NBA Draft 2015: Mock Draft Projections as Regular Season Wraps Up
If you love instant gratification, you'll love the NBA draft.
Even more so than its NFL counterpart, the NBA draft provides some teams with the kind of impact that can transform an entire organization. LeBron James single-handedly made the Cleveland Cavaliers relevant years ago. Anthony Davis turned the New Orleans Pelicans into a playoff team. Derrick Rose transformed the Chicago Bulls.
Especially those teams in the lottery will have a chance this year to not necessarily get a talent like James, Davis or Rose, but at least add a player who will move the franchise forward as part of a larger plan.
Among that group of teams, the three below could get the most help on draft night.
| 1 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Karl-Anthony Towns, C, Kentucky |
| 2 | New York Knicks | Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | D'Angelo Russell, PG/SG, Ohio State |
| 4 | Los Angeles Lakers | Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, China |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | Stanley Johnson, SF, Arizona |
| 6 | Sacramento Kings | Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky |
| 7 | Denver Nuggets | Justise Winslow, SF, Duke |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia |
| 9 | Charlotte Hornets | Mario Hezonja, SG/SF, Croatia |
| 10 | Miami Heat | Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas |
| 11 | Atlanta Hawks (from Brooklyn Nets) | Myles Turner, PF/C, Texas |
| 12 | Utah Jazz | Kelly Oubre, SF, Kansas |
| 13 | Phoenix Suns | Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky |
| 14 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky |
| 15 | Indiana Pacers | Sam Dekker, SF, Wisconsin |
| 16 | Boston Celtics | R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State |
| 17 | Milwaukee Bucks | Frank Kaminsky, PF/C, Wisconsin |
| 18 | Houston Rockets (from New Orleans Pelicans) | Kris Dunn, PG, Providence |
| 19 | Washington Wizards | Kevon Looney, PF, UCLA |
| 20 | Toronto Raptors | Christian Wood, PF, UNLV |
| 21 | Dallas Mavericks | Delon Wright, PG/SG, Utah |
| 22 | Chicago Bulls | Jerian Grant, PG, Notre Dame |
| 23 | Portland Trail Blazers | Buddy Hield, SG, Oklahoma |
| 24 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville |
| 25 | Memphis Grizzlies | Tyus Jones, PG, Duke |
| 26 | Los Angeles Lakers (from Houston Rockets) | Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, SF, Arizona |
| 27 | San Antonio Spurs | Cliff Alexander, PF, Kansas |
| 28 | Boston Celtics (from Los Angeles Clippers) | Justin Anderson, SF, Virginia |
| 29 | Brooklyn Nets (from Atlanta Hawks) | Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State |
| 30 | Golden State Warriors | Ron Baker, SG, Wichita State |
Lottery Teams with Most to Gain
New York Knicks
If the New York Knicks don't nail their first-round pick, or end up one of the lottery losers, it could be a rough few seasons in the Big Apple.
According to RealGM, the Denver Nuggets have the option to swap picks with the Knicks in 2016, and the Toronto Raptors get the Nuggets/Knicks' pick that is the worse of the two. Essentially, New York won't have a first-rounder next year, which could really hurt if the team is terrible again in 2015-16.
Knicks fans had conflicting feelings after the team pulled off back-to-back wins over the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks. Bloomberg Sports' Jared Dubin provided the draft calculations:
Basically, if the Knicks can just get in the top four, it won't be the end of the world. That would allow them to get one of Karl-Anthony Towns, Jahlil Okafor, D'Angelo Russell or Emmanuel Mudiay. One of that quartet plus a free agent or two could make New York a playoff contender next year.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Many have mentioned before that the Minnesota Timberwolves pulled off the rare feat of trading a superstar and not managing to look completely foolish. Should he reach his full potential, Andrew Wiggins could be an even better player than Kevin Love is now.
Between Wiggins, Zach LaVine and Gorgui Dieng, the T-Wolves are building a strong young core. And Ricky Rubio is still only 24 years old.
Watching Wiggins alone has provided Timberwolves fans with a ton of enjoyment. It's amazing to think that so many were criticizing Wiggins ahead of the draft and questioning his potential.
Now, imagine adding a player like Okafor or Towns to the mix. Minnesota wouldn't immediately become a playoff threat in the Western Conference, but a team with that much budding talent could compete for an NBA title inside five years' time—maybe even earlier than that.
The best thing Minnesota did in the offseason was cut ties with Love and fully commit to the rebuilding plan. It should pay off massive dividends down the line. The team will be pretty bad for a little bit, but the assets it will acquire in those poor seasons will make all the pain worth it.
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are in a somewhat parallel situation to what the Timberwolves were dealing with a few years ago. Minnesota couldn't put a winning team together, and, eventually, Love got fed up and pretty much forced the T-Wolves' hand.
DeMarcus Cousins is signed through the 2017-18 season, and then he becomes an unrestricted free agent. That might feel like a long way off, but it's essentially only two more years before Sacramento will be dealing with the constant questions about whether Cousins will re-sign.
Heck, look at how much Kevin Durant-to-the-Washington Wizards is talked about despite Durant not being a free agent until 2016.
Cousins might not be the easiest player to deal with, but he's one of the best big men in the league. Guys who can average 20 and 10 a night are difficult to find. The Kings need to do everything they can to keep him.
The good news is that Sacramento showed signs of progress before Cousins' health and the firing of Mike Malone completely threw the season off-kilter. The 24-year-old spoke to Michael Lee of The Washington Post about his feelings regarding the campaign:
"It's been a circus, man. It's been a complete circus. We got off to a hot start. Unfortunately, I got sick, so it ruined the look of the team. I take some blame for that. I know for a fact, if I wouldn’t have gotten sick, things wouldn't have happened the way it happened. It was no way it could. At the same time, a lot of it is not my fault and we all know why. But this has been a disappointing year.
"
Maybe a player like Justise Winslow, Willie Cauley-Stein or any of the guys mentioned already is all the Kings need to make the postseason in 2016.
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