7. KZ Okpala, SF from Stanford
KZ Okpala is one of those polarizing prospects that pop up in each draft due to how incredibly athletic and slick he looks on the court, yet still very raw and undeveloped. Okpala led an inadequate Stanford roster as best he could, averaging 16.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
Okpala still managed to be a big threat on the offensive end despite a defunct shooting form; perhaps an NBA shooting coach could help adjust his form to knock down his shots even more consistently. With a severe lack of quality wing depth, the Portland Trail Blazers can take a high-upside project player here and allow Okpala to develop playing against the best players in the world.
8. Darius Bazley, SF/PF from High School
From one polarizing prospect, straight to another. Darius Bazley infamously withdrew his verbal commitment to Syracuse to test the waters in the NBA’s G League… until he withdrew his commitment from that as well. For the last year, Bazley has honed his game in the privacy of his own environment. For that reason, Bazley was a huge unknown and not expected to draw much attention from teams in the first-round of the draft.
That was until the Klutch Sports Pro Day rolled around, where Bazley apparently made a strong impression according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Surrounded by some of the NBA’s elite talent and influential executives, Bazley could have left a lasting impact on a late first-round team looking to grab a high-upside player.