The Sixer Sense
Fansided

2018 NBA Mock Draft 5.0

By Christopher Kline

BELGRADE, SERBIA - MARCH 30: Luka Doncic of Real Madrid in action during the 2017/2018 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season game between Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade and Real Madrid at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall on March 30, 2018 in Belgrade, Serbia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images)
BELGRADE, SERBIA - MARCH 30: Luka Doncic of Real Madrid in action during the 2017/2018 Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Regular Season game between Crvena Zvezda mts Belgrade and Real Madrid at Aleksandar Nikolic Hall on March 30, 2018 in Belgrade, Serbia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

Arizona. DeAndre Ayton. 1. player. 66. . C

Ayton and Doncic are still jockeying for the No. 1 spot, but Ayton gives the Suns something they desperately lack: a franchise big. Neither Dragan Bender nor Marquese Chriss have lived up to expectations, so adding somebody with Ayton’s upside makes sense.

Defense has been an issue for Ayton this year, but he has the tools needed to reverse that trend at the next level. He’ll need to improve his awareness and effort in certain spots, but anybody with his physical tools has clear-cut potential on that side of the ball.

Offensively, Ayton is ready to contribute right away. He’s a polished scorer in the post who’s capable of making advanced passes and spacing the floor out to the college 3-point line, if not further.