2011 NBA Mock Draft: Kyrie Irving, Derrick Williams and the Rest of First Round
The NBA Draft is only 73 days away.
While this year's draft may not have the talent of the 2003 draft (LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony) or the depth of 2007 (Marc Gasol was selected with the No. 48 pick), there is still plenty of talent on the board, and plenty of guys who will fit in nicely into their new team's systems.
Here's a look at my mock draft for the entire first round.
Quick Disclaimer
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In recent years, the worst team has not always ended up with the No. 1 pick.
For the sake of this slideshow, my draft order will be based on the records and trades in place.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers
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The Cleveland Cavaliers need a superstar. Preferably, they need a 6'8'' superstar who can get to the rim, throw down electrifying dunks and energize a wounded fan base who despite their words of hatred, still wish their former 6'8'' star would come running out of the home tunnel.
Insert Derrick Williams. Williams has the size, 6'8'' and 240 pounds, and the ability to get to the rim, as we saw in the NCAA tournament.
Unlike LeBron James, Williams will not always be the most physically dominant player every time he steps onto the floor.
Also, Williams will not be able to run the entire offense by himself and he will probably never have a season where he averages 29.7 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 7 apg (James 2009-10).
The one positive difference for Williams over LeBron James, is Williams can consistently hit the three far more consistently than LeBron James ever could.
I think Williams will end up somewhere in between Richard Jefferson and Carmelo Anthony, probably more on the Jefferson side.
With JJ Hickson at power forward, Anderson Varejao coming back at the center spot and another top ten pick, the Cavaliers will be able to make considerable progress on rebuilding their starting five.
Click here if you want to read more on why Williams deserves the No. 1 pick
2. Minnesota Timberwolves
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This works out perfectly for the Minnesota Timberwolves.
At the power forward, Kevin Love is their guy for as long as he wishes to stay in Minnesota. At the small forward position, Michael Beasley is a good enough option to have while still becoming a winning team (the difference is on a 40-50 win team, Beasley would be the third or fourth offensive option rather than first or second).
At center, they need a better option than Darko Milicic and shooting guard is still an area of concern.
The biggest hole for the Timberwolves is at the point guard position. Luke Ridnour is a good guy to have as your backup, but as the starter, he doesn't work well for this team. Jonny Flynn has been a disappointment, and Ricky Rubio may not actually exist.
What Kyrie Irving would do for the Timberwolves is similar to what Derrick Rose does for Chicago and Russell Westbrook does for Oklahoma City. This may seem like a bold claim right now, but look at this stat line below from the three players' freshman (for Westbrook, his sophomore) years of college:
Player A: 6'3'', 14.9 ppg, 4.7 apg, 4.5 rpg, 1.2 spg
Player B: 6'2'', 17.5 ppg, 4.3 apg, 3.4 rpg, 1.5 spg
Player C: 6'3, 12.7 ppg, 4.3 apg, 3.9 rpg, 1.6 spg
Which player would you build your team around? By the way, Kyrie Irving is Player B.
Granted, Irving only played 11 games at Duke this season, but there's more of an argument that his numbers would have improved with more game experience than dropped, because of more opportunities to have bad games.
When you insert a score-first point guard into Minnesota's offense, you can afford to have a shooting guard who isn't an offensive threat.
Look at Chicago with Keith Bogans or Oklahoma City with Thabo Sefolosha. Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook provide the scoring in the back court and distribute the ball to their front court.
For Minnesota, Irving and Love become your No. 1 and 2 options, Beasley is your third and you hope to get something from your shooting guard. Now, all that's left is to find a starting center so you can bring Darko off the bench.
3. Toronto Raptors
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Enter random European pick for semi European team.
The 6'11'' Jan Vesely of the Czech Republic can probably shoot the three, use both hands around the rim and will most certainly be victim to unspeakable insults by Kevin Garnett next season.
I think the Toronto Raptors should build their team entirely with European players. When they've had American stars like Vince Carter, Tracy McGrady and Chris Bosh, they all ran away back to the United States.
Their current European stars, Jose Calderon, Andrea Bargnani and Linas Kleiza, will stay put in Toronto, because Canada is secretly a European nation.
4. Washington Wizards
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The Washington Wizards have their superstar point guard in place. Now it's time to surround John Wall with the right supporting cast.
