Trae Young and DeAndre Ayton reach Conference Finals before Luka Doncic as 2018 draft class continues to shine
Deandre Ayton, Trae Young and Luka Doncic have led the way from the very top during the playoffs but with talent running all the way down, the 2018 Draft is quickly becoming a once-in-a-generation group of players set to define NBA history
Wednesday 23 June 2021 16:59, UK
It was never considered to be 1984, nor 1996, and it might not match up to 2003, but the way the 2018 NBA Draft played out has directly impacted this year's playoffs and could shape the league for the next 10 years.
The gem of the draft, in the first two years, was Slovenia's Luka Doncic. Many US-based pundits overlooked the EuroLeague MVP and champion because he was a teenager succeeding in an overseas league, but those who had watched him play for Real Madrid saw that he was the real deal, out-duelling grizzled veterans of Europe and many former NBA players.
Upon entering the NBA, he proved those American analysts wrong. Rookie of the Year in 2019 was just the start, as he earned All-NBA First Team honours in 2020 and 2021, also becoming an All-Star in those seasons. He led the Dallas Mavericks to the playoffs as a sophomore, and showed during the post-season he had the ability to win games by himself against the LA Clippers, even though his team ultimately lost in six games.
This year, the Mavericks rose in the standings but advanced no further in the playoffs as they fell to the same Clippers team, despite Doncic embarrassing them in the first two games.
After The Athletic's Tim Cato revealed a number of behind the scenes issues with the Mavericks front office, long-time general manager Donnie Nelson was let go then head coach Rick Carlisle stepped aside, and rumours surfaced that the team was looking to move Kristaps Porzingis to give Doncic a second star.
Meanwhile, the person he was traded for on draft night, Trae Young, and the number one pick in 2018, Deandre Ayton, are still playing and their teams are blossoming with them at the core. They have reached the Conference Finals and stand a good chance of appearing in the NBA Finals against each other.
After so many people backtracked on their previous thoughts about Doncic at the draft, dismissing him as a European nobody who will never make it in the NBA, those same analysts hailed him as the best player from 2018. But it might be time to consider where he stacks up against his peers after a second straight first-round exit.
The draft night trade
A draft night call entwined the destinies of Luka Doncic and Trae Young together forever. The Atlanta Hawks had the third overall pick while the Dallas Mavericks were set to pick fifth, but the latter were worried about missing out on the next great European talent, and the chance to pair Doncic with outgoing legend Dirk Nowitzki for a season to hand over the franchise baton. Dallas wanted to trade up to secure a talent like Doncic.
Meanwhile, the Hawks were confident that they could take two steps down in the draft and still find a player in the mould of Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard and Kemba Walker - a guy who could shoot from anywhere and lead a team with flashy passing to join high-flying forward John Collins. The young duo could develop together and the franchise could build around them. It essentially meant that the Hawks were happy to pass on Doncic and pick Young over the European.
In the first season, this didn't look like the best option. Young struggled to adapt to the NBA, while Doncic looked every part the professional basketball player. In 2019-20, Young improved and became an All-Star, but Doncic led his team to the playoffs. It felt like the gap between the friendly rivals was getting bigger.
In truth, both players were growing as leaders, demanding the best from the franchise that drafted them, and their talents were showing up on the biggest stages. This year, the Hawks started out slowly, but a coaching change brought out the best in Young's skillset - increasing the pace and taking him off-ball on occasion – and the rest of the roster got healthy.
They finished as the fifth seed and became the first to reach the Conference Finals from that spot since the 2013 Memphis Grizzlies.
The Hawks also identified Kevin Huerter in the 2018 draft, who was just as important to Atlanta's win over the Philadelphia 76ers in the Conference Semi-finals as Young. He averaged 11 points, three assists and three rebounds during the regular season but shot 10 of 18 in Game 7 to score 27 points with seven rebounds.
The shooting guard stepped up with Bogdan Bogdanovic struggling to be impactful through a knee injury, but the team is also reliant on center Clint Capela. The big man threatened to steal John Collins' role in the offense – as a rim running rebounder – but the forward's development means that there is enough room for both of them thanks to Young putting them all in the right spot.
