NBA Draft 2015: Notable Picks from Latest Expert Mocks Around the Web

The 2015 NBA draft is Thursday, meaning there are just precious few hours for rabid basketball fans to count down before finding out whether or not their favorite team does the right thing and picks its favorite prospect, swings a major draft-day trade or leaves everyone at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, scratching their heads in confusion.

What to do in the meantime? Well, one can always do some armchair prognosticating of his or her own, or one can examine other permutations by looking at the mock drafts of some of the top writers and experts from around the Web.

There's little telling how these mocks will hold up once Thursday rolls around, but they're certainly useful in sussing out each team's draft hopes, wants and needs.

Here's a look at four expert mock drafts from around the Web and a closer look at some of their more interesting first-round choices.

Pick	Team	ESPN's Chad Ford (6/19)	DraftExpress.com's Jonathan Givony (6/22)	NBA.com's Scott Howard-Cooper (6/19	Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman (6/22)
1	Minnesota Timberwolves	Karl-Anthony Towns, F/C, Kentucky	Karl-Anthony Towns, F/C, Kentucky	Karl-Anthony Towns, F/C, Kentucky	Karl-Anthony Towns, F/C, Kentucky
2	Los Angeles Lakers	Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke	Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke	Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke	Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke
3	Philadelphia 76ers	Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia	D'Angelo Russell, G, Ohio State	D'Angelo Russell, G, Ohio State	D'Angelo Russell, G, Ohio State
4	New York Knicks	D'Angelo Russell, G, Ohio State	Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia	Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia	Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia
5	Orlando Magic	Mario Hezonja, G/F, Croatia	Justise Winslow, G/F, Duke	Justise Winslow, G/F, Duke	Justise Winslow, G/F, Duke
6	Sacramento Kings	Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, China	Mario Hezonja, G/F, Croatia	Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, China	Mario Hezonja, G/F, Croatia
7	Denver Nuggets	Justise Winslow, G/F, Duke	Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, China	Mario Hezonja, G/F, Croatia	Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, China
8	Detroit Pistons	Sam Dekker, F, Wisconsin	Stanley Johnson, G/F, Arizona	Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky	Stanley Johnson, G/F, Arizona
9	Charlotte Hornets	Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky	Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky	Stanley Johnson, G/F, Arizona	Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky
10	Miami Heat	Stanley Johnson, G/F, Arizona	Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin	Myles Turner, F/C, Texas	Sam Dekker, F, Wisconsin
11	Indiana Pacers	Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky	Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky	Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State	Myles Turner, F/C, Texas
12	Utah Jazz	Myles Turner, F/C, Texas	Myles Turner, F/C, Texas	Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky	Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin
13	Phoenix Suns	Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin	Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky	Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin	Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky
14	Oklahoma City Thunder	Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State	Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State	Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky	Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State
15	Atlanta Hawks (via Brooklyn)	Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas	Kelly Oubre, G/F, Kansas	Kelly Oubre, G/F, Kansas	Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky
16	Boston Celtics	Kelly Oubre, G/F, Kansas	Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas	Sam Dekker, F, Wisconsin	R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State
17	Milwaukee Bucks	Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky	R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State	Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, G/F, Arizona	Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas
18	Houston Rockets (via New Orleans)	Tyus Jones, PG, Duke	Tyus Jones, PG, Duke	Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville	Tyus Jones, PG, Duke
19	Washington Wizards	Kevon Looney, F, UCLA	Jerian Grant, G, Notre Dame	Jerian Grant, G, Notre Dame	Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, G/F, Arizona
20	Toronto Raptors	Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, G/F, Arizona	Sam Dekker, F, Wisconsin	Kevon Looney, F, UCLA	Jerian Grant, G, Notre Dame
21	Dallas Mavericks	Jerian Grant, G, Notre Dame	Delon Wright, PG, Utah	Tyus Jones, PG, Duke	Kelly Oubre, G/F, Kansas
22	Chicago Bulls	Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV	Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, G/F, Arizona	Delon Wright, PG, Utah	Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV
23	Portland Trail Blazers	R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State	Kevon Looney, F, UCLA	Justin Anderson, G/F, Virginia	Kevon Looney, F, UCLA
24	Cleveland Cavaliers	Delon Wright, PG, Utah	Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville	Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas	Terry Rozier, PG, Louisville
25	Memphis Grizzlies	Justin Anderson, G/F, Virginia	Jarell Martin, F, LSU	R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State	Delon Wright, PG, Utah
26	San Antonio Spurs	Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville	Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV	Christian Wood, PF, UNLV	Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville
27	Los Angeles Lakers (via Houston)	Joseph Young, G, Oregon	Justin Anderson, G/F, Virginia	Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV	Justin Anderson, G/F, Virginia
28	Boston Celtics (via Clippers)	Jarell Martin, F, LSU	Jonathan Holmes, SF/PF, Texas	Jarell Martin, F, LSU	Arturas Gudaitis, PF/C, Lithuania
29	Brooklyn Nets (via Atlanta)	Chris McCullough, F, Syracuse	Chris McCullough, F, Syracuse	Cliff Alexander, PF, Kansas	Rakeem Christmas, PF/C, Syracuse
30	Golden State Warriors	Anthony Brown, G/F, Stanford	Terry Rozier, PG, Louisville	Terry Rozier, PG, Louisville	Christian Wood, PF, UNLV

