NBA Lottery 2015: Full Odds, Breakdown of Best Prospects
The 2015 NBA draft lottery is on Tuesday, presenting more clarity as to where the best prospects might land based on how the top of the first-round order shakes out.
Two big men headline the discussion for the No. 1 overall pick. Kentucky's Karl-Anthony Towns managed to stand out on a loaded Wildcats squad, but Duke center Jahlil Okafor dominated during the final few minutes of his brief college career to help the Blue Devils to the national championship.
Since the modern NBA has become more perimeter oriented, though, Ohio State product D'Angelo Russell may well emerge as the top player from the 2015 draft class.
Check out the complete odds every lottery team has to land the No. 1 overall pick, followed by a closer look at the likes of Towns, Russell and Okafor.
| 1 | Minnesota Timberwolves | 25.0% |
| 2 | New York Knicks | 19.9% |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | 15.6% |
| 4 | Los Angeles Lakers | 11.9% |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | 8.8% |
| 6 | Sacramento Kings | 6.3% |
| 7 | Denver Nuggets | 4.3% |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | 2.8% |
| 9 | Charlotte Hornets | 1.7% |
| 10 | Miami Heat | 1.1% |
| 11 | Indiana Pacers | 0.8% |
| 12 | Utah Jazz | 0.7% |
| 13 | Phoenix Suns | 0.6% |
| 14 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 0.5% |
Karl-Anthony Towns, PF/C, Kentucky
Towns and Kentucky couldn't quite cap off the ultimate perfect season, but the freshman phenom showed immense progress during his only year in Lexington.
Already armed with a solid jump shot, high-running motor and defensive skills, the former Wildcats star developed his post game and became more of a threat down low as the season wore on.
Dave Miller of TWC SportsNet shares the opinion of numerous experts who believe Towns is the best player available in the draft:
A huge edge Towns has over someone like Okafor is his shooting touch. Towns shot 81.3 percent from the charity stripe last season—and he still has so much room to add to his offensive arsenal.
ESPN Insider lists Towns' wingspan at a ridiculous 7'4", arming him with tremendous length to be an immediate impact defender. There aren't any character concerns or any red flags about lack of effort on Towns' end either.
The only knock might be that Towns isn't quite nasty enough. One NBA scout called him "an off-the-charts sweetheart," per ESPN.com's Ian O'Connor.
Good for Towns earning such a reputation, suggesting he'll stay out of trouble as a professional athlete. As long as he lands in the right situation and learns to play with a bit more of an edge, Towns figures to be a perennial All-Star and legitimate franchise player.
D'Angelo Russell, SG/PG, Ohio State
What stands out most about Russell is that he's a true combo guard. Some prospects have the skill set to play multiple positions in the Association, but few show off the type of polish and versatility Russell did—in just one year at Ohio State to boot.
Russell has deceptive athleticism and a knack for working off the ball to get open. Even when he's covered on the catch, Russell can create space with his supreme ball-handling skills or just as quickly go to the hoop.
One NBA personnel man believes Russell has the goods and the game to be the top overall pick ahead of both Towns and Okafor.
"You know, the old saying is you always take the big guy, but there are some teams that I think would have to give Russell a long look," said the personnel man, per Sporting News' Sean Deveney. "He just does everything from that guard spot, and the way the league is built now, you have to at least consider a guy like that."
Although Russell leaves something to be desired in terms of getting to the bucket and finishing with authority, he can still pull up off the dribble and drain mid-range shots or create open opportunities for teammates.
It was Russell's primary job to score for the Buckeyes, which he did in averaging 19.3 points per contest. Most impressive was that he also had five assists on average, 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 steals.
Yours truly believes there are shades of reigning NBA MVP Stephen Curry in Russell's game. If he's a poor man's version of Curry so to speak, any team picking Russell will still be extremely happy it did so near the top of the first round.
Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke
There were times when Okafor could take over a game and manhandle the NCAA competition. Then he'd disappear or not assert himself as much as he should have.
Okafor got into foul trouble in the final game of his career and was mostly outplayed by Wisconsin's Frank Kaminsky. Upon returning to the game, the beast in Okafor came out when he sank two critical baskets down the stretch.
ESPN's Chad Ford has some interesting inside information regarding Minnesota's Flip Saunders, who has the best odds of landing the No. 1 overall pick on Tuesday:
Landing with the Timberwolves would present an interesting situation for Okafor, who's a pure center and would have to battle with Nikola Pekovic to play the 5. Perhaps Pekovic isn't part of Minnesota's long-term plans based on Saunders' rumored penchant for Okafor, not to mention the fact Pekovic underwent surgery on his right Achilles in April and played just 31 games this last season.
Any team in the presumed top four between Minnesota, New York and Los Angeles should all consider Okafor if he's on the board when it's picking. Okafor already has enough developed, functional strength to be a durable NBA big man, which is often a chief concern about taking a center so high.
With the ability Okafor has to pass out of double-teams in the post, the upside he has to improve as a defender and the flashes of brilliance he's shown to date, it's quite possible teams could nitpick him apart too much before draft day.
Bear in mind that he's only 19 years old. Provided Okafor continues on his current promising trajectory and puts forth more consistent effort as he becomes comfortable with is game, he will eventually meet the expectations of a player with a seemingly limitless ceiling.
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
