NLL Mock Draft v3.0 - 20th of June

By Nick

As you may know, i reached out to all the GM's in the league recently asking them for annonymous information about their intentions in the draft. About a third of the league responded. I compiled this mock draft with the information that i "know", and attempted to determine the player they will most likely pick. For the picks that i don't have any sources on, i made an assessment of their team situation myself and made the choice based on the general consensus of the ranking and reputation of players from various draft sites around the net (draftexpress, nbadraft.net, espn, etc). I leave my own subjective opinion out of the equation. It's my goal to make the most accurate mock draft that i can, leading up to the big day. However, GM's may not share the same desire and would prefer to mask their plans by misleading the media. It's up to you whether you believe the league gossip or not.

It is never clear what direction GM's will go in. It is not clear whether GM's are telling me the truth or strategically setting a smokescreen. Past incarnations of this article have been surprisingly truthful, but you still never know. One single pick can change the entire outcome of a draft. And as we know from previous years, there are always some major surprises on NLL draft day. So take this mock with a grain of salt, but feel free to use it as a rough guide.

Draft day, one of the biggest annual events in NLL, will be the beginning of new era's for some teams, and a forgettable day for others. Either way, this is history in the making, folks. Based on my general knowledge and the many rumours that i gathered, here's an idea of who i think could go where come draft day. Enjoy!  

