I almost think the same as the OP. not always those who have a high rank will be safe to invest. So this is where we have to be observant to see the potential in the future. like seeing upcoming projects in a roadmap. However, the risk is indeed less if it is included in the top 10 of the CMC rank. because after all the community has been formed solidly. but for greater profit it is in the new project. but the risk is high.
new projects still have big gap with major caps if could build product and community solidly. when it formed well and perfect with all utility and solid community , new projects could give us more than 10x return in less a year. although it have big risk but need to consider as investment choice.
This kind of solid new project is rare and even though they could be successful in less than a year,the luna fall has already teach us something.
So,we have to be critical in terms of choosing new project to follow,be it their developer background or whitepaper.Even after you've done your research and you still got it wrong in the future,that's the unavoidable risk you've to bear.