For months, the hierarchy among NBA draft prospects in 2017 has seemed pretty clear: Washington guard Markelle Fultz first, and UCLA guard Lonzo Ball second.

ESPN draft analyst Chad Ford isn't so sure. In his latest draft board, Ford said that Fultz's advantage over Ball with GMs around the NBA is "small."

From Ford:

Last week, I polled a number of GMs from lottery teams to find their preference. Seven of the 14 teams said they were leaning Fultz. [...]

Fultz may have the edge on Ball, but it's a small one and Ball's fans are pretty adamant that he holds more upside than Fultz. His ability to make plays for others stands out as his strongest attribute for scouts.

Fultz's many "fans" among GMs, scouts and draft analysts would likely beg to differ. Given Fultz's ability to score both off the dribble and off the catch, in addition to his physical profile and athleticism, the former Washington standout's potential is sky high. He can play both point and shooting guard, and in the modern NBA -- with its focus on ball-handlers initiating and creating their own offense when possible -- Fultz seems like the ideal point-guard prospect.

Ball, of course, is very talented as well. His vision is perhaps unmatched in the 2017 draft, and with his deep 3-point range and ability to run an offense, he could be a very uniquely talented star at the next level. Like Fultz, he has excellent size for his position, which manifests itself in potential on both ends and on the glass.

Ford quotes a GM who says that if Fultz was on the same UCLA team as Ball was, the Bruins would be notably less successful. That might be true. However, it's also worth noting that NBA offenses are different -- much more focused on running successful pick-and-rolls and generating offense off the dribble. Fultz is seemingly better suited to that style of offense than Ball, whose funky shooting mechanics could limit him as a scorer at the next level.

Still, it's intriguing to wonder which NBA teams -- if they won the draft lottery -- might take a shot on Ball's potential rather than the seemingly guaranteed returns offered by Fultz. In either case, the potential of both prospects is extremely high, and the potential for rivalry between the two -- even before they are drafted -- promises to be a lot of fun.