The 2017 NBA Draft class is loaded with talent at the point guard position, and it just got a little deeper. French point guard Frank Ntilikina has declared for the draft, his agent announced on Twitter:
Frank Ntilikina @FrankLikina s'est officiellement présenté à la prochaine Draft NBA / Frank Ntilikina has declared for the 2017 NBA Draft
— Olivier MAZET (@OlivierMAZET) April 24, 2017
Ntilikina looks to be a defensive stopper at the next level; in January, an international scout told Def Pen that Ntilikina “has the chance to be a lockdown defender.” Ntilikina has elite length (6-foot-5 with close toa a 7-foot wingspan) and athleticism for a point guard and has a working shot from outside.
In Def Pen’s most recent mock draft, released Monday, Ntilikina is projected to go seventh overall to the New York Knicks, in between Kentucky’s Malik Monk and NC State’s Dennis Smith Jr.
The Knicks are reportedly interested in Ntilikina, and that interest may be mutual, as Ntilikina was recently spotted working out in Carmelo Anthony’s gym in Manhattan (although it’s looking like Anthony may not be in New York next season).