#	Team	Needs	Prospect	Comments
1	Boston	Anything but PG, assets	Nerlens Noel 7'0" 215 lbs C	Celtics will pick first in the 2013 draft, after they hired a new GM in J-Mac who instantly sent NLL legend Kobe Bryant packing for the 1st overall pick. Ricky Rubio is the new face of the franchise. Talk about coming in with a bang! It is still not clear who the Celtics will draft yet. And in a draft that's devoid of any franchise changing talents it's not an easy choice to make. This pick should be looked at as the first dibs at a player from a handful of very good prospects. The draft does not have any sure-fire stars, but it has plenty of guys who could potentially become elite role players for teams. Noel, who could be the best defensive big man the draft has seen in over a decade, is generally considered the biggest impact player of the group with the most long-term potential. But his injury will make jmac think long and hard about other players. There is no guarantee the Celtics will select Noel, especially if the NBA Cavs don't. But it is most likely at this point. (sidenote: what kind of name is Nerlens anyway?? weird parents)
2	Utah	Everything	Victor Oladipo 6'4"; 213 lbs. SG	Utah is looking at many different players, but will apparently go for team need. Looking at their roster the biggest team need seems to be just general roster talent and depth. They need everything. But sources say Utah is mainly looking at backcourt players. Oladipo, McLemore. and Porter are said to be favourites here for Utah, but they are also working out Bennett, Burke, and Len, from what i hear. Either way, expect Utah to be very active on draft day. Seeing this pick get traded is not out of the question. If Utah keeps the pick, then a SG is most likely choice, which likely means either Oladipo or McLemore. I've been flip-flopping between those 2 on this mock. And whichever SG of those guys doesn't get selected here will likely slide to Washington at #6.
3	Charlotte	PG, leadership, depth	Trey Burke 6'1" 187 lbs PG	This is the juicy one. Sources say Charlotte has agreed to trade this pick to another team team; they will draft Trey Burke for an Eastern Conference team else who will then send them a more accomplished young PG in return. I can't guarantee the truth to this, it's what a little birdy told me. But the report was too detailed for it to be false to be honest. Stay tuned.
4	Sacramento	C	Anthony Bennett 6'7" 239 lbs PF	Sacramento are open to trading this pick, but if they keep it then my guess is that they will go with the best talent available. Their roster is already stacked, and they have no glaring needs, apart from maybe center. Regardless, apparently they are looking at Anthony Bennett. If they believe they will lose Chris Paul or JR Smith then maybe they will target a PG or SG, but Bennet is their guy from what i hear.
5	Oklahoma City	Everything	Otto Porter 6'9" 198 lbs SF	OKC don't have a GM at the moment but it is reported that the GM who is interviewing for the job is high on Porter. Even if OKC don't have a GM during the draft then it is likely they will end up with Porter anyway since GM-less teams are automatically given who was drafted higher in the NBA out of the remaining players. It's doubtful that Porter will fall out of the top 3 in the NBA draft. Either way, Porter wont fall past #5 in NLL.
6	Washington	PG, assets	Ben McLemore 6'5" 189 lbs SG	The Wizards will apparently take the best talent available on the board, regardless of position. As to who the Wizards are high on is anyone's guess. The decision likely hasn't been made yet, and will likely depend on A) the order of the NBA draft, and B) who is left on the board at the time. In this particular scenario McLemore could be the guy. Maybe Alex Len or Cody Zeller? Shabazz? A point guard? Who knows. One thing is for sure, and that is that Washington will definitely be picking here, because they're not open to trading this pick.
7	Minnesota	Go-to guy, PG	Alex Len 7'1" 255 lbs C	The T-wolves are high on Len, McLemore and Bennett (in that order), but if they're off the board then they will address a need and go with McCollum, Carter-Williams, or Larkin. In this scenario, Len is available and they get the guy who is #1 on their board.
8	Chicago	PF, depth	Cody Zeller 7'0" 230 lbs PF/C	The roster over in Chicago is really starting to shape up nicely with the growth of players like Jimmy Butler, Roy Hibbert, Harrison Barnes, and Kemba Walker. They have a nice young nucleus like they've always wanted, and adding a talented young PF seems like the next logical step, since it would round out their starting 5 of the future. However sources say they are "looking at guards". Considering they already have Walker and Reggie Jackson, and Jimmy Buckets is more of a SF, then that means a SG. I still think they will draft Zeller, but don't be surprised if they go with Shabazz (the next Harrison Barnes?) or McCollum instead.
9	Atlanta	SG, Anything but PG	CJ McCollum 6'3"; 197 lbs PG/SG	After a disappointing injury-riddled year last season, Atlanta are in the position in this draft to add a starter to join what is actually quite a talented nucleus. With franchise player Derrick Rose already in place, you can expect they wont be drafting a PG. And unless they plan to trade Danny Granger and/or Andrew Bogut, they probably wont be targetting a SF or C either. They'll want a starter. That leaves SG and PF. Sources say the Hawks intend to draft a SG here, but knowing them they'll probably go with the best talent available. They'll think about Shabazz and Caldwell-Pope but my guess is they go wth McCollum.
10	Denver	PG, depth	Michael Carter-Williams 6'6" 184 lbs PG	Dion Waiters and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist seem locked in as the starters of the future. The Nuggets seem confident of their chances of retaining Dwight Howard, Andrew Nicholson was decent in his rookie year, and Rodney Stuckey was just shipped out of town. Looking at that you would say that a PG is the next logical step for the Nuggets. And you'd be right. However i will likely draft best talent available and address needs later. Lucky for me in this scenario the best talent avail is also a need. I will think about KCP, but choose MCW to join MKG. Hopefully the other Denver players don't feel left out for not having cool hyphenated lastnames.
11	INDIANA!!!	SG, SF, depth	Shabazz Muhammad 6'6" 222 lbs SF/SG	The Pacers have held their cards close to their chest so far, and it is not clear what direction they will go in. Looking at their roster they have a clear need on the wing. Gerald Wallace is not in their future plans, and Brandon Knight isn't a full-time SG. Some GM's speculate that the Pacers will draft brazillian bro Lucas Nogueira, but i'm not convinced yet. They think about Caldwell-Pope and Franklin, but I think they go with Shabazz, who was considered a top 3 pick six months ago.
12	Portland	C, depth	Steven Adams 7'0" 255 lbs C	Emeka Okafor is likely on his way out and Portland are eyeing his replacement in the draft. Look for them to snag a post presence here. That's if they even keep the pick however. They're reportedly very open to dealing the pick to a rebuilding team for a contributor, and there's a very real chance that could happen. If Portland keeps the pick then they will consider bigs such as Adams, Gobert, Nogueira, Olynyk and Dieng. It's anyone's guess who they pick.
13	Utah	Everything but SG	Lucas Nogueira 7'0" 220 lbs C	Atlanta have the rights to San Antonio's pick here due to a condition in the trade they made involving Bogut. And it is reported that Atlanta will select for Utah, who will they make a trade after the draft. This feels like a really pivotal point of the draft, since it is a real crapshoot for what the order will be between here and like 24. For the sake of this scenario, Utah wont be draftin a SG here due to their choice at #2. I say he bags his brazillian buddy, the Brazillian Nerlens - Lucas Nogueira, to join Nene Hilario in the frontcourt.
14	Orlando	Depth	Dennis Schroeder 5' 11" 175 lbs PG	Orlando have a nice starting 5 (assuming they retain Jennings and Henderson), but they need some firepower on the bench. I don't know who they pick here, but i've heard whispers that they might be keen on the german point guard. They could draft any position here, but Schroeder is the only intel i have on the Magic, so there you go.
15	Milwaukee	none	Giannis Adetokunbo 6'9" 196 lbs SF	Bucks will have 3 picks come draft day - #15, 19 & 22. Sources say they will go one player for the backcourt, one for the frontcourt, and one to stash overseas. The order of where those picks will happen is not clear however, and we wont know until they make their 1st and 2nd picks. Sources say that they are hoping for Steven Adams to fall and Lucas Nogueira, which would not be available in this scenario, however i would be sceptical to the truth of those rumours anyway. It's really anyone's guess who the hell they will pick here. Probably the hardest to predict so far, but there will be plenty of quality perimeter and post prospects for their 2 later picks.

