The NBA draft is coming in a couple weeks and mock drafts are starting to come out and names like Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, Joel Embiid, Aaron Gordon and Julius Randle have come up as some of the best top picks and teams like the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, Orlando Magic, LA Lakers and Utah Jazz are targeting those players as the event gets closer.
The Cavaliers won the draft lottery for the second straight season despite having a 1.7 percent chance of doing it and now they have the number one overall pick. According to Pro Basketball Talk, at least 10 teams have called about the number one pick and the Cavs may still trade it ahead of the draft, but that would have to be for a deal like Kevin Love and nothing less than that. The team picked Anthony Bennett last season and he was a bust to start and now they have to make sure they get this one right.
The top of the draft is very talented this year and names like Embiid, Parker and Wiggins are expected to go in the top three, but that could change as the date gets closer. The Celtics are looking at Gordon as a potential pick at number six and a team like the Sixers could look at moving. Philly has two top 10 picks and reports say they like Andrew Wiggins and they could be the team that moves up to make the pick.
Parker and Wiggins came into the season as the presumptive top picks and while they both need work, they are considered to be the top two prospects in the class with Embiid as a possible number one as well. The Bucks had the worst record in the league and had a 25 percent chance at winning the lottery, but of course they didn't.
Check here for the NBA mock draft 2014.
Mock draft:
Cavaliers - Andrew Wiggins
Bucks - Joel Embiid
Sixers - Jabari Parker
Parker has been compared to LeBron James by some scouts coming out of the draft due to his size and skills with Duke and this past season he was impressive while leading the team in scoring and rebounding. Parker, Wiggins and Embiid likely can't raise their draft stocks any more than they already have, so there isn't much of a point of going to the combine. Doug McDermott has great shooting skills, but he needs more polish and he will be getting measurements at the combine, but he likely will not work out either after winning player of the year in college basketball this season. The Lakers are thrilled to have a chance at the lottery, as this year has a much deeper draft than last season and this is their first year with a top pick in quite a while.
The NBA standings to end the season had the Bucks as the worst team with 15 wins, with the Sixers second worst, followed by the Magic, Jazz, Celtics and Lakers, while the Kings and Pistons were next on the list. The past few years the worst team in the league has not won the lottery, meaning the Celtics, Magic and Lakers all could be in the mix to do it and if LA won, it would be an amazing stroke of luck. The team needs a new star to take over for Kobe Bryant and the choice between Parker and Wiggins could be the next Kevin Durant vs. Greg Oden and Michael Jordan vs. Sam Bowie debate.
