NBA Draft 2017 Prospect Watch: Markelle Fultz

One of the contenders to be selected first overall, Washington’s point guard Markelle Fultz is one of the elite prospects coming into the NBA Draft.

Who is Markelle Fultz?

Ranked as a five-star recruit across Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN, Markelle Fultz was one of the most highly-anticipated recruits entering this past season in college basketball. Despite playing for Washington, who were expected to have a rough season, Fultz lived up to the hype, producing an incredible season full of highlights.

On the season, the Huskies went just 9-22, including a dreadful 2-16 record in the Pac-12 Conference. Even with this abysmal record, Fultz was commended for his efforts, as he was recognized as a Third-Team All-American along with being a First-Team All-Pac-12 selection.

Upon entering the NBA in a few months, the media will certainly follow Fultz in his quest to become Rookie of the Year. Top picks are already on the chopping block to see tons of criticism, but imagine if Fultz ended up on the 76ers? If that were to happen, it would be possible that the league could see the No. 1 overall selections from 2016 and 2017 playing their rookie seasons together on the same team.

Let’s not, however, get too far ahead of ourselves. Before getting into the scouting report on Fultz and his potential draft stock, here is a look at what kind of numbers he posted in his year at Washington and a highlight tape of his skills:

Provided by CBB at Sports Reference: View Original Table

Generated 4/4/2017.

Strengths

One of the most exciting players in all of college basketball, Markelle Fultz is the projected first overall pick in this summer’s draft. On top of being an outstanding scorer, which I will get to shortly, one of the most underestimated parts of Fultz’s game is his ability to create for his teammates.

On the season, Fultz averaged nearly six assists per game and was close to a 2-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Given the fact that Fultz held a usage rate of 31.4 percent on the season, those numbers are indicative of a player who is comfortable handling the ball, creating for others, and is capable of putting up his own buckets, as is obvious with his versatility on the floor.

As Jonathon Givony put it in his article with DraftExpress, Fultz has a plethora of skills that make him one of the most exciting players coming out in this year’s draft class:

"“Fultz is a tantalizingly gifted shot-creator, sporting an extraordinary combination of body control, ball-handling, footwork and pace. He changes speeds, directions and uses both hands innately, spinning off opponents, splitting ball-screens frequently, and finishing with euro-steps. He combines his ability to get wherever he wants on the floor with outstanding shot-making prowess off the dribble, making 42 percent of his pull-up jumpers on the season, with his 1.02 PPP ranking second best among draft prospects.”"

Although Washington did not make the NCAA Tournament with him on the team, this was not the fault of Fultz. Time and time again, Fultz dazzled scouts and college basketball fans everywhere with his ability to shoot and get to the basket. He is ridiculously quick and can finish in traffic thanks to terrific body control in addition to his already solid size.

Listed at 6’4″ and still under the age of 19, this kid is a star in the making who could easily be the top pick in the upcoming draft. It is hard to imagine a player of his caliber dropping out of the top-5, so get ready to hear his name called very quickly.

Weaknesses

Arguably the most scrutinized part of Fultz’s game is the approach that he takes. At times, it seems as though Fultz plays without urgency and is willing to let the game go by without making a tremendous impact for extended periods of time.

In the NBA, Fultz will likely be drafted by a team that needs him to be “the guy” right away. This will hopefully cause him to take on a focus that we did not see at all times in the college game, as he will be called upon to do it all and make things happen for both himself and his teammates.

As far as actual output on the court, the most concerning thing is Fultz’s dip in production when facing high-quality competition. Again, as mentioned by DraftExpress, there were noted struggles during his lone collegiate season about how he fared against the elite:

"“Fultz struggled to maintain his effectiveness against better competition, as his offensive efficiency took a significant tumble in the games he played against elite-level opponents. He had a more difficult time turning the corner and getting into the paint in these games seemingly, and saw his shooting percentages drop to 48 percent from 2 and 38 percent for 3, while his assist to turnover ratio declined. Many of these games ended in blowouts, so it’s difficult to surmise how much we can take away from them.”"

In addition to those weaknesses, Fultz has struggled at times on the defensive end. Although he has all the athletic ability to be a stand-out defender, Fultz has been seen getting lost at the defensive end occasionally, as if he lost track of his man or simply was more focused about the ensuing offensive possession.

With the massive amount of offensive point guards in the current NBA game, Fultz developing a solid defensive repertoire might be the difference between him being an average NBA guard and an elite one.

What The Experts Say

(as of 4/4/17)

Draft Express (Jonathan Givony): 1st

ESPN (Chad Ford): 1st

CBS (Howard Megdal): 1st

Sporting News (Sam Vecenie): 1st

The Step Back (Trevor Magnotti): 1st

Quotes:

In Andrew Sharp’s mock draft on Sports Illustrated, he has Fultz going first overall to the Boston Celtics. Here is what he had to say on his draft potential.

"“He can play either backcourt spot, he’s the most explosive guard in a lottery that’s full of them, and he checks just about every box for an NBA guard prospect in 2017.”"

Also predicting Fultz to go No. 1 overall, this is what Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report had to say of Markelle:

"“He’s the most complete guard in the field, with tools, athleticism, volume production and efficiency to back up all the potential. He won’t absorb much blame for Washington’s 9-22 season.”"

Fit in Milwaukee

To be perfectly honest, the odds that the Bucks end up with Fultz on the roster any time soon are very, very slim. He is likely to be the No. 1 overall pick while the Bucks will select more towards the back end of the first round.

In other words, it would require the Bucks to lose out, miss the playoffs and win the lottery.

And although the Bucks have the potential to trade up towards the lottery, they would need  to get into the top-3 to even have a chance at Fultz. Nonetheless, the fit would be pretty solid. With Fultz’s skill set, he would be likely to succeed in lots of NBA systems, but could potentially excel in a fast-paced game, like the one the Bucks could run with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jabari Parker, and Thon Maker in the lineup.

With a 6’4″ frame, his size would fit in nicely alongside the “Team All-Length” lineup the Bucks would be able to roll with. Yet, his defensive effort would surely need to pick up in order to maximize his potential with the defensive-minded Bucks.

If by some crazy set of circumstances the Bucks could luck into Fultz without needing to give up a cornerstone like Giannis, then that would be great, but the odds are, as I stated earlier, very, very slim.

Next: NBA Draft 2017 Prospect Watch: Lauri Markkanen

If, as a Bucks’ fan, you want to see Fultz on the Bucks roster, it might be time to pick up the controller and play some NBA 2K.