Washington freshman guard Markelle Fultz announced he was going into the 2017 NBA Draft on Friday.
This was a move most people saw coming as Fultz has been projected to be the No. 1 pick in the draft since the start of the season. There was a lot of hype surrounding the former DeMatha standout, and Fultz lived up to it despite the Huskies finishing with a 9-22 record.
Fultz averaged 23.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game, while shooting 41 percent from deep. Fultz was named Second Team All-American and Freshman All-American.
Fultz didn’t play in the Pac-12 Tournament, and missed three games prior to the tournament due to a knee injury. Fultz final collegiate game was against Arizona, where he scored 26 points.
DraftExpress has Fultz going first overall to the Boston Celtics, who has the Brooklyn Nets first round pick in this upcoming draft and the following year. Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas is all in for his team getting Fultz.
“Oh, he’s special,” Thomas told the Boston Globe. “He’s special. You could tell he’s a professional. Everything he does, he does at his own pace. He can shoot, he can pass the ball really well. He’s a big guard that’s athletic. Everything that guards are today, he’s got.”
Right now the only player that’s a threat to Fultz is UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball, who has transformed the Bruins into a national contender in one season.
If Fultz goes first in the draft, it would be the second straight year where the No. 1 pick in the draft doesn’t make it to the NCAA Tournament.
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