Note: Chad Ford's complete mock draft can be found at ESPN.com, Jonathan Givony's at Yahoo Sports, Bleacher Report's own Jonathan Wasserman's here and Scott Howard-Cooper's at NBA.com.

Notable Picks

Givony has Wisconsin's Sam Dekker falling all the way to the Toronto Raptors at No. 20, a surprise considering Ford and Wasserman have him going in the top 10 while Howard-Cooper sees the Celtics snatching him up at No. 16. Givony does give sound reasoning for his prediction:

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While the Raptors started DeMar DeRozan at small forward and also have a decent backup in James Johnson, they likely won't let NCAA tournament darling Sam Dekker fall past them at this slot, which would be considered a bit of a drop for the Wisconsin player. A glut of small forwards in the top 15 and a shallow market at that position outside of the lottery could make this a reasonable scenario.

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There is indeed a cluster of small forwards at the top, including Arizona's Stanley Johnson and Croatia's Mario Hezonja, but Dekker offers excellent size at that position (6'9") even he if gives something up in speed and athleticism. His numbers weren't eye-popping last season—13.9 points and 5.5 rebounds per game—and he may need to improve his shot from long distance (33.1 percent his junior year) if he is to have an impact at the next level.

The clutch gene is strong in Dekker, and he has an excellent feel for the game. Don't be surprised if he comes off the board well before No. 20.

Ford is the only one of these four mock drafters to have Oregon's Joseph Young come off the board in the first round. The ESPN guru has the Lakers drafting him at No. 27 after taking Jahlil Okafor with the second overall pick.  

Young's collegiate career was nothing if not prolific.

Team	Year	PPG	FG %	3P %	RPG	APG
Houston	2011-12	11.3	.448	.357	4.4	3.8
Houston	2012-13	18.0	.480	.415	2.8	1.9
Oregon	2013-14	18.9	.458	.420	3.5	2.5
Oregon	2014-15	20.7	.416	.382	3.6	2.4

He proved during the 2015 Pac-12 tournament that he can drag an inexperienced team to victory and is willing to take the last shot, as evidenced by his game-winning three-pointer against Utah in said tournament.

The problem for the senior guard is that he's a gunner who stands only 6'2" at a time when size is a prized commodity in NBA backcourts. Still, Ford notes the Lakers might be able to find a role for him thanks to the presence of another young player on their squad:

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The Lakers had great success with Jordan Clarkson last year and I think they could have similar success taking a chance on Young here. I believe both guards could play together in the backcourt because of Clarkson's size at the one. Young brings something to the table that the Lakers desperately need: shooting. And the fact that he hasn't worked out since the Combine is suspicious. Multiple sources believe that a team in the late first round made him a promise in exchange for not working out for other teams. While I have no idea if that's LA or not, he is a good get at 27.

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The lack of workouts is surprising for a player who has to prove he has the quickness and handle to create his own shot at the next level. Young's game doesn't really fit the mold of a traditional point guard, and his best chance of seeing time early in his career is as an off-the-bench tonic for a stagnant offense.

Wasserman has Louisville point guard Terry Rozier coming off the board well before any of the other three writers at No. 24 to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Rozier averaged 17.1 points, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals per game last season for the Cardinals.

Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

Louisville coach Rick Pitino has praised his star pupil for getting after it at the NBA combine and in individual workouts, per the Sporting News' Haley O'Shaughnessy:

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He went to the combine and people questioned whether he should play or not. He said, 'Oh, I'm playing.'

If you look at his speed and vertical leaps, he was, like, top in the leaderboard. ... Then he goes and works out for maybe 16 teams and every place he's been, I've heard one great thing after another. That's the type of guy you want on your team.

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CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein noted that the workouts have indeed improved Rozier's draft stock:

As O'Shaughnessy points out in her piece, Louisville players haven't had much recent success in the NBA. Rozier and forward/center Montrezl Harrell both have the potential to change that disappointing trend provided they find the right homes in the NBA draft. 

A raw player like Rozier might stand to benefit from a team like Cleveland, which has an established point guard already in Kyrie Irving, a gunner in J.R. Smith and a decent backup at the 1 in Matthew Dellavedova. This situation might give the Louisville star time to develop and harness his athleticism before being asked to play major minutes in the Association.