NBA Mock Draft 2016

a blog by Big Red

With the draft just over 24 hours away, lets take a look at how I believe it will go down. 

The Philadelphia 76ers have already told Ben Simmons that he will be the number 1 overall pick tomorrow night, so I can basically guarantee you that Ben Simmons will go 1 and Brandon Ingram will go 2. However, the rest of the draft is honestly up for grabs. There is a pretty decent amount of talent in this years draft, therefore it is hard to say who's going to go when. I'm only going to guess the top 15 picks, and then I'll talk about a few steals in this year's draft. 

1.)  Ben Simmons - 76ers - If Simmons jump shot doesn't improve, I'm calling a bust. Not like he won't be a good player, but he won't be a superstar in this league like everyone is saying he will be. 
2.)  Brandon Ingram - Lakers - VERY TALENTED. I'm very confident that he will be a superstar in this league after a couple seasons. 

The rest of the draft starts at the number 3 pick with the Boston Celtics. The Celtics have 8 picks this year in the draft, and Celtics fans along with the entire sports media outlets have no idea if Boston will keep this pick or package it in the hopes of getting a superstar caliber player. There is not question that the Celts need shooting, therefore it will be hard to tell whether or not they will trade away the pick for a solid shooting guard, like Jimmy Butler or Paul George. If not, I could easily see the Celtics going for a guy like Buddy Hield, Kris Dunn, or Jamal Murray. 3 guys that all seem to be NBA ready. 

If the Celtics decide to keep the pick, I believe they are going with Buddy Hield. 

3.) Buddy Hield - Boston Celtics
4. )Dragan Bender- Phoenix Suns.. Not much to be said about Bender, besides the fact that I think he's going to be a total bust. He's an international player and unlike GODZINGIS, Bender does not have too much skill to his game. He's a lengthy guy who would most likely play a stretch 4 in the NBA. For gods sake, the dude only averaged 4.6 ppg and 2.6 rpg. PATHETIC for a dude that is 7'1. 
5. )Kris Dunn - Minnesota Timberwolves.. One of my favorite players in the draft, Kris Dunn looks to enter the NBA and make an immediate impact on whoever drafts him. He's a guy with a lot of confidence and can be a great floor general in the NBA. After watching him in college the past few seasons, Dunn reminds me a lot of a Dwayne Wade type game. 
6. ) Jamal Murray- New Orleans Pelicans.. The freshmen sensation at Kentucky this year, looks to join an NBA team where his skills will be put to the test. Murray proved that he can shoot with a 40% 3 point field goal percentage this season in the NCAA. Not to mention, he hit 79-100 3's on his visit with the Celtics. Murray is a guy that can get to the hoop, and proved this year that he can score with the best of them. 
7. ) Jaylen Brown - Denver Nuggets.. Brown is a tall prospect who is very strong. He can run the floor with his elite speed and athleticism. Not to mention, he proved that he is capable of rising up and dunking over defenders on the fast break. The Nuggets need a guy to run the floor with Emmanuel Mudiay next season, and if you ask me I think Brown would work great with Mudiay. KEY TO BROWNS SUCCESS- NEEDS to improve his jump shot. Reminds me quite a bit of Justice Winslow. 
8. )Damontas Sabonis - Sacramento Kings.. His father Arvydas Sabonis played in the NBA for many seasons, and his son has a similar game. The lefty big man provides a big emotional leadership role while on the court, as he's very vocal. Something that I think the Kings need. If Sabonis is drafted at the 8 spot, the Kings will have a strong presence in the paint with Demarcus Cousins, Sabonis, and Cauley-Stein. 
9. )Henry Ellenson- Toronto Raptors.. A guy who's draft stock has slowly decreased in the months leading up to the draft, Ellenson looks to prove himself to the NBA scouts who are beginning to doubt his talents. He has a decent post game, and has proved that he is capable of running the floor on fast breaks. 
10. )Jakob Poeltl - Milwaukee Bucks.. While the bucks would much rather see Ellenson fall to them at the 10 spot, they will gladly take Jakob Poeltl. Poeltl is a 7'1 center out of Utah. He has a big presence around the rim as 94% of his buckets came from within 7 feet of the rim this past year. 
11.) Skal Labissiere - Orlando Magic.. Almost every mock draft I have seen has Skal at the 11 spot. A guy that was very underwhelming this season in the NCAA. Skal is definitely a project for whatever team drafts him. However, his jump shot is proven to be successful and he does have somewhat of a presence around the rim. He is lengthy, but needs to improve his athleticism if he's going to make it in the NBA. 
12.) Marquese Chriss - Utah Jazz.. The freshmen sensation out of Washington, could easily be picked in the top 10 and there's a good chance he will. However, I don't see it. I loved his athleticism for his 6'10 size. However, he just didn't show me enough this past season. He has a pretty solid mid range game, but will need to improve his post work in order to be a successful 4 man in the NBA. 
13.) Deyonte Davis- Phoenix Suns.. A guy that a lot of scouts have questions about. He declined his right to test his athleticism at the draft.. which definitely raises a bunch of questions. He played limited minutes this season at Michigan State, however he did prove to be one of the nations best shot blockers. So at the very least, he will prove to be a strong presence in the paint for teams. 
14.) Wade Baldwin- Chicago Bulls.. A lengthy guy that can play multiple positions in the NBA. His athleticism proved that he could be a strong permitter defender in the pros. 

ROUNDING OUT our top 15 we have...

15.) Malachi Richardson- Denver Nuggets.. A guy who's draft stock went way up following the NCAA tournament. A pretty solid scorer, who would have been drafted late in the first round if it wasn't for his spectacular tournament performance. He is a great spot up shooter, and can take you off the dribble and pull up where ever. Would not be surprised to see him round out the top 15 as he showed his athletic ability off pretty nicely at the combine. 

There's two guys I think will be huge steals in this years draft and those guys are Thon Maker and Tyler Ullis. 

It's not like either of these two will fall out of the 1st round, however they are two guys that I think could be immediate game changers upon entering the league. Ullis proved to be a talented point guard this season. While showing that he a total floor general. He dominated for Kentucky averaging over 17 a game this season for the Wildcats. Thon Maker is a lengthy 7 footer with crazy athleticism, and a beautiful jump shot to go with it. While many teams question his strength because he's the skinniest mother fucker I've ever seen, I believe he could be one of the next best power forwards this league has ever seen. He will definitely be a project for at least a season or two, however there is so much upside to drafting this 7 foot beast. 
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The top 15 is always hard to predict, as each team usually needs a couple of different pieces. The Draft is tomorrow night, (Thursday the 23rd), at 8:00 pm eastern time and can be watched on ESPN.