Watch highlights of Emmanuel Mudiay's first game in China

Before Emmanuel Mudiay ever became something of a modern-day trailblazer in amateur basketball, he was one of the most highly touted players in the high school class of 2014. The Dallas product had accepted a scholarship to play for Larry Brown at SMU, and his presence was a big reason why some thought the Mustangs could contend for a national title. The day after the 2014 NBA Draft, with Mudiay still set to go to SMU, we ranked him as the No. 1 prospect for the 2015 NBA Draft.

That all feels like so long ago now. Mudiay is in China, maybe because he would have had difficulty getting eligible inside the NCAA's broken system, maybe because his family needed the money. If nothing else, Mudiay will be a rich man sooner than the rest of his peers atop the class of 2014 rankings. He received a $1 million contract for his season in China, and was also given an endorsement deal with Under Armour.

Mudiay's year in China is going to be highly monitored by everyone in the basketball world, from NBA scouts who still want to take him at the top of the 2015 draft to the next breed of great high school players who might like to become millionaires instead of going to college.

Mudiay played his first game over the weekend, and he did not disappoint. According to Draft Express, Mudiay finished with 18 points, three rebounds, two assists and three turnovers in a victory for his Guangdong Tigers. You can watch highlights of his performance below (via Draft Express):

One of the exciting subplots of Mudiay's season in China is the jarring amount of American talent playing in the same league. Stephon Marbury, Bobby Brown, Jonathan Gibson, Lester Hudson, Jordan Crawford, Delonte West, Justin Dentmon and Ron Artest are all in China, which means NBA scouts should get a look at what Mudiay can do against familiar competition. In this first game, he faced Pooh Jeter, who previously spent time with the Sacramento Kings.

Mudiay's season in China was always going to be full of ups and downs (read Andrew Crawford on the specific challenges he'll face). After an impressive first game, his second outing wasn't as good:

Emmanuel Mudiay went for 7 points and fouled out in a loss today vs Zhejiang, who got 34 PTS from @CJMcCollum 's brother Errick.

— Matt Kamalsky (@DraftExpress2) October 18, 2014

We'll be watching Mudiay's progress all season long.