The top pick
It used to be said that if a 7ft guy could walk and chew gum, he would be a first round NBA draft pick. If they possessed any talent, they would be in the lottery, and you would always pick a big ahead of a guard or wing in the NBA.
While the likes of Allen Iverson stood out as anomalies in that way of thinking, the trend started to change in 2007 with Derrick Rose sparking a number of point guards being selected with the first pick. But there is still a tendency in the NBA Draft to go with the thing you can't teach: size.
So when DeAndre Ayton was picked first in 2018, his talent was not doubted, but compared to others in the draft who were arguably better suited to today's NBA of spacing and perimeter skill, some were surprised at the Phoenix Suns' selection.
A big part of the reason they went in Ayton's direction, however, was fit. The Suns already had a guard who'd scored 70 points in a game during 2016-17 with Devin Booker, so by 2018 it was more about finding the right pieces to support the star.
With Ayton, the Suns had a big to put alongside Booker, creating an updated Shaquille O'Neal-Kobe Bryant-like partnership for the modern NBA. And in the same draft, they traded up for the 10th pick, Mikal Bridges, who is one of the best defensive wings in the league and a good off-ball offensive player, as a dangerous shooter from distance and cutting threat.
It wasn't about picking talent. At the top end of the NBA draft, it's hard to make a major mistake because almost all lottery picks are talented enough, but after years of underachieving, Phoenix was ready to build an all-round team.
It wasn't perfect straight away. Ayton was fine on offense but he looked lost on defense as a rookie – always a difficult area for big men to learn. In his second year, he missed 25 games due to ingesting what was deemed a performance enhancing drug, and in the bubble, he nearly missed a game because he forgot to get tested one day. He was looking great and improving on the court but the investment was still not secure.
This season, however, Ayton has turned a corner as a subtly sneaky offensive force while still being able to roll and dunk in the pick and roll and on alley-oops. And on defense, he has taken such a leap that he made NBA MVP Nikola Jokić work hard to get anything as the Suns forced out the Denver Nuggets in a sweep.
Former general manager Ryan McDonough selected the right talent, and current head of basketball operations James Jones found the peripheral pieces to turn the Suns roster into a championship contender.
Others from the 2018 class
The Luka Doncic-Trae Young trade might generate the most number of 'what-ifs' from the 2018 NBA Draft, and DeAndre Ayton is living up to his top overall selection, but there are several others from that class, including Kevin Huerter and Mikal Bridges, who are making their presence felt.
Marvin Bagley was selected second overall and might be considered the biggest miss of the lottery, mainly because his numbers have dipped each year since entering the league with the Sacramento Kings. But with that franchise the way it is, fingers are not necessarily pointing at him for the team's issues.
The fourth pick was Jaren Jackson Jr. While he was injured for much of this season, he has shown flashes of being the perfect big man for the modern NBA game and is part of an incredible young core on the Memphis Grizzlies that scrapped their way into the eighth seed of the playoffs this year. His versatility offers a lot of options for a team headed up by Ja Morant.
Outside of the top five are the likes of Mo Bamba, Wendell Carter, Collin Sexton, Kevin Knox, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Miles Bridges, Michael Porter Jr, Donte DiVincezo, Lonnie Walker, Josh Okogie, Grayson Allen, Landry Shamet, Mo Wagner, Angernee Simons, Jalen Brunson, Gary Trent, Mitchell Robinson, Devonte Graham, Isaac Bonga, Rodions Kurucs, Bruce Brown, De'Anthony Melton and Shake Milton.
It's not necessarily looking like a who's-who of future Olympic players, unlike 1984, 1996 and 2003, but it's still early. Many of these players have already had impactful moments; some have peaked; others had good rookie seasons and have since tailed off; while a select number continue to grow into solid role players and have become key cogs on good teams.
At the very top, the 2018 NBA Draft will be the subject of debates for years to come over who should have been picked where, but right down to Kostas Antetokounmpo with the 60th pick – who has already won an NBA championship – the class is becoming one of those once-in-a-generation groups that will define NBA history. Give it a few more years, and we might consider it up there with the best drafts of all time.
