2015 NBA MOCK DRAFT (LOTTERY PICKS ONLY)

Minnesota Timberwolves

Karl-Anthony Towns Age: 19 Pos: C HT: 6-11 WT: 250  Kentucky

– Towns will be a great addition to this team full of young talent. He will most likely start at Power Forward for the Timberwolves learning from Kevin Garnett and playing alongside Nikola Pekovic. He might not be the more polished offensively of the two center pieces available in the draft, but he does seem to have more potential. He will be able to develop alongside the likes of Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine as Minnesota tries to form something similar to that of the likes of what the Thunder had with Westbrook, Harden, and Durant.

Los Angeles Lakers

Jahlil Okafor Age: 19 Pos: C HT: 6-11 WT: 275  Duke

– Okafor has the offensive talent in the post that almost seems to be a lost art at times in today’s NBA. The Lakers will combine him with Julius Randle to try and form a young and talented front court for a future without Kobe Bryant. Even with Jordan Hill being a very good player for them it seems that Byron Scott already has trust in the young point guard Jordan Clarkson so it only makes sense to take the only other franchise center piece left in the draft.

Philadelphia 76ers

D’Angelo Russell Age: 19 Pos: PG HT: 6-5 WT: 193  Ohio State

– Russell will bring the 76ers exactly what they need a reliable point guard to help get the ball to the likes of Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid. The 76ers got rid of Michael Carter Williams this past season and in any case Russell will bring some shooting range to this team that Carter Williams couldn’t provide.

New York Knicks

Emmanuel Mudiay Age: 19 Pos: PG HT: 6-5 WT: 196  China

– The Knicks have all types of needs and they need to just take the best available non-small forward at this spot. Mudiay fits that perfectly and will be able to provide possible franchise player talent at the point guard position for a Knicks team that is coming off their worst season in franchise history. He isn’t your common foreign player since he did play high school basketball in the states, he just decided to follow in Brandon Jennings footsteps and play overseas instead of going one in done in college.

Orlando Magic

Justise Winslow Age: 19 Pos: SF HT: 6-6 WT: 222  Duke

– He is not necessarily the perfect fit for the Magic, but probably the smart fit. The Magic want to get a big man to play alongside Vucevic, but locking up the small forward position isn’t a sure thing for them with Tobias Harris a free agent. The smart thing to do is draft Winslow and either you move Tobias down to the 4 which he is more than capable of doing or he ends up filling a hole left behind by Harris if he leaves Orlando in the off-season.

Sacramento Kings

Willie Cauley-Stein Age: 21 Pos: C HT: 7-1 WT: 242  Kentucky

– He is the perfect piece for a Kings team that has had to deal with playing Rudy Gay at the power forward position even though he is a true small forward. Not only would they be able to play Rudy Gay at his true position, Cauley-Stein would take some pressure off of Cousins on the defensive end. This would give the Kings an instant top tier combo in the front court.

Denver Nuggets

Kristaps Porzingis Age: 19 Pos: PF HT: 6-11 WT: 220  Latvia

– Though the Nuggets already have Kenneth Faried at the 4 the 6’11” big man out of Latvia would be the top player on the draft board and would most likely be worth taking a shot on since one player will not change the Nuggets situation for the better and probably can’t make it any worse.

Detroit Pistons

Stanley Johnson Age: 18 Pos: SF HT: 6-6 WT: 242  Arizona

– The Pistons have solid players at all positions except the 3 where they started Butler most of last year. With Winslow off the board and Stanley Johnson still up there it seems like too good of a match for them to not take him even if some consider it a reach at such an early pick.

Charlotte Hornets

Myles Turner Age: 19 Pos: PF HT: 6-11 WT: 239  Texas

– The Hornets have an aging piece in Al Jefferson at the Center and before he starts to decline the Hornets should take a chance at pairing him with a perfect fit such as Myles Turner at the power forward spot. Myles Turner has the size to even take over at the 5 spot eventually. The Hornets would also be able to solidify their bench with the depth they have behind their new front court.

Miami Heat

Mario Hezonja Age: 20 Pos: SF HT: 6-7 WT: 200  Croatia

– This European prospect will be the best fit for a Heat team that didn’t get the expected results from Deng that they hoped for in replacing the loss of LeBron James the previous off-season. Mario is the best small forward left on the board and would be considered a steal by a lot of draft experts.

Indiana Pacers

Frank Kaminsky Age: 22 Pos: C HT: 7-1 WT: 231  Wisconsin

– This would be the perfect pick for the Pacers. They want Hibbert gone and Kamisnky would fit perfect in their type of hard nose style ball, which would be similar to the style he played at Wisconsin. This would allow them to have the center piece with much greater offensive skills then what Hibbert provided for them and which will be much needed with David West getting older and nothing very solid on the team besides Paul George.

Utah Jazz

Trey Lyles Age: 19 Pos: PF HT: 6-10 WT: 242  Kentucky

– Lyles isn’t nearly ready to become a starter in the NBA, but has amazing potential which the Jazz will gladly take a shot on. The Jazz are pretty solidified when it comes to their starting five, but need some depth at big man. The Jazz will be a great landing spot for Lyles where he can take his time to progress and possibly reach his potential.

Phoenix Suns

Devin Booker Age: 18 Pos: SG HT: 6-6 WT: 206  Kentucky

– The Suns need depth at guard and possibly a replacement at starting shooting guard position. Booker was a big source of offense for the wildcats last year and the Suns need some shooting to go along with the slashing point guard Bledsoe. Bookers developed jumper will be a great fit for Phoenix.

Oklahoma City

Cameron Payne Age: 20 Pos: PG HT: 6-2 WT: 183 Murray State

– Westbrook is obviously the Thunders starting point guard, but when it comes to guard depth there is some spots that can be filled and to also on top of that be able to get a possible top 10 talent with the 14^th pick makes it all the better. The Thunder love to develop young talent and with their current situation pretty much set there’s no reason why they shouldn’t keep drafting young talent for future scenarios.