5 Surprising Names Who Will Sneak into 2012 NBA Draft Lottery

Aside from the New Orleans Hornets selecting Anthony Davis with the No. 1 pick in draft, no one is completely sure who—and in which order—will follow.

The lottery—or first 14 picks—is supposed to showcase the crème of the crop of the draft class.

Who will be selected within those 14 picks?

ESPN’s Chad Ford has had several attempts of trying to perfectly predict what will happen, but there’s no guarantee that he’s going to be 100 percent correct. It’s actually very unlikely.

Predicting which players will be taken in the opening 14 selections is a near impossible task as the draft works as a set of dominoes. If one player gets drafted in an unpredictable spot, everything changes.

Using Ford’s latest mock draft as a starting point, here are five “surprising” prospects that could sneak into the lottery.

Jared Sullinger, Ohio State

Position: PF

Age: 20

Height/Weight: 6’9’’, 268 lbs.

I fully understand the risk that comes with drafting Jared Sullinger.

It was all downhill for Sullinger once he was red-flagged by doctors with back issues. There’s no riskier player in this draft class than him.

Because of the back issues, Sullinger has gone from a high lottery pick to a mid-to late first-round pick. Ford has the Boston Celtics taking a shot at him with the No. 22 pick in his latest mock draft.

Believe it or not, there’s a risk with every prospect, it’s just that Sullinger’s is a little higher. He still had a great career at Ohio State and if his back issues turn out to be nothing, teams are going to look dumb for passing on him.

He could be the next LaMarcus Aldridge or he could be the next Greg Oden.

Even though it’s unexpected, I could foresee a lottery team taking a chance on Sullinger, hoping that the reward outweighs the risk.

Fab Melo, Syracuse

Position: C

Age: 22

Height/Weight: 7’0’’, 255 lbs.

Fab Melo is not even close to the smartest player in this year’s draft class, but he is one of the biggest and most talented.

He is a very raw offensive player but does have good defensive instincts. He needs a great coach to form him into the superstar that he could turn out to be.

The biggest sell point for me is his size. Melo is just one of a handful of seven-footers in this class and plenty of teams are looking for size.

Depending on how the early picks fall, Melo could find himself moving up the draft board. Ford has him being selected by the Indiana Pacers at No. 26, but he has the potential that some other prospects do not.

You can teach a player how to shoot or play defense, but you can’t teach size.

Draymond Green, Michigan State

Position: SF

Age: 22

Height/Weight: 6’8’’, 236 lbs.

Draymond Green isn’t projected to go anywhere near the lottery teams; according to Ford, he’ll go to the Oklahoma City Thunder at No. 28.

I said that with Fab Melo, you couldn’t teach size. With Green, you can’t teach someone how to be a leader and step up in big situations.

I’m a big fan on college basketball players who stay in school for all four years—just like Green did. It shows work ethic and determination which are traits that coaches and GMs should look for.

Green is a versatile player because he’s about the size of an average small forward, but  small for a power forward—creating some interesting matchups. He’s a great shooter, so bigger defenders may be forced to give him some space.

It would be highly unexpected, but Houston and Milwaukee could be nice fits if their first or second choices are already off of the board.

Moe Harkless, St. John's

Position: SF

Age: 19

Height/Weight: 6’9’’, 207 lbs.

Moe Harkless might not be the most surprising player to sneak into the lottery, but Ford currently has him being taken at No. 16 by the Houston Rockets—just outside of the lottery.

Ford only has Harkless on one lottery team’s big board, the Rockets at No. 12. The fact that Houston has two first-round picks—one in the lottery and one outside of it—could be the reason he sneaks in.

Harkless is coming off of averaging 15.2 points and 8.6 rebounds per game in his freshman season at St. John’s. He's still young and can be taught in the areas where he is currently lacking.

If Houston’s first few choices go earlier than No. 12, look for the Rockets to scoop Harkless up early and then decipher what to do with their latter first-round pick afterwards.

Royce White, Iowa State

Position: SF

Age: 20

Height/Weight: 6’8’’, 261 lbs.

Royce White is quite the character. He has great potential to be an impact small forward, but there are a couple of things keeping him from being a lottery pick.

White led Iowa State in all five major statistical categories, but his fear of flying hasn’t helped his draft stock.

Teams that are looking into taking small forwards who can play the power forward position as well should look into White. He will definitely be available through the 10^th pick in the draft, which leaves four teams to take him as a lottery pick.

Ford has the Denver Nuggets taking White at No. 20 as of now. To move up six spots isn’t the craziest thing we could see happen.

He has the ability to be a good scorer and solid defender in the NBA, giving him a shot at sneaking in.

That fear of flying really throws me, though.