13. Toronto Raptors – Nick Smith Jr., G, Alabama
The Toronto Raptors could elect to blow up their roster this offseason; they could elect not to. They could run back the same exact roster heading into next season and I’m not sure how much their draft strategy will change. But with an extremely talented guard sitting here at No. 13, I don’t know how they don’t jump at the opportunity to select Nick Smith Jr. You can make the argument that he’s a top 5 talent that will be taken late in the lottery.
If the Raptors do end up believing that, there’s an argument to be made that they’d be getting arguably the steal of the NBA Draft. In one of the nest developmental organizations in the league, Smith would be in a great situation in Toronto. Smith has the potential to be a lethal scorer in the NBA and if he can be an even player defensively, he could be a star.
But those same questions followed him to Alabama and he fell short of expectations. It’s easy to see why many teams around the league may be bullish about his potential in the NBA but, at the same time, it would also be hard not to want to roll the dice on his talent.