Chad Ford NBA Mock Draft 2016: Notable Picks from ESPN Guru's 10th Mock

ESPN's NBA draft expert Chad Ford released the 10th edition of his mock draft on Thursday ahead of this evening's proceedings.  

While any number of trades and surprise picks could alter the draft board, Ford projected the draft would shake out as follows:

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

Because the top two picks are basically locked and loaded at this point—and basically always have been—the most intriguing selection in this draft is the Boston Celtics at No. 3 overall. 

The Celtics have been shopping the pick for veteran help, per Marc Stein of ESPN, but they've also wisely maintained interest in a number of players, per Ford:

"

The Celtics are patiently exploring trades for the No. 3 pick, while indicating to various teams that they are interested in all of the next six prospects on the board—Dunn, Jamal Murray, Marquese Chriss, Dragan Bender, Jaylen Brown and Buddy Hield. Ainge's refusal to tip his hand essentially forces teams to deal with him if they want to be guaranteed to land their favorite player in the draft. It's brilliant.

"

It's hard to imagine the Celtics keeping this pick. The Celtics have a talented roster but are a veteran star or two away from becoming a contender. Selecting a project at No. 3 doesn't help them next year, and the Celtics have the framework in place to be competitive in 2016-17.

The Philadelphia 76ers have reportedly been offering last year's No. 3 pick, Jahlil Okafor, or Nerlens Noel for the third selection, per Stein, but Boston has "resisted those pitches" to this point. Still, it feels more likely that the Sixers and Celtics will work out a deal than the Celtics ultimately making a pick at No. 3.

If they do keep the selection, however, Ford sees them selecting Providence's Kris Dunn:

"

Dunn gets the nod here for a couple of reasons. In the estimation of most GMs in the league—though not all—he's the best prospect on the board after Simmons and Ingram. Whether that holds true for Boston's board remains to be seen.

And despite the logjam in the backcourt, Dunn's court vision give him a leg up over the Celtics' other talented guards. He's not as good a scorer as Isaiah Thomas or as good a defender as Marcus Smart or as good a shooter as Avery Bradley—but he's a better passer than those three and that makes him valuable in trades, if nothing else.

"

Another factor? Dunn isn't a project. He and Oklahoma's Buddy Hield are probably the most polished and experienced prospects with top-five potential, with Dunn being the more well-rounded and complete of the two. So Dunn likely could make an immediate impact with the Celtics or free them up to move one of their more veteran guards to fill another need.

Regardless, the entire draft hinges on what the Celtics do with No. 3. 

It's interesting to see Marquese Chriss jump all the way up to No. 4 on Ford's board as well, with the Phoenix Suns passing on Dragan Bender to select him. 

Ford writes: "All signs point to Chriss being the guy here. He's raw, but his elite athleticism at his size is rare and extraordinary. Prospects such as Chriss don't come along often. He has some glaring weaknesses—particularly rebounding—but he has the talent to overcome all of them."

Ford isn't alone in this projection, however—the NBA TV crew also projected the Suns selecting Chriss:

Chriss is a major project, and the Suns are another team that is probably best suited moving this pick for veteran help. With the Celtics trying to do the same thing above them, however, the Suns' window for doing so may not be until after the No. 3 pick is in. Then teams in love with the players who remain on the board can phone Phoenix. 

And because this seems like a draft with seven or eight quality players, the Suns should have suitors for that No. 4 pick.

If the first four picks go as Ford projects, the Minnesota Timberwolves will have the fairly interesting decision of going with Jamal Murray or Buddy Hield. Neither player would be a shock at No. 5, with the New Orleans Pelicans almost assured of taking the other prospect.

That could mean that Bender drops all the way to No. 7 in this draft, after being projected by many as a top-three talent. That could be the steal of the draft for the Denver Nuggets, who could build around Emmanuel Mudiay, Nikola Jokic, Will Barton, Gary Harris and Bender (Danilo Gallinari was the team's leading scorer last season but appears to be trade bait at this point, according to Danny Leroux of Sporting News).

That's not a bad scenario for the Nuggets, and it would also open up the possibility that a lot of teams would come knocking at their door to trade for that No. 7 pick. The Nuggets at No. 7, then, could be the last major pick of intrigue if Ford's board is an accurate representation of the draft.

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