2018 NBA Draft big board: End of January
By Max Holm
22. Jacob Evans – Cincinnati
Jacob Evans is hands down one of my favorite prospects for the potential 2018 NBA Draft class. While he’s stayed at No. 22 since November, that’s more of a testament to the emergences of Trae Young and Jaren Jackson Jr. Evans is a legitimate 3-and-D wing with superstar role player upside.
Per Sports Reference, nationally Evans is eighth in Defensive Rating, fourth in Defensive Win Shares and 16th in Box Plus/Minus, and he just so happens to shoot nearly 42 percent from deep since the beginning of last season. In addition to all that, he’s taken on a lot of ball-handling responsibilities. For large portions of games he more or less operates as the Bearcats’ point guard. Good luck finding almost any players that have his combination of elite defense, shooting and passing.