2012 NBA Mock Draft: Full First-Round Order with Projected Picks

The 2012 NBA Draft is just 28 days away at this point, and with the NBA Playoffs winding down at a rapid rate what with us hurtling toward the NBA Finals, there is a lot of reason to be excited about the draft at the end of this month.

Over the next four weeks you will be seeing a lot of mock drafts come out, but I have always felt that the most telling have been the first handful of mocks just after the lottery and before the kids start working out for individual teams and going to the combine.

While the combine is not as big of a detractor in the NBA as it is in the NFL, it does lead to a lot of jockeying for position just because of the size of a guys hands (nobody want the next Kwame "Baby Hands" Brown) his vertical, or how quickly he runs around some cones. These measurements can be helpful, but when you put more stock in that than what you see a kid do on the floor in actual competition then your view of him starts to get diluted a bit.

So, as an initial reaction after the lottery has shaken its way out I've decided to put together my own mock to see what you guys think.

1. New Orleans Hornets: Anthony Davis, Kentucky

Height/Weight: 6'10", 220 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 14.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, 0.9 assists

There is really nothing not to like about Anthony Davis as an NBA prospect. He works hard, he seems to be a good kid, he knows his way around the basket on both ends of the floor (albeit his offense needs some polishing) and he genuinely seems to be ready to dedicate himself to whichever team drafts him.

Davis is the draft prospect that comes around once every five years or so, only he is even better and more rare than that because he is a big man, something the league is short on these days. New Orleans will be happy with The 'Brow.

2. Charlotte Bobcats: Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Kentucky

Height/Weight: 6'7", 232 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 11.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is not the type of do-it-all small forward that seems to be the norm these days, but he is at least decent at everything.

He can shoot a little, he can rebound, he can pass a little, he can cut to the rim a bit, but for all of his negatives there is one huge positive; nobody else in this draft is as determined to be an NBA player. MKG is a guy ready and willing to work out any and all flaws in his game, and that's something a guy like Michael Jordan should fall in love with.

3. Washington Wizards: Thomas Robinson, Kansas

Height/Weight: 6'10", 237 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 17.9 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists

If it is effort you are looking for from a power forward then look no further than Thomas Robinson. Throb (yea, even I find that to be a creepy sounding attempt at a nickname, I will throw that one out with the bathwater) has that new draft buzzword "motor" in spades and it is going to lead to him killing it at the combine and draft workouts, but that's only going to pound home what we already know about him.

Robinson is, for what it is worth, also a pretty decent shooter for a guy his size and with some work he can turn into a stretch-four, which makes him even more interesting. 

4. Cleveland Cavaliers: Bradley Beal, Florida

Height/Weight: 6'3", 207 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 14.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists

People like to throw around Ray Allen comparisons when it comes to Bradley Beal, and it makes sense why. He can shoot and like Allen as a young man he is excellent with the ball in his hand, making him a dual threat on offense.

However, it seems to me that he is more like Eric Gordon than Ray Allen, just with a purer, more consistent jumper. He should end up being a pretty darn good player, and pairing him with Kyrie Irving would be extremely interesting.

5. Sacramento Kings: Andre Drummond, UConn

Height/Weight: 6'10", 270 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 10.2 points, 7.7 rebounds, 0.5 assists

Many people are looking at Andre Drummond and his low shooting percentage, few rebounds and lack of work ethic and start to see their knees knocking together when it comes to thinking about drafting him, and it is a tough thing to do. However, Drummond is huge. He is just a massive man, and passing on him for him to one day to become a good big man in the league would haunt most teams for days.

Pairing Drummond with DeMarcus Cousins, who is another head-case big man, could be volatile, but it could also be good for the big fellow, as Cousins has started to shake his reputation as a head-case in this past season.

6. Portland Trail Blazers Via New Jersey Nets: Harrison Barnes, North Carolina

Height/Weight: 6'8", 215 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 17.4 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.0 assists

Harrison Barnes lost a lot of respect from the league and the hoard of analysts around the country after his poor showing when it mattered most late in games in the NCAA tournament, but that's no reason he should fall too far in the lottery.

Barnes is still the best small forward after MKG and he has the tools to be an all-star player, he just needs to get some more reps in clutch situations to work at really taking over a game, as it is a skill that can be groomed and grown.

