2019 NBA Mock Draft: Rounding Up Expert Picks Heading into Final Day of Season
The New York Knicks, Phoenix Suns and Cleveland Cavaliers put themselves in the best position possible to land a franchise-altering talent at the 2019 NBA draft.
The Knicks, Suns and Cavaliers have secured the three worst records in the NBA heading into the final day of the regular season, which means they will all have a 14 percent chance to win the NBA draft lottery.
Chicago and Atlanta have the next best odds going into the May 14 lottery, as they have the fourth-and-fifth worst marks in the NBA.
The rest of the odds for the draft lottery will be finalized Wednesday night, and it looks like the Hawks will be the only franchise with two selections in the top 14.
Before the lottery finalizes the draft order, all we can do is project which players will land where, and some NBA draft experts are in agreement as to which teams will draft the best prospects in June.
Williamson is Consensus No. 1 Pick
The least shocking development regarding the NBA draft is the status of Duke's Zion Williamson atop every draft board.
Not only will Williamson be a game-changing talent on the court, but he will make the draft lottery winner more relevant off the court as well.
In his latest mock draft, Sporting News' Chris Stone called Williamson far and away best player in the draft and that the Duke freshman will battle with Anthony Davis for the title of best prospect in the last decade.
Williamson's scoring ability and freakish athleticism stood out through the college basketball season, and it was amplified during Duke's run to the Elite Eight in the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
The Knicks are seen as the favorite to land Williamson because of how poorly they performed during the 2018-19 season.
However, the new lottery rules in which the three worst teams earn a 14 percent chance to land the No. 1 pick could hurt New York's chances.
The Knicks haven't had a No. 1 overall pick since they took Patrick Ewing in 1985, while their two biggest competitors have had more luck recently.
Phoenix won the lottery in 2018 and took Deandre Ayton out of Arizona, while Cleveland has chosen first six times in franchise history and on four occasions since 2003.
Hawks In Line to Make Significant Upgrades
Atlanta's trade for Trae Young on the night of the 2018 NBA draft should reap rewards in the 2019 NBA draft.
The Hawks acquired Dallas' first-round pick in the deal that sent Luka Doncic to the Mavericks, and as long as Dallas lands outside of the top five in the lottery, the pick belongs to Atlanta.
That would put the Hawks in position to grab prospects with a pair of top-10 picks to add to their young core led by Young and John Collins.
Atlanta's natural draft pick would land it fifth in the order if it was determined solely by record.
Although they don't have the best odds to land Williamson, the Hawks have a 10.5 percent chance of winning the lottery with the fifth-worst record.
Since Dallas has a 4.5 percent chance of capturing the No. 1 pick, the Hawks appear to be in one of the best positions of the teams in the lottery.
Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman has the Hawks taking De'Andre Hunter out of Virginia and Texas center Jaxson Hayes.
Sports Illustrated's Jeremy Woo predicts Duke's Cam Reddish and Hayes will land with the Hawks, while Stone projects Texas Tech's Jarrett Culver and Indiana's Romeo Langford to start their pro careers in Atlanta.
One of Reddish, Hunter and Culver will be available in the top five for the Hawks, who could add a scorer off the wing to fill out their starting five.
If the Hawks believe Hayes can be a difference-maker, he should be the player they go after with the second first-round pick in order to provide more size to the roster.
But if the Hawks opt to go in a different direction, they could land a player like Langford or North Carolina's Nassir Little to add to the plethora of young scorers on their roster.
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