The problem with the Wizards, is they have a lot of players who look good on the stat sheet, but aren't actually at the level of their production.
For example, Andray Blatche and Nick Young.
Blatche averages 16.8 ppg and 8.3 rpg. This is higher than Josh Smith, Kevin Garnett and Elton Brand. Blatche is not at the level of those three players.
Nick Young averages 17.4 ppg. Offensively, this puts him at the same level of Luol Deng. However, Deng gets his 17.5 ppg without disrupting the offense and still allowing other players to get good looks at the basket.
With Blatche, they have him under contract for several more years, so they have no choice but to continue to let their 24-year-old power forward improve.
Young, however, is a free agent and will probably get serious money offers from teams like New Jersey, Cleveland or Sacramento. For the sake of the offense, the Wizards should let him go.
In his place, they should draft Terrence Jones from Kentucky. I have been shocked to see Jones sitting around at the No. 14 draft pick range in other mock drafts, when I think Jones possesses the size and skills to be a great player in the NBA.
A lineup of John Wall, Jordan Crawford, Terrence Jones, Andray Blatche and JeVale McGee has the makings of a more competitive starting five that would flow better offensively than the one they have in place.
5. Sacramento Kings
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The Sacramento Kings are not in as bad a position as their 24-56 record might suggest.
They have their franchise point guard in Tyreke Evans, and a 20-year-old big man, DeMarcus Cousins, who has a ton of size and potential and can get there if he can keep his attitude in check.
They've found a productive scorer in Marcus Thornton and have plenty of money to sign him to a bigger contract next season (there's no way they get a 20-ppg scorer for $762,000 again).
Three of their starting five are in place, and with the right additions, they could be a playoff team in two or three years.
The Kings should draft Enes Kanter, the 6'11'' center who was suspended from playing at Kentucky this season, to come in and fill out their front court.
In free agency, they should try to sign a seasoned veteran like Tayshaun Prince, who could come in and bring some maturity to the locker room and offer some guidance to Cousins.
6. Utah Jazz
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The Utah Jazz will be in the best position on draft day. The result of the Deron Williams trade means the Jazz will grab the Nets' No. 6 pick along with their own pick, which should fall around No. 12.
Here's what we know about the Jazz:
-Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap are locks to start in the frontcourt, and keep the Jazz competitive with any tandem of big men in the league
-Devin Harris is a solid point guard
-Andrei Kirilenko will be a free agent, but will be at a far less than $17.8 million price tag
-Derrick Favors and Gordon Hayward are proving to be solid backups and will continue to get better
Therefore, the Jazz need to focus on adding a backup center and a shooting guard/point guard to their team through the draft.
I think they should use the No. 6 pick on a big man. Look at it this way, say they go with Brandon Knight at the No. 6 spot.
By the time they get to No. 12, Baylor's Perry Jones, the Lithuanian seven footers, Donatas Motiejunas and Jonas Valanciunas and Texas' Tristan Thompson could all be off the board.
On the other hand, if they go with Perry Jones at No. 6, then at No. 12, they might not be able to get Brandon Knight, but they could possibly land Alec Burks or Kemba Walker.
Utah Jazz should select Perry Jones with the No. 6 pick. The big man will need a few years to develop, but the Jazz can be patient, because Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap will take up most of the post minutes.
7. Detroit Pistons
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The Detroit Pistons are a mess. They have the dreaded combination of a bunch of pieces that do not fit well together, but yet are all under non-movable contracts.
Here's what we know:
-Greg Monroe has been the best Joe Dumars move since 2004, and gives the Pistons an answer at center.
-Around $30 million a year is tied up in Richard Hamilton, Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva. They may not be the right pieces, but the Pistons will have to find a way to make it work, because their contracts are not valuable trade commodities.
-Austin Daye is okay. Tayshaun Prince is probably headed somewhere else. Tracy McGrady and Ben Wallace should retire.
The Pistons need a star. They will find it in Brandon Knight. The Pistons can slowly move out of the Stuckey era at point guard, and build around Knight and Monroe.
Also, look for the Pistons to try and use this pick as leverage, paired with Hamilton's bloated contract, to land a proven player on draft day.
8. Cleveland Cavaliers
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Like the Jazz, the Cavaliers will have two very early picks (the No. 8 pick is from the Baron Davis trade with Los Angeles Clippers).
