NBA Draft 2015: Viewing Information, 1st-Round Preview
The 2015 NBA draft won't be the Association's primary focus until the championship is decided between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers, but it's close enough to the June 25 date to start thinking about.
Most organizations have already shifted their priorities toward improving through the draft in a few weeks. The draft lottery offered plenty of drama when the Minnesota Timberwolves landed the No. 1 pick, while the New York Knicks weren't as lucky and fell to the fourth slot.
Read on for the viewing information for draft day, along with an overview of how the first round figures to play out based on the order and needs among the teams picking early.
| Thursday, June 25 | 7 p.m. | Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York | ESPN | WatchESPN |
2015 NBA Draft 1st-Round Preview
Minnesota has quite a loaded nucleus of perimeter players featuring Ricky Rubio, Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine, so it'd be a surprise to see the Timberwolves go there with their premium draft asset.
The choice at the top figures to be between Kentucky product Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke national champion Jahlil Okafor. Towns ought to have the edge, because Minnesota has Nikola Pekovic as a true center, and Towns is far more capable of playing the 4.
Gifted as Towns is as a rim protector and overall athlete, he has the upside to evolve into a true stretch 4, which falls in line with where the modern NBA is going. ESPN's Chad Ford praised Towns in capturing footage of the big man's shooting range:
Whichever prospect the Timberwolves take, the other could fall past the Los Angeles Lakers, who had the good fortune of moving into the No. 2 slot.
Ohio State guard D'Angelo Russell could well prove to be the best player in this class. Russell has the skills to run the point and light it up as a 2-guard. The Lakers at least have to consider him with the legendary Kobe Bryant unlikely to play more than another year or two.
Jared Zwerling of Bleacher Report touts Russell as the best player on his big board:
But allowing Okafor to drop may be a decision teams near the top wind up regretting. His polished post game and ability to take over in the paint can't be underestimated, and he's a rare center who has the physical tools to improve as a defender and rebounder to become a perennial All-Star.
Then there's an overseas trio of Emmanuel Mudiay—who played in China this last year after initially committing to SMU—Kristaps Porzingis and Mario Hezonja.
Bleacher Report draft expert Jonathan Wasserman pondered the Knicks' pivotal positions:
Mudiay is a point guard who lacks the shooting ability Russell does but has as much athletic upside as any guard in the draft. With one year of professional experience under his belt, there's a chance Mudiay will make an even bigger immediate impact than expected.
The two true internationals in Porzingis and Hezonja are a little harder to pin. A legitimate 7-footer, Porzingis' shooting ability was lauded by Grantland's Danny Chau:
"He has a gorgeous, fluid, quick motion, and is adept at coming off a screen or shooting off-balance or off the dribble. He’s developed a pretty sweet bank shot from working out with Audie Norris, Sevilla's assistant coach and a onetime Trail Blazer. There aren't many 7-footers anywhere who can operate functionally like a shooting wing, getting open looks on flare screens and pin-downs. It's Porzingis's most bankable skill, the one that seems most likely to translate immediately in the NBA.
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Hezonja has a widely known reputation for being confident almost to a fault on the court, but that type of swagger is just what he needs to thrive as a swingman in the NBA.
Then there's a wild card in the middle of all those players: Okafor's former teammate, Justise Winslow, whose phenomenal NCAA tournament play skyrocketed his stock.
Winslow is gazelle-like in running the fast break and capable of guarding any position on the wing. As far back as January, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was praising Winslow's desire to improve.
"He felt like his jump shot wasn't his strong suit yet, so he was always in the gym after working on his jump shot," said Krzyzewski, per ESPN.com's C.L. Brown. "And it's come a long way since he got here, and that says a lot about his maturity and his work ethic. He's more advanced than your typical freshman."
It's difficult to find a franchise cornerstone outside the very top of the draft or to project who those types of players will be. A couple of other members of Kentucky's powerhouse in center Willie Cauley-Stein and shooting guard Devin Booker figure to go in the lottery. Like Towns, they could shine with the ability to stand out more on their own as opposed to such a star-studded Wildcats squad.
Cauley-Stein and Booker are among the other lottery prospects to watch, in addition to Murray State point guard Cameron Payne. His ability to create offense and shoot lights out from beyond the arc make him an ideal fit for a modern NBA that features so much star power at the position.
Despite facing less prominent competition, Payne has the makeup to be an NBA starter and is the type of sleeper who could reap one fortunate franchise big rewards soon enough.
