Top Pac-12 NBA Draft prospects Philadelphia 76ers

Top Pac-12 NBA Draft prospects for Philadelphia 76ers

By Bret Stuter | Jan 15, 2018

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 16: The lottery balls are picked inside the lottery room during the 2017 NBA Draft Lottery at the New York Hilton in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Jennifer Pottheiser/NBAE via Getty Images) /

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TUCSON, AZ – DECEMBER 30: Deandre Ayton /

Arizona – DeAndre Ayton

Arizona center DeAndre Ayton stands 7-foot-0 and boasts a 7-foot-5 wingspan. Weighing in at 245 pounds, he is all about physicality and bounding bodies in the paint. And on the Arizona roster, that is a deadly combination.

Ayton delivers that one-two punch of better than 20 points per game (20.2 PPG) and 10 rebounds per game (11.3 RPG). He also delivers deadly accuracy of 63 percent from the floor, 72.9 percent from the free throw line, and 33.3 percent from three point range. While he has more to learn to be effective on defense, that wingspan certainly is the right statistic to project well onto any NBA team.

Projected early round one

Many consider Ayton to be the best center in the 2018 NBA Draft, and that may very well be. As such, he may simply not fall to the Philadelphia 76ers. If he does, they may target a greater fit/need than the center. But stranger things have happened. Michael Porter Jr., once thought to be a lock for the top pick of 2018, is now sliding to fifth or sixth with the most recent projections.

If Ayton slides, it may not be very far. Or he could fall to that 6-10 range of the Los Angeles Lakers first round pick. If he is there, and the 76ers have no other targets on the board, he would be a solid acquisition for the team.