Since they selected Derrick Williams with the No. 1 selection in this mock draft, I think the Cavaliers should actually go after a big man here.
JJ Hickson is solid at power forward and Anderson Varejao is a productive center, but they need another big man in their rotation.
The Lithuanian, Donatas Motiejunas, will provide security for the Cavaliers if Varejao goes down again, and will add depth to one of the worst front courts in the league.
9. Milwaukee Bucks
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Marcus Morris developed into a complete player this year at Kansas. He is still more power forward than small forward, but with a few more years, I can see Morris putting up Michael Beasley-type numbers for the Milwaukee Bucks.
Morris also comes from a defensive system under Bill Self, so the fit with Scott Skiles will work out nicely.
10. Charlotte Bobcats
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Centers are hard to find in the NBA. Michael Jordan should select the other Lithuanian big man, Jonas Valanciunas, with the No. 10 pick.
11. Golden State Warriors
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Markieff Morris would fit in perfectly with the Golden State Warriors.
The Warriors need another big man, and Morris gives them a rebounder who can also hit the three extremely well.
I'm curious to see if a team will try to set up a trade to keep the Morris twins together.
12. Utah Jazz
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Brandon Knight may be off the board, but Colorado's Alec Burks will fit in nicely for Utah.
Alec Burks is 6'6'' and scored 20.5 ppg in his sophomore year for the Buffaloes. He will give them the legitimate offensive threat at shooting guard that the Jazz have needed for years.
13. Phoenix Suns
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Signs are pointing towards Texas' Tristan Thompson declaring for the NBA Draft.
I think Thompson has a ton of potential and will fit in nicely running with Steve Nash.
14. Houston Rockets
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Houston has built themselves a very solid team that has played some of the best basketball in the league since the All-Star break.
At point guard, they are set with Kyle Lowry and Goran Dragic.
At shooting guard, they are set with Kevin Martin, and Courtney Lee coming off the bench only makes them stronger.
At power forward, Luis Scola is a star, and Patrick Patterson is a solid bench guy.
At center, they have Chuck Hayes and Brad Miller.
The small forward is their area of concern. In a perfect world for the Rockets, Terrence Jones is waiting for them at the No. 14 spot. If he is not, I think the Rockets should go with Kawhi Leonard from San Diego State.
Leonard has the body of an NBA small forward and plays the game with tons of intensity. If you got a chance to watch him this season, you saw a guy who doesn't take plays off and will commit to defense.
He's not a polished offensive player, but the Rockets don't need him to be. They need a guy to get after Kevin Durant and Dirk Nowitzki, and Leonard will do a good job at this.
15. Indiana Pacers
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Here's what we know about the Indiana Pacers
-The Pacers are getting good production out of Roy Hibbert and Tyler Hansbrough down low.
-Darren Collison is a good enough point guard to build a contender around
-After you get past LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony and Paul Pierce, Danny Granger is waiting right there with Andre Iguodola and Luol Deng as the next best small forwards in the league
-Paul George and Brandon Rush give the Pacers good enough production at shooting guard
I think the Pacers need to add another big man to their roster. Georgia's Trey Thompkins would fit in nicely coming off the bench for Hansbrough or Hibbert.
16. New York Knicks
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The New York Knicks have actually done pretty well in recent drafts, selecting Landry Fields, Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler.
Granted, only one of those three players still remain on the Knicks, but the other two selections were good enough to persuade the Denver Nuggets into trading them Carmelo Anthony.
Here's a look at the roster:
Point Guard: Chauncey Billups has another two years in him, but he will be prone to injuries. Toney Douglass is developing into a great sixth man, but he is more of a shooting guard than point guard.
Shooting Guard: Landry Fields gives the Knicks a great option for the next decade. Depth is lacking here.
Small Forward: Carmelo Anthony. Enough said.
Power Forward: Amar'e Stoudemire and an underrated, very effective, Shawne Williams.
Center: Between Jared Jeffries, Ronny Turiaf and Shelden Williams, the Knicks get the production of one decent starter.
The Knicks could draft a center here, or a true backup point guard to improve their depth.
The general consensus is the Knicks will eventually land Chris Paul. I think this is a dangerous idea to bank on, because if Paul ends up somewhere else, then what happens after Billups has no more to give? Put Douglass at the command?
