NBA Draft 2018: Alabama freshman Collin Sexton declares for the draft and could be a lottery pick

Sexton proved to be one of the most dynamic playmakers at the point guard position this season

Alabama point guard Collin Sexton announced on Friday that he will enter the 2018 NBA Draft and intends to sign with an agent. 

"After careful consideration and discussing all of my options with my family and the coaching staff, I have decided to enter my name in the 2018 NBA Draft," he said in a press release.

Sexton elaborated on his thought process in an interview with 247Sports.

"I made this decision because I feel like it's been my dream growing up. It's so close," Sexton told Evan Daniels before his press conference to announce his decision. "Also I talked to my family and the coaching staff and they felt like I'm pretty much ready and I'll be good because they taught me a whole lot here at Alabama."

Sexton, a freshman from Mableton, Georgia, was one of the top freshmen playmakers in the country last season. He averaged 19.2 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, and guided Alabama to the second round of the NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual national champion Villanova. 

CBS Sports' Gary Parrish has Sexton going in the high-end of the lottery of this year's draft in his most recent mock draft, citing his athleticism and aggressiveness as big reasons why scouts will soon fawn over his skillset. 

Sexton's Crimson Tide took a bad turn late and closed the regular season on a five-game losing streak that put their NCAA Tournament hopes in real jeopardy. But it would be foolish to suggest Sexton was the main issue -- though him missing 15 of his 17 3-point attempts in that stretch, and lowering his 3-point percentage to 30.6 on the season, was both problematic for Alabama and enlightening for NBA front offices. Nobody questions the 6-3 point guard's athleticism or aggressiveness -- and it was on display in the final seconds of Alabama's win over Texas A&M in its SEC Tournament opener. But his inability to consistently take over games at this level, and consistently make shots, is a slight source of concern.  

Despite questions about his shot-making ability, Sexton has a tremendous ceiling as an NBA prospect. If he is able to put his stroke together at the next level and maintain his knack for making plays, there's no reason to think teams will allow him to slide out of this year's lottery.