7. Golden State Warriors: Perry Jones III, Baylor

Height/Weight: 6'11", 235 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 14.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists

Perry Jones is the second-most confusing prospect in this draft, which is saying something with a handful of players that could range from top lottery picks one day to middle-of-the-road picks the next.

PJIII's biggest concern to most is his desire and effort, which of course is a huge knock on him, but the kid is so athletic and so darn impressive when he is streaking around the court that it is going to be hard to pass on him at this point.

8. Toronto Raptors: Jeremy Lamb, Kentucky

Height/Weight: 6'5", 180 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 17.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists

A lot of folks like to talk about a player's toolbox when talking about his game on either end of the floor, and Jeremy Lamb has a full set of tools on the offensive end. He has got everything from the outside jumper to the mid-range shot to the dribble-drive and everything in-between. Heck, he has even got a bit of a post game as well.

Lamb may not be the leader that you would want from your team's best player, but this kid could certainly be a legitimate No. 2 player one day down the road.

9. Detroit Pistons: Jared Sullinger, Ohio State

Height/Weight: 6'9", 265 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 17.6 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists

Jared Sullinger is another player that lost a lot of spots over the course of the 2011-12 season for one reason or another, and it makes sense. After all, he is still too small to play power forward at the next level, he still gets lost on defense and he has got some effort issues at times, although he is no PJIII or Andre Drummond.

However, the set of low-post skills that Sullinger has on offense just cannot be ignored. There are very few kids his age, or in the game of basketball for that matter, who are as good as Sullinger is at getting the ball in the paint and maneuvering his way to the basket. Zach Randolph comes to mind when I look at Sully, but he is going to need to get nasty for that style of play to work out for him.

10. New Orleans Hornets Via Minnesota Timberwolves: John Henson, North Carolina

Height/Weight: 6'11", 220 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 13.8 points, 10.1 rebounds, 1.3 assists

I have been torn between John Henson and Terrence Jones as the second-best pure power forward in this draft (Drummond and Jones are freak-hybrids made in a lab somewhere), but after looking at everything I had to go with Henson.

Henson is a natural leader on defense, he is able to nose out any player, bigger and stronger or smaller and quicker, to get a rebound and he can score when you need him to. What does it for me, however, is his ability to rebound which is very understated especially when you consider the fact that he was competing for boards with a seven-footer in Tyler Zeller all season long.

11. Portland Trail Blazers: Damian Lillard, Weber State

Height/Weight: 6'3", 195 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 24.5 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.0 assists

Damian Lillard is clearly the best prospect at the point guard spot in this draft, but I'm not sure of how good a point guard he is.

On the one hand he only averaged four assists in this past season, which is his career-high at Weber State, but on the other hand he was expected to be the primary scorer for a mid-major team, which usually means he is going to have to ignore the passing game a bit more.

In the end I still do not think that Lillard is the best passer in the draft, but he is certainly going to make up for that with his ability to score and rebound, which is understated by...well, a lot.

12. Milwaukee Bucks: Terrence Jones, Kentucky

Height/Weight: 6'9", 252 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 12.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists

Terrence Jones is going to be one of those guys who gets a lot of love at the combine because of his long arms, huge hands and leaping ability, and that might not necessarily be a bad thing for Jones.

He is going to be a good power forward in the NBA one day so long as he keeps working, he just needs to become a more consistent player on both ends of the floor.

13. Phoenix Suns: Kendall Marshall, North Carolina

Height/Weight: 6'4", 195 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 7.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 9.7 assists

Kendall Marshall is not the best point guard in this draft when you want to talk about overall production, but he is the best point guard in this draft if you want to talk about guys who do point guard things.

Anybody who nearly averages double-figure assists in college these days has to be looked at with admiration, and Marshall actually just finished a season that made him the leader in total assists dating back to 1998, which has to say something.

14. Houston Rockets: Tyler Zeller, North Carolina

Height/Weight: 7'0", 250 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 16.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.0 assists

Tyler Zeller is going to get the attention any seven-footer gets in any draft ever. The kid can use his body to score, he has got a good work ethic and he can pass a bit, which is never a bad thing.

However, the concern with Zeller is that his skill comes from smart basketball (a shame, I know) with very little athleticism involved. It is not bad to be a smart basketball player by any means, but it is bad to be an non-athletic basketball player.

