Washington Wizards: 5 options for pick No. 44 in 2018 NBA Draft

5. Chimezie Metu

Wizards fans and apparently John Wall feel that the team needs more athletic bigs on the roster. There are plenty of those available at the top of the draft, and most mocks indicate they will get theirs by selecting Texas A&M’s Robert Williams. In the event they don’t, Chimezie Metu could be a decent option that should still be available at this point in the draft.

Metu averaged 15.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game in his junior season at USC. He is able to play both power forward and center, athletic enough to catch lobs and block shots, and is even able to face up defenders in the post. Metu can also stretch the floor with a decent mid-range game and a budding 3-point shot. He knocked down 30.0 percent of his 3-pointers in 2017-18.

On the down side, Metu underachieved at times and is still raw in terms of awareness on both sides of the floor. He was also suspended for half of a game in the middle of the season due to hitting an opponent in the groin, losing his captaincy in the process.

Still, Chimezie Metu has the tools to be an athletic stretch-big. He doesn’t have the same upside of Williams and Mitchell Robinson, but with some extensive development, he could be the replacement for Marcin Gortat and Ian Mahinmi that fans in D.C. really want.