NBA Draft 2017: 1st-Round Mock Draft, Prospects' Pre-Lottery Landing Spots

The Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs face off in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night, but some NBA fans will undoubtedly be more interested in watching someone lift placards out of envelopes one by one.

The NBA draft lottery reveal will occur on Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN, and given the star power of this year's class, it should be one of the more fascinating lotteries in league history.

Here's a look at a new mock draft (note that the order will not be finalized until after the lottery) along with some analysis on two University of Kentucky players who almost certainly will be picked in the top 10.

Pick	Team	Player	Position	College or Pro Team
1	Boston Celtics	Markelle Fultz	PG	Washington
2	Phoenix Suns	Josh Jackson	SF	Kansas
3	Los Angeles Lakers	Lonzo Ball	PG	UCLA
4	Philadelphia 76ers	De'Aaron Fox	PG	Kentucky
5	Orlando Magic	Jayson Tatum	SF	Duke
6	Minnesota Timberwolves	Jonathan Isaac	SF/PF	Florida State
7	New York Knicks	Frank Ntilikina	PG	Strasbourg IG (France)
8	Sacramento Kings	Malik Monk	SG	Kentucky
9	Dallas Mavericks	Lauri Markkanen	PF	Arizona
10	Sacramento Kings	Zach Collins	C	Gonzaga
11	Charlotte Hornets	Justin Jackson	SF	North Carolina
12	Detroit Pistons	Dennis Smith Jr.	PG	North Carolina State
13	Denver Nuggets	Rodions Kurucs	SF	FC Barcelona B (Spain)
14	Miami Heat	TJ Leaf	PF	UCLA
15	Portland Trail Blazers	Terrance Ferguson	SG	Adelaide (Australia)
16	Chicago Bulls	Justin Patton	C	Creighton
17	Milwaukee Bucks	Harry Giles	PF	Duke
18	Indiana Pacers	Donovan Mitchell	SG	Louisville
19	Atlanta Hawks	Isaiah Hartenstein	PF	Zalgiris (Lithuania)
20	Portland Trail Blazers	Luke Kennard	SG	Duke
21	Oklahoma City Thunder	Jordan Bell	PF	Oregon
22	Brooklyn Nets	Jawun Evans	PG	Oklahoma State
23	Toronto Raptors	Semi Ojeleye	PF	SMU
24	Utah Jazz	John Collins	PF	Wake Forest
25	Orlando Magic	Ivan Rabb	PF	Cal
26	Portland Trail Blazers	Jonathan Jeanne	PF/C	SLUC Nancy (France)
27	Brooklyn Nets	OG Anunoby	SF	Indiana
28	Los Angeles Lakers	Jarrett Allen	C	Texas
29	San Antonio Spurs	Josh Hart	G	Villanova
30	Utah Jazz	Derrick White	G	Colorado

De'Aaron Fox: Philadelphia 76ers

Markelle Fultz, Josh Jackson and Lonzo Ball have been the consensus top-three picks in all NBA mock drafts for quite some time now, but former Kentucky point guard De'Aaron Fox could be entering his name into the top-three conversation.

Per Chad Ford of ESPN (h/t Bleacher Report's Timothy Rapp), Fox may be moving ahead of Ball in particular: "There also seems to be a growing movement among teams to rank Kentucky's Fox ahead of Ball. No one helped himself more in March than Fox did. He has a chance to go as high as No. 2 or No. 3 in this draft."

Fox and Ball faced off twice last season, with UCLA winning a regular-season tilt at Kentucky and the Wildcats beating the Bruins in the Sweet 16. Over those two games, Fox averaged 29.5 points, 6.5 assists and 1.5 turnovers, while Ball posted 12.0 points, 7.5 assists and 5.0 turnovers.

Fox outplayed Ball, which is something NBA teams could keep in mind if they are picking between the two.

Even if Fox isn't picked in the top three, it's hard to see him slip past the top five given his rising momentum just one month before the draft on June 22.

The Philadelphia 76ers are a potential fit. They said they were committed to playing the first overall draft pick from 2016, Ben Simmons, at point guard next year, but if the 76ers have the No. 4 pick and Fox is sitting there, Philadelphia could absolutely make that selection.

Fox was asked about playing with Simmons and the 76ers. Here's what he had to say per Keith Pompey of Philly.com: "[The 76ers] asked me about it and Ben being able to bring the ball up the court and being the facilitator. I feel like I can really fit in with Ben. He's fast, and I feel like the position he plays, not many people can grab a rebound and push it with the speed and vision that he has."

The guess here is that a Fox-Simmons pairing would work. Fox is just too good to pass up.

Malik Monk: Sacramento Kings

While there's some debate on who the best point guards are in this year's NBA draft, there's no argument about the best shooting guard in this class.

Malik Monk averaged 19.8 points per game last season and arguably provided the best individual performance of the entire Division I men's college basketball year when he scored 47 points against eventual national champion North Carolina in a 103-100 win in December.

The 6'3" Monk should slot somewhere in the top 10. The question is where.

The Kings, who have two picks in the top 10, are a good fit. Sacramento finished 20th in the NBA in offensive efficiency, per ESPN.com, and could use a scoring boost everywhere.

The issue is that the Kings backcourt is crowded at the moment. Buddy Hield, Ben McLemore, Malachi Richardson, Garrett Temple and Arron Afflalo are all under contract for next season, per HoopsHype.

However, Monk is just too good to pass up at No. 8. Here are Mike Schmitz and Matt Kamalsky of DraftExpress with some analysis:

"A freakishly explosive leaper capable of finishing emphatically above the rim, registering a 42-inch vertical leap at Kentucky's preseason combine, the Bentonville, Arkansas native also possesses the strong first step and quickness to potentially grow into a dynamic shot creator off the dribble, even if that wasn't his identity at the college level."

Despite the backcourt logjam for next season, the Kings' books are almost clear in 2018-19. Per HoopsHype, Sacramento only has $16.7 million tied up in contracts during that season and nothing in 2019-20.

Therefore, they shouldn't avoid the best player available just because of a current position predicament or because they've drafted three shooting guards (McLemore, Richardson and current 76er Nik Stauskas) in the past four drafts. They just need players who can produce.

At this point, the Kings should take the best prospects available regardless of position.