Wednesday, June 22, 2011

2011 NBA Mock Draft

By Joey Cavalier

Once the draft is over, I will probably look at my mock draft and laugh, as I do to every other mock draft. But what the hell, here we go anyways!

1. Cleveland: Kyrie Irving (PG) Duke The Cavs will not pass on Kyrie Irving. He will be the new face of the franchise.

2. Minnesota: Derrick Williams (SF-PF) Arizona
After failing to trade the pick, the Wolves will settle on D-Will… I don’t know why I had to use word “settle” here… KAHN!

3. Utah: Brandon Knight (PF) Kentucky Devin Harris is not their future PG. Drafting Knight gives them an electrifying franchise PG in the mold of Russell Westbrook.

4. Cleveland: Enes Kanter (C) Turkey
Kanter gracefully falls to the Cavs at No. 4, and the Cavs gleefully select the big man. An Irving-Kanter draft night is viewed as a success.

5. Toronto: Kemba Walker (PG) Connecticut Jose Calderon doesn’t cut it as the PG up in Toronto. They are desperate to keep the fans' attention, and picking Kemba adds talent and sells tickets.

6. Wahsington: Kawhi Leonard (SF) San Diego State This is a nice pick for Washington at this point. Adding a scorer and playmaker will only make John Wall better.

7. Sacramento: Jan Vesely (SF) Czech Republic Sacramento has never been scared to draft foreign players. Vesely steps in and starts at SF while Marcus Thornton slides to the two spot.

8. Detroit: Tristan Thompson (PF) Texas The paper-thin Pistons need players at every position. Thompson is the BPA, and Detroit feels obliged to take him here.

9. Charlotte: Bismack Biyombo (PF) Spain The Cats select Biyombo to help with their rebounding inadequacies and interior toughness. The biggest wild card in the draft lands in MJ’s court.

10. Milwaukee: Klay Thompson (SG) Washington State Michael Redd is on his way out and the Bucks will not pass on Thompson, who is a deadly sniper. A Jennings-Thompson backcourt is the future in Milwaukee.

11. Golden State: Alec Burks (SG) Colorado Combo guard Monta Ellis will be traded at some point. Alec Burks is the logical choice to replace him at the 2, as he's more of a natural shooting guard.

12. Utah: Chris Singleton (SF) Florida State Andrei Kirilenko will be gone and Utah already has their PG in Knight. Singleton is the guy that will fill the void Kirilenko leaves on defense.

13. Phoenix: Jordan Hamilton (SF) Texas Here’s another team that needs players at almost every position. Hamilton will take his scoring and rebounding talents to the desert.

14. Houston: Jonas Valanciunas (C) Lithuania Contract situation and unknown CBA status causes Valanciunas to free-fall. With the impending retirement of Yao Ming, he falls no further than Houston.

15. Indiana: Tobias Harris (PF) Tennessee The Pacers are looking to add strength to their front court, and Tobias Harris can play the 3 or the 4.

16. Philadelphia: Marcus Morris (PF) Kansas Later than expected, the first Morris brother is drafted. The 76ers badly need big men, and they find a versatile player in Morris at pick 16.

17. New York: Jimmer Fredette (PG) BYU The Tim Tebow of this years draft is finally selected. The Knicks truly crave his services on the perimeter. The young, religious guard lands in the Big Apple.

18. Washington: Donatas Motiejunas (PF) Lithuania The Wizards need big guys who can score. Bottom line. The seven-foot Motiejunas is able to score in a variety of ways and the Wizards scoop him up.

19. Charlotte: Marshon Brooks (SG) Providence Ranked 29th in the NBA for scoring last year, the Bobcats snag Brooks. A pure scorer, Brooks ranked second in the NCAA in scoring in his senior year at Providence.

20. Minnesota: Tyler Honeycutt (SF) UCLA Once again, David Kahn selects two players who play the same position in the first round. However, Honeycutt (if not traded) is taken to be a defensive stalwart who would defend top SGs and SFs.

21. Portland: Norris Cole (PG) Cleveland St. Looking to find a long-term replacement for Andre Miller, the Blazers select the Cleveland State product.

22. Denver: Kenneth Faried (PF) Morehead St. Faried fits the blue collar bill that characterizes the Nugget squad. He's a nice replacement for Kenyon Martin, as he rebounds and blocks a ton of shots.

23. Houston: Reggie Jackson (PG) Boston College Needing depth and/or an upgrade at PG, the Rockets select the nifty guard from Boston College.

24. Oklahoma City: Markieff Morris (SF-PF) Kansas The Thunder need offensive help at the power forward position, as Ibaka’s offensive game is still a work in process. Markieff is welcomed in OKC.

25. Boston: Jeremy Tyler (PF-C) Tokyo Tyler is another big man who is a wild card in this year’s draft. Boston takes a chance on him, as they need help badly at PF and C.

26. Dallas: Nikola Mirotic (SF) Serbia With the impending lockout threatening the 2011-12 season, the Mavs take a chance on a Dirk-like player who has a contract buyout issue with Real Madrid.

27. New Jersey: JaJuan Johnson (PF) Purdue The long and athletic PF brings an explosive style of play to New Jersey. Hopefully Deron Williams likes this pick…

28. Chicago: Iman Shumpert (PG) Georgia Tech The combo guard is taken to help Derek Rose with the scoring responsibility. He's a slasher and finisher who plays lockdown defense--something Chicago really likes.

29. San Antonio: Kyle Singler (SF) Duke The high-IQ, three-point shooter out of Duke will fit right in with the Spurs' fundamentally sound style of play.

30. Chicago: Trey Thompkins (PF) Georgia The big man will bring a legitimate low post game to Chicago that Boozer failed to bring last year.

1 comment:

  1. Now reports have us taking Kanter @2... I will be Pissed, with a capital P!!! He could end up being the best player in the draft, but I want Williams dammit!

    ReplyDelete