2017 NBA Mock Draft: New York Knicks And All 30 First-Round Picks
By Yazen Abed
5. Sacramento Kings – De’Aaron Fox (Kentucky)
The biggest trade this past season was DeMarcus Cousins bidding farewell to the Sacramento Kings, which now look to rebuild in the wake of his departure. The good news is the Kings received Buddy Hield and a first-round pick (No. 10 overall) from the Pelicans, to go along with several drafted bigs in Willie Cauley-Stein and Skal Labissiere.
Enter De’Aaron Fox, who has the ceiling of Rajon Rondo and a floor of Elfrid Payton. He’s a quick point who can cut the paint in half with his speed and find those big men where they need to be.
The Kings could pull a Sacramento Kings and hold off on picking a point guard until their tenth pick, but Fox, Dennis Smith Jr., and Frank Ntilikina may all be gone by then. Take the surefire bet in Fox and start solidifying a young core.
6. Orlando Magic – Malik Monk (Kentucky)
Back-to-back Wildcats as the sharpshooting Malik Monk gets selected here by the Orlando Magic. Magic management has been atrocious in recent years, trading away young players, drafting players with glaring weaknesses, and creating a logjam of young players with no identity.
Monk at the very least replaces the departed Victor Oladipo and improves upon the one thing Oladipo struggled with: 3-point shooting. Monk will have to fight for minutes, though, playing alongside Evan Fournier, Mario Hezonja, and Terrence Ross.