2015 NBA Draft Order: Final 2-Round Mock Draft Predictions
The day has finally arrived.
The 2015 NBA draft is about to become all reality and zero speculation. For the past two months, discussions and rumors about every pick in the first round have been swirling. In a matter of hours, the Minnesota Timberwolves will be on the clock and ready to make the first pick in the draft.
We'll take a look at the entire draft order with predictions for each pick. Just below the table, we'll analyze the top three early Rookie of the Year candidates—assuming they land with the predicted teams.
| 1 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Karl-Anthony Towns, PF, Kentucky |
| 2 | Los Angeles Lakers | Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke |
| 3 | Philadelphia 76ers | D'Angelo Russell, SG, Ohio State |
| 4 | New York Knicks | Emmanuel Mudiay, PG, China |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | Kristaps Porzingis, PF, Latvia |
| 6 | Sacramento Kings | Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky |
| 7 | Denver Nuggets | Mario Hezonja, SG/SF, Croatia |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | Justise Winslow SG/SF, Duke |
| 9 | Charlotte Hornets | Devin Booker, SG, Kentucky |
| 10 | Miami Heat | Frank Kaminsky, PF, Wisconsin |
| 11 | Indiana Pacers | Cameron Payne, PG, Murray State |
| 12 | Utah Jazz | Sam Dekker, SF, Wisconsin |
| 13 | Phoenix Suns | Trey Lyles, PF, Kentucky |
| 14 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Kelly Oubre, SG, Kansas |
| 15 | Atlanta Hawks (from Brooklyn Nets) | Stanley Johnson, SF, Arizona |
| 16 | Boston Celtics | Kevon Looney, PF, UCLA |
| 17 | Milwaukee Bucks | Bobby Portis, PF, Arkansas |
| 18 | Houston Rockets (from New Orleans Pelicans) | Jerian Grant, PG, Notre Dame |
| 19 | Washington Wizards | Myles Turner, C, Texas |
| 20 | Toronto Raptors | Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, SF, Arizona |
| 21 | Dallas Mavericks | Tyus Jones, PG, Duke |
| 22 | Chicago Bulls | Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV |
| 23 | Portland Trail Blazers | Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville |
| 24 | Cleveland Cavaliers | R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State |
| 25 | Memphis Grizzlies | Christian Wood, PF, UNLV |
| 26 | San Antonio Spurs | Delon Wright, PG, Utah |
| 27 | Los Angeles Lakers (from Houston Rockets) | Anthony Brown, SG/SF, Stanford |
| 28 | Boston Celtics (from Los Angeles Clippers) | Justin Anderson, SF, Virginia |
| 29 | Brooklyn Nets (from Atlanta Hawks) | Chris McCullough, PF, Syracuse |
| 30 | Golden State Warriors | Robert Upshaw, C, Washington |
| 31 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Rakeem Christmas, PF, Syracuse |
| 32 | Houston Rockets (From New York) | Guillermo Hernangomez, C, Spain |
| 33 | Boston Celtics (From Philadelphia via Miami) | Mouhammadou Jaiteh, C, France |
| 34 | Los Angeles Lakers | Terry Rozier, PG, Louisville |
| 35 | Philadelphia 76ers (From Orlando) | Vince Hunter, F, UTEP |
| 36 | Minnesota Timberwolves (From Sacramento via Houston) | Norman Powell, SG, UCLA |
| 37 | Philadelphia 76ers (From Denver via Houston, Portland and Minnesota) | Andrew Harrison, PG, Kentucky |
| 38 | Detroit Pistons | Jarell Martin, PF, LSU |
| 39 | Charlotte Hornets | Arturas Gudaitis, C, Lithuania |
| 40 | Miami Heat | Branden Dawson, SF, Michigan State |
| 41 | Brooklyn Nets | Cliff Alexander, PF, Kansas |
| 42 | Utah Jazz | J.P. Tokoto, SG, North Carolina |
| 43 | Indiana Pacers | Dakari Johnson, C, Kentucky |
| 44 | Phoenix Suns | Jordan Mickey, PF, LSU |
| 45 | Boston Celtics | Cedi Osman, SF, Turkey |
| 46 | Milwaukee Bucks | Tyler Harvey, PG/SG, Eastern Washington |
| 47 | Philadelphia 76ers (From New Orleans via Washington and L.A. Clippers) | Joseph Young, SG, Oregon |
| 48 | Oklahoma City Thunder | Nikola Milutinov, C, Serbia |
| 49 | Washington Wizards | Olivier Hanlan, SG, Boston College |
| 50 | Atlanta Hawks (From Toronto) | Pat Connaughton, SF, Notre Dame |
| 51 | Orlando Magic (From Chicago) | Jonathan Holmes, F, Texas |
| 52 | Dallas Mavericks | Richaun Holmes, PF, Bowling Green |
