That's Ayton, Bagley, or Bridges. Porter is a scorer, Doncic is a gifted playmaker-- both are really talented and would help to push our identity in a certain direction but for an injection of toughness, rebounding, and athleticism we'd probably want to look elsewhere.
DeAndre Ayton is the complete package. Top level athlete, huge physical presence, skilled post defender, and he can step out and stretch the floor. If everything breaks right you're looking at a versatile two-way big like Porzingis with better strength in the paint. It's fair to question how important post defense is anymore in this new era of three point shooting but there is an up and coming generation of bigs (Embiid, Towns, Jokic, Porzingis, Capela, Turner, Whiteside, and we might as well include DeMarcus) that somebody is going to have to guard and Ayton has got the talent to go head to head with any of those guys. This is not a name you generally want to invoke, but Ayton to me is just as good of a prospect as Greg Oden was before all the surgeries. Maybe better because he's also got a burgeoning outside jumper which could eventually stretch out to the three point line. I also like that he's born in the Bahamas... it's a small thing perhaps but I can see him eventually building chemistry with Buddy Hield as co-leaders of the National team. If you can't tell, he's the early favorite for me.
Marvin Bagley III is more of a hybrid PF/C though the distinction is becoming less and less significant in the NBA. He was off to a fast start before getting poked in the eye last night and forced to leave the game. If there's some question about Ayton's ability to be a go-to scorer there's none with Bagley. If we're voting on which player in this class is most likely to invite comparisons to Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo as long limbed destroyers of defenses that's Marvin Bagley. He can shoot, he can drive, he plays big under the basket, and let him get a little bit of space in the open court and he's impossible to stop. I also like that he's a lefty like Fox-- you'd think this wouldn't matter with detailed scouting reports but when you're talking about fractions of a second separating a good first step from a great one, being a lefty is still an advantage for a ball handler. He's also really active and mobile as a defender which is becoming the magic ticket every team needs to make their Thibodeau derived switching defense work. If Ayton is my #1 target than Bagley is 1A.
Miles Bridges is being projected lower either because of his size or because he's not the new hotness like the incoming freshman class. I wouldn't underestimate him though. Undersized PFs trying to cut it as wings were the undesirables of the previous generation but thanks to Draymond they're now getting a lot of attention. Bridges is a big kid but he can really fly. He attacks the rim ferociously, he's strong on the boards, he competes on defense -- as evidenced by his shotblocking proficiency. And he's a humble hard working kid who wants to get better. He may not have the high ceiling of the other top prospects projected in the top 5 because of his less than ideal size but I'd love to have his attitude influencing the other young guys. I think he'd fit really well with Fox, Buddy, and Skal.
Mo Bamba is a bit of a wild card. At his size he's got Rudy Gobert potential as the last line of defense disrupting everything in the middle and he's also a very bright kid with an engaging personality. Unfortunately when I've seen him play in the past he's looked a little stiff in his movements and a step slow in his reactions. I'll be watching him closely this year at Texas (who finally have a competent coach) to see how he progresses because his potential is arguably higher than anyone. Not to mention... between Bamba and Fox we'd have the best post-game press conferences in the league!