What I think the Knicks should do, is address the center needs through free agency. The perfect fix, in my mind, would be Chris Wilcox. They should draft a true point guard with their No. 16 pick.
I think Nolan Smith of Duke would be the ideal fit. If Billups gets injured, which he will for stretches of the season, Smith could come in and be a true point guard for the Knicks, with Douglass splitting the minutes as the scoring threat.
In the possible Chris Paul era, Smith could be the backup and Douglass will probably sign somewhere else for more money.
17. Philadelphia 76ers
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The Philadelphia 76ers have plenty of guards on their roster. They need to add some depth in the front court.
I think Keith Benson could be the steal of this year's draft. More than likely he will fall into the second round, but I think the 76ers should snatch him right here.
Benson is around seven feet tall, and was second in the country in blocked shots. He also averaged 17 ppg and 10 rpg.
He has advanced moves around the basket and could really help boost the 76ers interior defense.
Negative about Benson, is he really needs to bulk up. This can be fixed. The height, shot blocking ability and post moves are already there, the extra 15-20 pounds will eventually come.
18. Washington Wizards
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Kenneth Faried is another steal of this year's draft.
The guy rebounds the basketball the way Dennis Rodman used to. He may be a little undersized at 6'8'', but he knows how to get to the right spots near the basket for rebounds.
I think this would be an exciting pickup for the Wizards. Andray Blatche can score, but Faried can get in there and do the dirty work.
With a lot of offensive power around John Wall, they need a glue guy like Faried to win tight basketball games.
19. Minnesota Timberwolves
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At this point of the draft, the Minnesota Timberwolves can add some depth behind Michael Beasley at the small forward position.
I like Jordan Hamilton with this selection over other available small forwards, such as UCLA's Tyler Honeycutt or Tobias Harris of Tennessee, because he seems to be more NBA-ready.
Hamilton will be able to physically get to the rim and he already possesses an accurate jump shot.
20. New Orleans Hornets
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I think the New Orleans Hornets should begin to plan for the inevitable departure of Chris Paul. One way to do this, is bring in the exciting, somewhat risky, Kemba Walker, who could surprisingly fall this far in the draft.
I think Walker will be able to score in the NBA, but he will put teams in a tough position as to where to play him.
I see him becoming like Toney Douglass of New York, where you can sub him in for your point guard and he might score 20, but do you really feel confident with him running your offense?
Either way, if Walker falls this far, it would be hard to pass up on him, knowing your point guard may be on his way out.
21. Charlotte Bobcats
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At best, he could be Steph Curry. More likely, he's the second coming of Steve Kerr.
Michael Jordan was able to use Steve Kerr pretty well before.
I think Jimmer Fredette will do okay in the NBA. He's not going to be a superstar like he was at BYU, but if he's there this late in, a guy who can give you JJ Redick, Kirk Hinrich or hopefully Steph Curry's numbers, is a definite steal for the No. 21 pick.
22. Denver Nuggets
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Can the Denver Nuggets really add any more players? They already go two-deep at every position.
I say they draft Tyler Honeycutt and send him immediately to the weight room with a backpack full of protein bars and gallons of chocolate milk.
They don't need him to be in their rotation right away, but if he develops into a decent pro, they can phase him into the lineup as guys like Kenyon Martin and Chris Anderson slowly exit the league.
23. Phoenix Suns
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Think Boris Diaw for the Suns a few years ago.
Tobias Harris has the right mix of small forward ball handling skills and power forward size to fit in well with Phoenix.
24. Oklahoma City Thunder
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Like the Denver Nuggets, the Oklahoma City Thunder really don't need to add much.
With the addition of Kendrick Perkins, the Thunder are set with Serge Ibaka, Nick Collison and Nazr Mohammed to battle the Lakers set of big men.
At point guard, they have Russell Westbrook and a solid Eric Maynor to fill in the few minutes a night that Westbrook heads to the bench.
Shooting guard, they have the defensive guy in Thabo Sefolosha, and the offense guy in James Harden.
At small forward, they have Kevin Durant.
I think the best bet for the Thunder is to add a backup for Durant. The best player left on the board for this role would be Chris Singleton out of Florida State.
He wouldn't be asked to do much, but insert this incredibly long and athletic swingman for 10 to 15 minutes a night, and the Thunder would be an even better team.