| 53 | Cleveland Cavaliers (From Portland via Chicago and Denver) | Josh Richardson, SG, Tennessee |
| 54 | Utah Jazz (From Cleveland) | Terren Petteway, G/F, Nebraska |
| 55 | San Antonio Spurs | Alan Williams, C, UC-Santa Barbara |
| 56 | New Orleans Pelicans (From Memphis) | Larry Nance Jr. F, Wyoming |
| 57 | Denver Nuggets (From L.A. Clippers) | Luka Mitrovic, PF, Serbia |
| 58 | Philadelphia 76ers (From Houston) | Michael Frazier, SG, Florida |
| 59 | Atlanta Hawks | Treveon Graham, SG, VCU |
| 60 | Philadelphia 76ers (From Golden State via Indiana) | Daniel Diez, SF, Spain |
D'Angelo Russell
Of all the players in the deep 2015 draft class, D'Angelo Russell has the most superstar potential. The 19-year-old averaged 19.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and five assists per game for the Ohio State Buckeyes as a freshman this past season. He made 41 percent of his threes, and at 6'5", he has ideal size for the point guard position.
Beyond the obvious tangible skills Russell possesses, he also has something that can't be taught. Russell is supremely confident. He's a born leader who will infuse any team with a measure of the confidence he has in himself. Only the special ones have that sort of impact on a team, and the Philadelphia 76ers definitely need some of that.
For a time, there seemed to be a feeling that Russell didn't want to land in Philly. Recently, he seemed to quiet those concerns when he told ESPN.com's Mike Mazzeo: "It's a great place. Why wouldn't I want to be there?" That should be music to Philly's collective ears.
When it's all said and done—barring injury or unfortunate happenstance—Russell will be the best player from this draft. He'll show it from day one when he leads the 76ers into contention for the eighth playoff spot as a rookie.
Karl-Anthony Towns
From the standpoint of pure skill, Karl-Anthony Towns is the most layered big-man prospect in the draft. Jahlil Okafor's ability to draw a double-team on the block is still a rarer skill than anything Towns has, but if the former lands with Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, he won't be getting enough touches to be considered for Rookie of the Year.
If Towns is in Minnesota, he will be either the first or second scoring option.
Last year's Rookie of the Year Andrew Wiggins is a scorer, but he's also very unselfish and not firmly entrenched in his role as a leader just yet. Towns will get every opportunity to shine.
His ability to knock down open jump shots, rebound and protect the rim should produce a stat line along the lines of 16 points, eight rebounds and 1.8 blocked shots per game. The Wolves still won't sniff the playoffs, but they will be improved.
Mario Hezonja
Kristaps Porzingis is getting a lot of attention, and he'll probably be the first international player selected, but he won't be the one who has the best rookie season. That distinction will belong to Mario Hezonja.
The sharpshooting swingman from Croatia is the second-best pure scorer in the draft behind Russell. Hezonja plays for FC Barcelona, and he's proven to be a dynamic performer for that club. This past season, he made just over 38 percent of his threes.
Don't confuse him with a guy who's purely a shooter, though. Hezonja has above-average athleticism and the gall to throw one down in a defender's grill off the dribble or in transition.
Per ESPN's Jay Bilas, his colleague and international hoops expert Fran Fraschilla called Hezonja the only player in the class who could legitimately compete in the 2016 Slam Dunk Contest and Three-Point Shootout. That's pretty impressive.
At 6'8", he has excellent size for either wing position. Based on what he's seen of him on tape, Bilas loves Hezonja. He had nothing but positives to say when he discussed the Croatian sensation during a recent media call. Bilas said:
"I don't think there is any downside with Hezonja. There is nothing he's not good at. He is competitive. He's big, he's strong, he's athletic. He can shoot it. He's a really good shooter. He puts it on the deck. He can defend. There is nothing I don't like about that guy, nothing.
"
The Denver Nuggets are going to love him if they take him at No. 7.
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