15. Philadelphia 76ers: Meyers Leonard, Illinois

Height/Weight: 7'1", 245 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 13.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1.3 assists

On the other side of the coin with big men we have got Meyers Leonard, who is a decent athlete, only he lacks the consistency that would make him a lottery pick, it seems.

Leonard has a lot of work to do, and he is going to develop into a decent center at some point, the only question is how long it takes for his skills to polish up well enough to make him a sound investment.

16. Houston Rockets Via New York Knicks: Austin Rivers, Duke

Height/Weight: 6'4", 200 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 15.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists

Austin Rivers is the enigma of this draft, which is saying something. However, unlike the guys like Andre Drummond or Perry Jones, it does not seem likely that Rivers comes into the league and is a complete bust. At the very worst you have a guy who can take guys off the dribble for a few years while he develops and polishes his jumper.

The only problem is the fact that he knows he is a good scorer, which can really kill an offense if he tries to take over and doesn't have it on that particular night. It is that Jamal Crawford gene in him that needs to be pounded out before he can really be trusted.

17. Dallas Mavericks: Dion Waiters, Syracuse

Height/Weight: 6'4", 215 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 12.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists

Dion Waiters never really came out of his shell like it seems like he is capable of doing while at Syracuse, which is a big reason why he's fallen out of the lottery, but he could damn well be a great player in the NBA.

Waiters is a future all-star waiting to happen, what with so few eclectic shooting guards in the league these days and so much potential looking like a deadly combination moving forward. Waiters is probably the guy with the biggest upside this late in the draft.

18. Minnesota Timberwolves Via Utah Jazz: Quincy Miller, Baylor

Height/Weight: 6'9", 200 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 10.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists

Quincy Miller is one of the many players coming out of Baylor that made them such an exciting team this year, but he was the only one on the team, it seems, that couldn't jump from one corner of the floor to the other, and his transition to the NBA is going to be an interesting thing to watch.

His numbers were rather pedestrian, but I do not think he was utilized well at Baylor as he is a smart, contemplative player as opposed to a fast, run-and-gun jumper like the guys that Baylor touted. He is just a really crafty guy with an innate ability to find away around his defender, which is as fun to watch as any dunk any day.

19. Orlando Magic: Terrence Ross, Washington

Height/Weight: 6'6", 195 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 15.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists

Terrence Ross is going to compete with Quincy Miller right around this spot for that mid-round small forward that could be a difference maker one day, and as is tradition it is going to be an athlete vs. a crafty player.

Ross is a great athlete, but he is far too thin to really guard or muscle up small forwards in the NBA. Could you imagine this bean-pole trying to take LeBron James to the rim? He needs to add some meat to that frame.

20. Denver Nuggets: Marquis Teague, Kentucky

Height/Weight: 6'2", 189 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 9.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists

Marquis Teague is the great unknown when it comes to this Kentucky team, which makes him all the more fun to wonder about.

Teague had a miserable run for Kentucky for a while, but it was overshadowed by the overall greatness of the top end of their lineup. He was turning balls over, missing shots and just not playing well overall. But near the end of the season he really hit his stride, limited his turnovers and took wiser shots, leading to him finding his way back to the middle of the first round.

21. Boston Celtics: Moe Harkless, St. John's

Height/Weight: 6'8", 208 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 15.3 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists

Moe Harkless, despite having one of the coolest names in the draft, is probably the leading candidate for the "Wait, Why Did He Declare For The Draft Again?" Award, but that does not mean he should be avoided.

Sure, he is a weak defender who relies on gambling to get steals, he is too skinny and he is an over-confident shooter, but the kid is an athlete, he can get to the rim and he can fight for rebounds. He is going to grow and at some point there are going to be some teams regretting the fact that they did not give him a chance to grow on their team.

22. Boston Celtics: Evan Fournier, Poiters (France)

Height/Weight: 6'7", 206 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 13.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists 

In any other season, Fournier could have declared for the draft and ended up a lottery pick, but with the amount of talent sitting in the 6-16 range of this draft it is hard for anybody to break through into that spot.

However, Fournier gets a lot of credit for being the crafty player that he is, able to get to the rim despite his lack of muscle (his arms look like Zydrunas Ilgauskas' looked in his most recent season with the Miami Heat). This kid could be an interesting player in a few years.

