NBA Draft 2016: 1st-Round Mock Draft, Landing Spots for Coveted Prospects

While the draft is one of the few sources of optimism for fans of losing teams, even the most talented college or international prospect can't single-handedly turn a franchise around immediately. It will be important to keep that in mind ahead of the 2016 NBA draft on June 23.

This year's class likely has one or more players who will become superstars in the league. That process takes time, though. As promising a future as the Minnesota Timberwolves have with Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine and Karl-Anthony Towns, they've posted the third-fewest wins (45) in the league the last two years.

Even the Cleveland Cavaliers needed two years after selecting LeBron James to make the playoffs.

Below is a full mock for the first round of the 2016 NBA draft, followed by deeper analysis for three of this year's top stars. Those stars should help set their franchises on the path to the playoffs—if not right away, then at least for the years to come.

Pick	Team	Player
1	Philadelphia 76ers	Ben Simmons, PF, LSU
2	Los Angeles Lakers	Brandon Ingram, SF, Duke
3	Boston Celtics (via Brooklyn Nets)	Dragan Bender, PF, Croatia
4	Phoenix Suns	Jaylen Brown, SF, California
5	Minnesota Timberwolves	Buddy Hield, SG, Oklahoma
6	New Orleans Pelicans	Kris Dunn, PG, Providence
7	Denver Nuggets (via New York Knicks)	Jamal Murray, SG, Kentucky
8	Sacramento Kings	Denzel Valentine, SG, Michigan State
9	Toronto Raptors (via Denver Nuggets)	Jakob Poeltl, C, Utah
10	Milwaukee Bucks	Skal Labissiere, PF, Kentucky
11	Orlando Magic	Deyonta Davis, PF, Michigan State
12	Utah Jazz	Timothe Luwawu, SG, France
13	Phoenix Suns (via Washington Wizards)	Henry Ellenson, PF, Marquette
14	Chicago Bulls	Tyler Ulis, PG, Kentucky
15	Denver Nuggets (via Houston Rockets)	Domantas Sabonis, PF, Gonzaga
16	Boston Celtics (via Dallas Mavericks)	Furkan Korkmaz, SG, Turkey
17	Memphis Grizzlies	Dejounte Murray, PG, Washington
18	Detroit Pistons	Marquese Chriss, PF, Washington
19	Denver Nuggets (via Portland Trail Blazers)	Ante Zizic, C, Croatia
20	Indiana Pacers	Demetrius Jackson, PG, Notre Dame
21	Atlanta Hawks	Juan Hernangomez, PF, Spain
22	Charlotte Hornets	Diamond Stone, C, Maryland
23	Boston Celtics	Jonathan Jeanne, C, France
24	Philadelphia 76ers (via Miami Heat)	Malik Beasley, SG, Florida State
25	Los Angeles Clippers	Stephen Zimmerman, C, UNLV
26	Philadelphia 76ers (via Oklahoma City Thunder)	Kahlil Felder, PG, Oakland
27	Toronto Raptors	Thon Maker, C, Australia
28	Phoenix Suns (via Cleveland Cavaliers)	Brice Johnson, PF, North Carolina
29	San Antonio Spurs	Cheick Diallo, PF, Kansas
30	Golden State Warriors	Ivica Zubac, C, Bosnia

Note: First-round draft order is courtesy of Tankathon.com.

Most Coveted Prospects

No. 1, Philadelphia 76ers: Ben Simmons, PF, LSU

The book on Ben Simmons is pretty well-known by now. The former LSU Tiger is a great ball-handler for his size (6'10", 240 lbs), and he is athletic enough to play multiple positions. He also averaged an impressive 19.2 points, 11.8 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in 33 games.

Simmons' biggest drawback is the fact he displayed limited range in college, attempting three three-pointers during the entirety of his freshman season.

Still, ESPN's Fran Fraschilla is convinced Simmons should be considered the top player in this year's draft:

On one hand, the Philadelphia 76ers might be addressing a bigger need by selecting Brandon Ingram. The Duke small forward provides the spacing missing in Philly's frontcourt.

On the other hand, the Sixers have at least three first-round draft picks this year. They should be targeting the best player available with their first pick rather than drafting for need. If they go with that strategy, Simmons would be the better pick ahead of Ingram.

No. 2, Los Angeles Lakers: Brandon Ingram, SF, Duke

In the event they wind up with the second pick, the Lakers should be thrilled to have Ingram fall in their lap. As things stand now, Metta World Peace and Nick Young are among Los Angeles' best options at the 3.

Ingram would continue the Lakers' rebuilding plans without creating any sort of rotation problems with any of the team's other young stars.

The 18-year-old averaged 17.3 points a game for the Blue Devils and shot 41 percent from beyond the arc. Ingram can score in a variety of ways, be it driving to the basket or spotting up from mid-range or deeper. Hoop-Math.com provided a breakdown of Ingram's shot distribution:

FGA	% of FGA/Rim	% of FGA/2pt. Jump.	% of FGA/3pt.
484	24.6% (119)	35.1% (170)	40.3% (195)

In December, ESPN.com's Chad Ford wrote that some scouts were comparing Ingram to Kevin Durant or Paul George, both of which are on the optimistic end of the spectrum. Comparing any incoming rookie to one of the best players in the league (Durant) is especially pie in the sky. Even being in the same discussion as Durant and George is still a testament to Ingram's ability.

No. 3, Boston Celtics: Dragan Bender, PF, Croatia

THOMAS COEX/Getty Images

Like the Sixers, the Boston Celtics have enough first-round picks that they can afford to take a bit of a risk with their first selection.

Kristaps Porzingis' success with the New York Knicks will inevitably warm NBA general managers to the idea of selecting a European star early in the draft. Of course, Porzingis may be a special case. ESPN Stats & Information's Ryan Feldman noted last June that no international players selected in the lottery had made the All-Star Game since Yao Ming went No. 1 overall in 2002.

Dragan Bender heads into this year's draft as the most heavily hyped foreign star. According to RealGM, he averaged 4.3 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 35 games for Maccabi Tel Aviv. He also shot a healthy 36.8 percent from three-point range.

Bender fits the mold of the stretch 4, which is becoming more and more important in today's NBA. If he can reach his peak, the young Croatian will be equally adept crashing the boards as he is spotting up from beyond the arc in addition to creating scoring opportunities for his teammates.

Jared Sullinger is a restricted free agent this offseason, while Jonas Jerebko's $5 million contract for next year is nonguaranteed, per Spotrac. Drafting Bender would give head coach Brad Stevens a long-term answer at power forward.