#	Team	Needs	Prospect	Comments
16	New Orleans	SF, SG	Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 6' 6" 204 lbs SG/SF	I don't know the Pelican's Plan(icans). But with Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe in town, they probably wont target a PG.With impending free agency for Corey Brewer and Nick Young (who scored 18.9ppg for them last season), they might want to sure up the wing. The presence of Nikola Vucevic, Tristan Thompson, Ian Mahinmi, Terrence Jones, and Greg Smith will probably deter them from drafting another big man. I think they'll look at a wing player here.
17	Boston	Anything but PG, depth	Kelly Olynyk 7' 0" 234 lbs PF/C	The prediction of this pick is a total crapshoot. My guess is they'll go for who they percieve is the best talent available, regardless of need. I don't know who that is yet though. We will have to wait and see how the NBA draft order goes.
18	Denver	Depth	Mason Plumlee 7'0" 238 lbs C	With Samuel Dalembert likely heading to FA, and my only other bench post players being 6'8" or under, i'm gonna need a backup C. I don't know who i'd choose out of Plumlee, Dieng, and Gobert yet though.
19	Milwaukee	none	Rudy Gobert 7'2" 238 lbs C	In this scenario, the Bucks have already chosen their player to stash, so that leaves the post guy and the perimeter guy.
20	Washington	PG, depth	Gorgui Dieng 6'11" 230 lbs C	Sources say the Wizards will go for someone with a specialized talent here at #20 and #21 (i.e. great defneder, or 3pt shooter); someone that will stick in the NBA. That guy is Dieng.
21	Washington	PG, depth	Shane Larkin 5'11" 171 lbs PG	PG is one of their biggest needs, and they finally address it here.
22	Milwaukee	none	Jamaal Franklin 6'5" 191 lbs SG	How do the Bucks end up with so many picks every year? lol. Anyway, they got their stash guy, their post guy, and now it's time for their perimeter guy. Not sure who they'd prefer out of Franklin and Karasev.
23	Dallas	backup PF, C, PG	Tony Mitchell 6'9" 236 lbs F	Assuming they retain Sessions, the Western champs' starting 5 is pretty sorted. Ideally they'd probably like a big man. Mitchell is more of a combo forward, but still hits a need.
24	Golden State	Anything	Sergey Karasev 6'7" 197 lbs SF	Questions currently loom over the sunshine state regarding the contract status of Andre Iguodala and Andrew Bynum. If we assume that they're gone, then the only thing they don't need is a starting SF and PG. Everything else are scrubs. I expect GSW will go for best talent available here. I have no idea who they like though.
25	Philadelphia	LOL "needs"	Tim Hardaway Jr 6'6" 185 lbs SG	Sixers are the most stacked roster in the league, they literally have no holes that need filling. They will obviously go for best talent here. I don't know who they're targetting though.
26	LA Lakers	SG, C	Allen Crabbe 6'6" 197 lbs SG	The Lakers will be targetting a SG or a C here. That's if they still have the pick - they're actively trying to move up in the draft. If they keep the pick, Allen Crabbe or Jeff Withey could be suitable picks. Or Tim Hardaway if he's avail. This is a pretty good area for perimeter players, there's a bunch of solid guys from here to early-to-mid 2nd round.
27	Philadelphia	none	Tony Snell 6'7"; 198 lbs. SF	They'll probably go for best talent again, whoever that is..
28	Atlanta	C	Jeff Withey 7'0" 222 lbs C	Atlanta will go for a post player here.
29	Cleveland	Depth	Archie Goodwin 6' 5" 189 lbs SG	Sources say Cleveland will pick the highest rated SG here.
30	Minnesota	PG	Erick Green 6'3" 178 lbs PG/SG	Minnesota are shopping this pick, but if they keep it they may aswell address a need and take a PG.