As expected, Villanova forward Mikal Bridges will forego his final season of eligibility and enter the 2018 NBA Draft.

Bridges is considered a lock to be selected in the lottery, with the majority of mock drafts having him going in the top 10 (with several suggesting he ends up with the hometown 76ers), after helping to lead Villanova to its second national championship in three years.

Bridges’ progress at Villanova, from athletic specimen and defensive specialist to a high-level shooter and a complete basketball player, was a pleasure to watch. As impressive as his growth was, it is more impressive that as he became a more complete player and improved his offense, his ability to play defense and do the little things on the court never waned. After scoring 6.4 points on 29.9% three-point shooting as a freshman, Bridges averaged 17.7 points on 43.5% shooting as a junior but also continued to be a key cog on the ‘Nova defense and stuff the stat sheet with 5.3 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.1 blocks.

“I bring winning to your team,” he told ESPN. “I learned about that at Villanova, what is a winning, championship atmosphere and what you’ve got to do to achieve it. You have to always be locked in. Two championships in three years – not a lot of people have done that.”

Bridges fits the profile of a coveted NBA prospect. His size, length and athleticism give him the ability to guard multiple positions and make him a perfect fit in a league that is trending towards positionless play. His three-point shot adds another layer to his game and makes it easy to envision him helping a lot of NBA teams.

It is also worth noting that Bridges will receive his degree in May. Nova Illustrated would like to thank Mikal for his contributions to the Villanova basketball program and for being a stellar representative of the university. We would also like to congratulate him on a fantastic collegiate career and wish him luck on his NBA journey.