23. Atlanta Hawks, Arnett Moultrie, Mississippi State

Height/Weight: 6'11", 230 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 15.8 points, 10.6 rebounds, 1.1 assists

The winner for the coolest name of any player in the draft also happened to be a double-double machine in college. With a name like Arnett Moultrie I would expect him to be sitting in a rocking chair on a wraparound porch in a house in Louisiana with big columns while smoking a pipe and wearing a seersucker suit, although dominating dudes on the boards would be my next guess.

Anyway, Moultrie is a strong fellow despite what his weight may say, and his skills with the ball on offense are understated, especially after playing some small forward in his days at UTEP.

24. Cleveland Cavaliers, Tony Wroten, Washington

Height/Weight: 6'5", 205 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 16.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists

Tony Wroten was the other half of the one-two punch at Washigton this season alongside Terrence Ross, and the two of them together proved to be quite an interesting combo.

If it were not for everyone on Kentucky competing for Freshman of the Year and blowing the competition out of the water, we would have heard a lot more about Wroten, who happens to be a terrific ball handler with a developing jumper. He just looks like he will be a pretty good player one day.

25. Memphis Grizzlies: Jeffery Taylor, Vanderbilt

Height/Weight: 6'7", 225 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 16.4 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists

Jeffery Taylor is a guy that will come in and struggle to find the same kind of offensive output that he did in college (doesn't everybody) but he is definitely going to come in and defend the hell out of the perimeter.

Taylor has to work on his skills with the ball in his hand and he has got to work on that jumper, but his defense should be able to give him enough playing time to develop those skills in the future.

26. Indiana Pacers: Fab Melo, Syracuse

Height/Weight: 7'0", 255 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 7.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 0.7 assists

Fab Melo is one of the final questions in this draft when it comes to players who could end up being impact players at some point.

Looking at his numbers along with the fact that this is his second year in college pretty much tells the concerns. He has got almost no offensive skill set in the post, he is not a particularly good rebounder, and quite frankly he seemed to have hands made of stone at times in the post.

However, his frame is as ideal as you can get for a center in the NBA, and he could surely defend at the college level, which is something that will lead to the big Brazilian going in the first round.

27. Miami Heat: Royce White, Iowa State

Height/Weight: 6'8", 270 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 13.1 points, 9.2 rebounds, 5.1 assists

Royce White is coming on strong ever since the end of the college season as a potential late first round pick, and with good reason.

He is a bit short for a power forward, but the dude is huge otherwise. Aside from his muscular frame, White is quite possibly the best passing big man in the entire draft class, which as we learned from Boris Diaw this year, is a skill that can lead to him landing on a championship-caliber team at some point in the future.

28. Oklahoma City Thunder: Tyshawn Taylor, Kansas

Height/Weight: 6'3", 185 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 17.3 points, 1.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists

Tyshawn Taylor made his name as the explosive, athletic point guard for the Jayhawks who led them to the title game. Taylor could score in college, but he was far from a good point guard, as he wasn't a great passer and he wasn't the pinnacle of running an offense.

The problem with Taylor is that he is not an elite athlete or scorer like some of the good young guards in the day today, and he is definitely not an elite decision maker either, he is just good, not great.

29. Chicago Bulls: John Jenkins, Vanderbilt

Height/Weight: 6'4", 215 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 19.9 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.1 assists

John Jenkins is going to get some play when people talk about picks at the end of the first round because he can flat-out shoot the ball. However, unlike prospects in the past few years who were touted as the best shooters in the draft class (like Jon Diebler last season), Jenkins can handle the ball and create his own shot. That's incredibly rare for a guy touted as the premier shooter.

30. San Antonio Spurs: Doron Lamb, Kentucky

Height/Weight: 6'4", 210 pounds

2011-12 Stats: 13.2 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists

There have already been five of them in the first round, why not take another Kentucky player to bookend the first round, eh?

Doron Lamb could be a steal this late in the draft, and I will be a stunned fellow should he get passed up by the top teams in the league this late looking for a low-risk, high-reward pick. Lamb was such a smooth offensive player that it seems like his reason for the lack of jaw-dropping numbers is because he played with Anthony Davis and company for the year.

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