NBA Mock Draft 2015: Top Prospects' Latest Projections as Regular Season Ends
The end of the NBA regular season is on Wednesday, but it can't come soon enough for more than a dozen teams that await the draft lottery.
While eight teams from each conference are jockeying for playoff position, there's a different sort of positioning battle in the cellar of the standings. The Knicks, Lakers and Timberwolves all have fewer combined wins than the Atlanta Hawks, and Wednesday finally brings to an end the rock fight happening for the best chance at grabbing the No. 1 pick.
The lottery may look a bit different by the time the season ends, since Oklahoma City can still sneak into the postseason. But with only one or two games left out of the 82, let's see where things currently stand and how it would shake out.
| 1 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke |
| 2 | New York Knicks | Karl-Anthony Towns, C, Kentucky |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, Congo |
| 4 | Los Angeles Lakers | D'Angelo Russell, SG, Ohio State |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | Justise Winslow, SF, Duke |
| 6 | Sacramento Kings | Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky |
| 7 | Denver Nuggets | Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | Stanley Johnson, SF, Arizona |
| 9 | Charlotte Hornets | Mario Hezonja, SG, Croatia |
| 10 | Miami Heat | Kelly Oubre, SF, Kansas |
| 11 | Atlanta Hawks (via Brooklyn) | Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah |
| 12 | Utah Jazz | Sam Dekker, SF, Wisconsin |
| 13 | Phoenix Suns | Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State |
| 14 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Devon Booker, SG, Kentucky |
| 15 | Boston Celtics | Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky |
| 16 | Indiana Pacers | Myles Turner, PF, Texas |
| 17 | Milwaukee Bucks | Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville |
| 18 | Houston Rockets (via New Orleans) | Tyus Jones, PG, Duke |
| 19 | Washington Wizards | Frank Kaminsky, C, Wisconsin |
| 20 | Chicago Bulls | Jerian Grant, PG, Notre Dame |
| 21 | Toronto Raptors | Kevon Looney, PF, UCLA |
| 22 | San Antonio Spurs | Damian Jones, C, Vanderbilt |
| 23 | Dallas Mavericks | Delon Wright, PG/SG, Utah |
| 24 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas |
| 25 | Boston Celtics (via LA Clippers) | Caris LeVert, SF, Michigan |
| 26 | Los Angeles Lakers (via Houston) | Kris Dunn, PG, Providence |
| 27 | Portland Trail Blazers | Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, SF, Arizona |
| 28 | Memphis Grizzlies | Norman Powell, SG, UCLA |
| 29 | Brooklyn Nets (via Atlanta) | R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State |
| 30 | Golden State Warriors | Jarell Martin, PF, LSU |
Players with Improving Stock
Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah
On the heels of a stellar freshman season that few expected, Utah center Jakob Poeltl's NBA stock is at an all-time high and doesn't seem likely to get much higher.
The 7-footer out of Austria averaged 9.2 points per game on 68 percent shooting in his lone season with the Utes, but his impact far outweighs that. He makes a mockery of foes on the defensive end, accruing 1.9 blocks per game and forcing errant misses in the post.
Poeltl helped Utah advance to the Sweet 16 before a close loss to eventual-champion Duke, and his late emergence in pro circles has complicated what may have been a much simpler decision to stay in school beforehand. Now that he's a potential lottery pick, Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski added the latest on him:
It's hard to argue against the fact that Poeltl needs some time to develop and grow into his game—after all, he only played 23 minutes per game in 2014-15. But players with his skill set are more likely to see that development streamline after entering the league, and every indication is that Poeltl is tailor-made to be an NBA big.
Seeing a player turn down this type of draft positioning to return to school is almost unheard of, and it's hard to see Poeltl becoming the first.
Tyus Jones, PG, Duke
Duke point guard Tyus Jones has been the forgotten man among Blue Devils freshmen this season, being overlooked in favor of lottery picks Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow. But Jones took the biggest stage of the season and decided to stand out on his own.
Jones dominated the national championship game against Wisconsin with clutch shot after clutch shot, showcasing the individual star-caliber and big-game moxie that NBA scouts salivate over. Any reservations about his size—6'1", 190 pounds—were pushed to the back of the mind as he took matters into his own hands in the biggest game of the college basketball season.
He's always been a magical passer with incredible vision, but Jones' ability to grow as a scoring guard has his NBA stock booming. What questions were there about his game seemed to be answered at the Final Four.
Jones could always go back to be the man at Duke next season, but why would he? He may get more opportunities to score, but playing alongside Duke's star-studded team this season made Jones better. He won't look any better without it, and it's likely that he could look worse.
His decision isn't made yet, as he told the (Minnesota) Star Tribune Monday. But when your season ends by being named the NCAA tournament's most outstanding player and virtually all of your fellow teammates are hitting the road, it's probably time to make the jump.
Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky
It's not very often that a team's third-best big man is flirting with a lottery selection, but such is life in the commonwealth of Kentucky.
Kentucky freshman Trey Lyles could have gotten more exposure by going literally anywhere else, but he still carved out a useful role for the Wildcats in their incredible 38-1 season. Even though he's a 7-footer, Lyles was used as an in-betweener often on the perimeter thanks to Willie Cauley-Stein and Karl-Anthony Towns.
One of seven Kentucky players to declare for the draft, Lyles is bound to stand out more and more as he's scouted individually and shows what he can do in his natural position. He's already making the right moves, signing on with LeBron James' agent as Jeff Greer of the (Lexington) Courier-Journal reported.
Lyles impressed with the ball in his hands this season, but his defensive presence was more than overshadowed by his fellow teammates. As scouts get a closer look at him, his overall skill set will stand out more than ever.
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