Where Might John Collins Get Drafted in the 2017 NBA Draft?

NBADraft.net says: John goes 15 to the Portland Trailblazers.

Is this a good fit for John to succeed?

I’m not so sure. Portland has a frontcourt including Maurice Harkless, Jake Layman, Ed Davis, Festus Ezeli, Noah Vonleh, and Jusuf Nurkic. Talk about a logjam Holy cow. Unless Portland offloaded some of that, I struggle to see John getting solid minutes without overtaking some of the names on this list (admittedly a possibility).

Any surprising names above or below John in this mock?

Above, I don’t think so. Below? TJ Leaf (#17 to Hawks), Harry Giles (#19 to Timberwolves), Bam Adebayo (#20 to Portland as well...possible trade expectation?)

DraftExpress.com says: John goes #16 to Miami

Is this a good fit for John to succeed?

I’m thinking yeah. Chris Bosh’s future is up in the air, and you’d have a frontcourt with John Collins, Hassan Whiteside,and fellow Deac James Johnson. I think JC could learn a lot from JJ, and unlike Portland there’s not a glut of young raw potential that’d create a logjam like there is in Portland.

Any surprising names above or below John in this mock?

Basically see above.

Chad Ford says: John goes #29 to the San Antonio Spurs

Good fit?

Dear god yes. Do I really need to explain why?

Surprising names?

Honestly I think this mock is a mess. Drafting Ivan Rabb seven spots above John? Tony Bradley one spot ahead? Ike Anigbogu 23 when he’s not even on the other two drafts? Yikes. I dunno what Ford is doing, but it doesn’t make sense to me. I mean I wouldn’t mind him being right because John on the Spurs would rule and him falling that far would increase the chances of one more year, but really?

SI.com says: John goes #18 to the Hawks

Good fit?

I’d say so, yeah. Every big in Atlanta sans Dwight Howard is a free agent, so he’d get lots of playing time, and if they hold on to veteran Paul Milsap, John learning from their coaches, Howard, and Milsap seems like a strong choice for all involved.

Anything surprising?

Nothing too egregious. I question some of the picks ahead of John but they’re absolutely defensible.

The bottom line is by most accounts, John Collins is an early-mid first rounder likely to be selected somewhere near other bigs like Gonzaga’s Zack Collins, Texas’s Jarrett Allen, and Creighton’s Justin Patton. John might stay, but if he doesn’t, he’s pretty well-poised to succeed, and he’ll likely continue to raise the Wake basketball program’s profile one way or the other.