25. Dallas Mavericks
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It was amazing that Jason Kidd lasted as long as he did into his late 30s.
J.J. Barea is barely six feet tall.
Moving forward, the Dallas Mavericks need a solid point guard for their team. Norris Cole of Cleveland State is the right guy for the job.
Cole may be a little too much of a scoring point guard for the Mavericks taste, but his size will be more competitive with guys like Russell Westbrook and Derrick Rose.
26. Chicago Bulls
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Shooting guard is a weird situation for the Chicago Bulls.
Like I said earlier, with the Kyrie Irving slide, when you have a guy like Derrick Rose who is such a lethal scorer as your point guard, you can afford to have the shooting guard position be more defensively focused.
This is why the Bulls trust Keith Bogans as their starter and hope to get something from either Kyle Korver or Ronnie Brewer off the bench.
The Bulls have enough presence down low with Carlos Boozer, Joakim Noah, Taj Gibson and the vastly improving Omerk Asik, that they shouldn't use this pick on a big man. They also have a solid C.J. Watson to come in for the 10-12 minutes a night that Derrick Rose takes off.
The Chicago Bulls should draft Butler's Shelvin Mack. He is a proven winner, taking his improbable Butler teams to the final game two years in a row. He has a great outside shot and has the right team-first attitude to mold into the Bulls locker room.
Imagine this scenario a year from now. The Bulls are down by two going against the Miami Heat in game seven of the Eastern Conference Finals.
There are 10 seconds on the clock, Derrick Rose has the ball in his hands, Tom Thibodeau has subbed in his offensive unit with Shelvin Mack, Kyle Korver, Luol Deng and Carlos Boozer on the court.
Dwyane Wade is on Derrick Rose and Mario Chalmers is cheating off his man, Shelvin Mack, to provide help for when Rose comes charging toward the lane.
Bosh is down low respecting Boozer's low post presence, LeBron James is on Deng, but staying near the lane, once again, in respects for Rose's ability to get to the basket. Mike Miller is on Korver.
Mack and Deng set a double screen for Korver as Rose begins to drive to the hoop. Korver spots up in the corner the way Ray Allen always does for the Celtics, forcing Miller to chase after him.
Deng uses Mack as a screen, rolls to the basket bringing LeBron with him. Chalmers runs over to help on Rose and there Mack is, alone behind the arc ready to hit the game-winning shot.
With the game on the line, I'd fully trust Mack to hit this shot.
27. Boston Celtics
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Boston is in a very difficult situation. They have four out of their five starting spots completely figured out, but three of those four guys only have two to three years left where they can still play at an All-Star level.
The team made sense when they had Kendrick Perkins. They would ride out that starting five for three more seasons, possibly winning another title, then once Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce went off into the sunset, they could build around an All-Star point guard and the toughest defensive center in the league.
Now what do they do? They still have a chance to win a title this year, but what happens next year with another year added on to these older guys? What about the year after that?
The Celtics have to begin building their bench with the mentality that those guys will someday be the starters running the floor with Rajon Rondo.
I think the Celtics should draft Kyle Singler. He's about the same size of Larry Bird and has the same ability to get off a shot in awkward ways with little space.
Singler, along with Jeff Green and Avery Bradley, can begin to provide more minutes of rest to Ray Allen, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett.
28. New Jersey Nets
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The New Jersey Nets will be attracted to Marshon Brooks' 24.5 ppg average from his last season at Providence.
They will forget to see the number of shot attempts and ball-hog moments he had each game.
Brooks can flat-out score, he played college basketball on the east coast and Deron Williams will be able to set him up with easy shot attempts. This is not a bad draft pick.
*The Nets have this pick from the Los Angeles Lakers as a part of the Sasha Vujacic trade.
29. Chicago Bulls
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These two late first-round picks will work out well for the Chicago Bulls.
I look for them to select JaJuan Johnson of Purdue. Johnson would have to fight his way into some minutes in the Bulls' front court, but if the Bulls have the same amount of injuries as they did this year, an extra big body will surely help out.
30. San Antonio Spurs
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The Spurs make smart draft choices.
With Antonio McDyess likely retiring after this season, I think VCU's Jamie Skeen would provide San Antonio with the right amount of scoring and defensive toughness off the bench.
He may be a little undersized for power forward in the NBA, but put him in a Gregg Popovich system, and things tend to just work themselves out.
