8, Dick is going to be a fascinating experiment at the guard position. Could he ultimately make the transition to small forward, sure. But that will largely depend on his ability to guard bigger and more athletic players.
For now, we’ll consider him a two-guard. During his freshman season at Kansas, Dick averaged 14 points and five rebounds on 44 percent shooting from the field and 40 percent shooting from 3-point range. He was efficient and didn’t shy away from getting the 3-point attempts up – he averaged nearly six long-distance attempts per contest.
The big question when it comes to Dick’s transition to the NBA is whether or not he has a high enough ceiling where he could climb into being a top 10 pick. There are real questions about his long-term potential. If he can prove to be a playmaker on some level, there’s a strong chance that Dick ends up being a really good NBA player for a really long time.