https://www.nbabigboard.com/p/mock-draft-1-free 1. Houston Rockets Projected record: 17-55 Odds of winning the No. 1 pick: 14% Cade Cunningham Oklahoma State Freshman Point Forward Age: 19.4 The Rockets will be praying to the lottery gods that they stay in the top 4. If their pick falls to No. 5 or lower, they must send it to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Right now they have a 52.1% chance of staying in the top 4. The Rockets need help almost everywhere, and adding Cade Cunningham should be a no-brainer. A versatile wing with a tremendous feel for the game, Cunningham sees the floor, can score from anywhere and appears to be a model teammate. Cunningham’s combination of size and offensive abilities make him the unicorn of NBA wings. He should be an elite building block as the Rockets start a multi-year rebuild. 2. Detroit Pistons Projected record: 21-51 Odds of winning the No. 1 pick: 14% Jalen Green G League Ignite Shooting Guard Age: 19 The Pistons began their rebuild in earnest in November by adding three first-round picks -- Killian Hayes, Isaiah Stewart and Saddiq Bey -- but they are still looking for a young star to build around. Of the players left on the board, Green should be the most tantalizing for the Pistons. He has the potential to be the best scorer in this draft class, he has electric athleticism and the rest of Detroit’s young core should fit around him nicely. Green’s strong play in the G League has some scouts quietly wondering whether he might ultimately have the most star power of anyone in the draft. That’s exactly what the Pistons need right now as they begin building a new identity. 3. OKC Thunder Projected record: 22-50 Odds of winning the No. 1 pick: 14% Evan Mobley USC Freshman Forward/Center Age: 19.7 The Thunder are in the midst of a major rebuild with one cornerstone -- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander -- and a bunch of intriguing young players who everyone, including OKC, is still trying to assess. Mobley feels like a perfect fit in that group. He is an elite prospect that ticks all the boxes NBA teams are looking for in bigs today. He’s got a versatile offensive toolbox that allows him to score from anywhere on the floor and he’s proven to be a good rebounder and an excellent rim protector. The biggest knock on Mobley is that he lacks strength. He can get pushed around in the paint a bit. Given his frame, he might end up keeping a Chris Bosh-esque body type throughout his career. Pairing him with Poku in the Thunder frontcourt should be a sight to behold. 4. Orlando Magic Projected record: 22-50 Odds of winning the No. 1 pick: 12.5% Jonathan Kuminga G League Ignite Forward Age: 18.6 The Magic have a reputation for taking the player in the draft with the longest wingspan, best athletic numbers and the most ridiculous upside. Kuminga, one of the youngest players in the draft, has as high a ceiling as anyone in the draft, and he’s tailor-made as the type of prospect Jeff Weltman and John Hammond have coveted over the years. His size, positional versatility and defensive potential should make him too intriguing to pass up here for the Magic. His hot play in the G League cooled as the truncated season went on, but that hasn’t deterred scouts from seeing star potential. 5. Cleveland Cavaliers Projected record (Wolves): 22-50 Odds of winning the No. 1 pick: 10.5% Jalen Suggs Gonzaga Freshman Guard Age: 19.9 The Cavs have already heavily invested in their backcourt by using lottery picks on Collin Sexton and Darius Garland in recent drafts. But I don’t think that will stop them from taking Suggs if he’s on the board. Sexton and Garland have both shown promise, but neither has the upside of Suggs. Suggs is a leader who makes winning plays and has the ability to play both on and off the ball. His streaky 3-point shooting is a little worrying, but teams are willing to overlook it based on all the other ways he impacts winning on the court.
What a punch to the gut it would be if the OKC wins the lottery and the Rockets convey the 5th pick to them. Damn, I wouldn't even know what to do. The biggest spit in the face from Harden leaving this team. I hope the basketball gods are not that cruel to us.
Self-inflicted from trading a guy who got us up 3-2 on the Warriors for Russell Westbrook, and adding lots of draft capital to do so. (And also never replacing our defensive wing trio of Tucker-Ariza-Moute). Never wonder why there's so much mockery and vitriol around here. 14% is not a lot. Imagine 10 cards laid on a table and you have to pick the right one. You get one shot. For every wrong card, you get a lesser prize. If you don't get it in 4 picks, you lose all chances. That's the game the Rockets face.
First choice would be Cade but if we fall to 2-4 I hope we go for Mobley. Suggs doesn’t impress me at all
Suggs was pretty underwhelming, he could just be a solid frank jackson type of duke guard, but the hope with him that in the nba game which is much faster, open loor and spacing, he will be able to create more. That said, based on what I said I'd also put him 4th after Cade, Green/Mobley. We'll probably be rebuilding next year too. We still have the Tank Commander ready, and apparently Holgrem, the skilled 7 footer going to Gonzaga is the guy. but we get our pick no matter what next year I believe. We can tank without the ...pressure..
