NBA Draft 2019: Big Board 5.0

2019 NBA Draft prospect Jarrett Culver (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
2019 NBA Draft prospect Jarrett Culver (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
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(Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
(Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Before the season, Cam Reddish was my No. 1 prospect. I bought the natural talent, among other things. He was a smooth, fluid shooter who, at 6-foot-8, flashed real point guard skills in AAU and high school. There was a lot to like.

It wasn’t so pretty at Duke. The shine wore off quick, as Reddish struggled to find his role next to the ball-dominant R.J. Barrett and Zion Williamson. Reddish was terribly inefficient at every level and had multi-game stretches where his production was scarce. He definitely scared away a sizable contingent of talent evaluators.

Even so, there’s reason to believe Reddish can turn it around. His pedigree remains and he’s a fluid pull-up shooter with good size. He needs to improve his finishing at the rim and become more engaged on defense, but an NBA team will bite on upside — upside that very much exists.