9: Washington Wizards- Nassir Little, F, North Carolina
Much like New Orleans, things in D.C. aren’t going so well. John Wall has a major injury along with his atrocious contract, Bradley Beal is at the center of trade rumors, and the team moved on from their starting small forward in Otto Porter.
Here, the Wizards swing for the fences with Little. As the third ranked player in the country coming out of high school, Nassir Little’s three-and-D potential have scouts very intrigued. Being compared to Kawhi Leonard at times, his defense in college has been solid.
However, his offense has been far from adequate. Much like fellow top-three recruit Reddish, Little has fallen short of expectations set for him, putting up averages of 9.4 points and 4.6 rebounds in only 18 minutes of action per game. With Little, the Wizards are undertaking a project that is high risk and very high reward.
10: Los Angeles Lakers- Keldon Johnson, G, Kentucky
Some may believe that Keldon Johson being taken with a top 10 pick may be too high for him, but the pick makes all too much sense for Los Angeles. Because Los Angeles is, supposedly, in win-now-mode.
Johnson is a player who can come in and make an impact immediately, as most Calapari products are able to do. With this pick, the Lakers are able to fill two needs: a floor spacer and a shoting guard. Johnson is a solid all-around player, he can get to the bucket, shoot the ball, dribble, and play good defense.
In 2018-2019, he averaged 13.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists on 46.5 percent from the field and 38.8 percent from range. Some weaknesses of Johnson’s include his distributing, and although he is a solid defender, the steals and blocks totals don’t show it. Expect Johnson to shoot up draft boards after the NCAA tournament, as typical of Kentucky players.