(If you just came here for the rankings scroll down.)

Another NBA season has come and gone and now the NBA Draft is upon us. Anyone who knows me knows that I love this time of year. It starts during the NCAA tournament, trying to see which players have the heart and determination to be stars, who steps up in the big moments and also who fades. From there I have an idea of who I like and who I don’t and for the past 6 drafts I’ve sat down and scouted 40+ recruits every season to see if I can determine who the sleepers and busts might be.

This year, with the site established I scouted 60 (62 including Jeane and Kurucs) and decided I wanted to share my top 50. I rated the players based on what I thought their max 2K rating will be if they go to the right situation.

There are 4 strong indicators that let me know how a player is going to do at the next level when I’m scouting.

1. Attitude: I like guys who embrace challenges and are not afraid of the moment. I like fiery players who LOVE basketball and aren’t just playing because they just so happened to be 6 foot+ and somebody introduced them to the game. I also like leadership and guys who play within the team.
2. Defense: As a young player it’s going to be hard to get on the court unless you play some defense. If you don’t, you better be an elite offensive player or freak athlete. Getting onto the court early means keeping your confidence up and thus having the opportunity to maximize your potential.
3. Rebounding: Like defense, rebounding is a translatable skill. And I’m not talking about averaging a certain number of rebounds I’m talking about effort. Do you box out, do you rebound outside of your area, do you read shots and crash the glass. Rebounding is another way for a young player to impact the game in a positive way and get himself onto the court early.
4. Aggressiveness: You may lump this into attitude but aggressiveness is also a key for me. A guy who is active, again, has more opportunities to make plays that impact the game and thus more opportunities to win himself playing time.

Look at a guy like Jae Crowder. He was a second round pick but I had him as a sleeper. Why? Because he had all of the keys above. The same goes for Draymond, Chandler Parsons, and Brogdon.

Without further ado, here are my top 50 players in the 2017 NBA Draft.

1. De’Aaron Fox 93
2. Frank Ntilikina 89
3. Caleb Swanigan 88
4. Jawun Evans 86
5. Dennis Smith 86
6. Jonathan Isaac 86
7. Markelle Fultz 85
8. Donovan Mitchell 85
9. Jayson Tatum 85
10. Josh Jackson 84
11. Justin Patton 84
12. Zach Collins 84
13. John Collins 83
14. Sindarius Thornwell 83
15. Isaiah Hartenstein 83
16. Thomas Bryant 82
17. Lonzo Ball 82
18. Jarrett Allen 82
19. Justin Jackson 82
20. Ike Anigbogu 81
21. Malik Monk 81
22. Semi Ojeleye 81
23. Tyler Lydon 81
24. OG Anunoby 80
25. Bam Adebayo 80
26. Jonah Bolden 80
27. Derrick White 79
28. Alpha Kaba 79
29. Luke Kennard 78
30. Frank Mason 78
31. T.J. Leaf 78
32. P.J. Dozier 77
33. Frank Jackson 77
34. Jordan Bell 77
35. Lauri Markkanen 77
36. Tony Bradley 76
37. Sterling Brown 76
38. Anzejs Pasecniks 75
39. Monte Morris 75
40. Josh Hart 75
41. Terrance Ferguson 75
42. Kyle Kuzma 73
43. D.J. Wilson 73
44. Alec Peters 73
45. Jake Wiley 73
46. Harry Giles 71
47. Tyler Dorsey 71
48. Cameron Oliver 71
49. L.J. Peak 71
50. Ivan Rabb 70
51. Johnathan Motley 70

For breakdowns on the top 25 and a few additional players hit the links below!

(Top 10 with breakdowns)

(11-20 with breakdowns)

(21-25 + Additional Notable Players)

Thoughts, opinions, never going to check this site again because I’m clearly a crazy person? Fire away at me on Twitter @MBibs or @BibsCorner.

-Bibs