NBA Draft 2018: Searching for the next Russell Westbrook this year

In the upcoming guard-heavy NBA Draft, will there be a player who jumps out as a future superstar like Russell Westbrook did after college?

Russell Westbrook was an awesome college basketball player and a tantalizing NBA prospect. In the 2008 NBA Draft, he was the third guard off the board behind Derrick Rose and O.J. Mayo. It is unlikely that any point guard will be drafted in top five this year. However, there is definitely a stronger chance of someone getting a steal by taking a chance on an explosive guard.

The Oklahoma City Thunder (formerly the Seattle Supersonics) took a chance on Westbrook because they saw indicators in the analytics that suggested he could eventually evolve into much more, potentially a superstar. Taking a deep dive into potential 2018 NBA Draft candidates, I wanted to highlight guards who have a chance to greatly outperform their expectations in the NBA. Granted, no one in this current class (and perhaps no human ever) has “athleticism like Westbrook”. Some of the guards named may play nothing like him. The point of this exercise is to find guards who will do the following:

• Outperform their draft slot
• Have solid size
• Exhibit explosive leaping ability

This is obviously not a foolproof process of figuring out which players are going to be the next superstar in the NBA. Yet, these traits can translate well to the next level and here are five players that fit the mold the best. They may not be lottery picks but they can all impact the game in a variety of ways.