Trueblood
Bench
2012 Early Mock Draft by Max Trueblood
1. New Orleans, Anthony Davis, PF, 6'10"
Obvious pick. Assuming Eric Gordon resigns, the Hornets will have a nice inside outside punch heading into their new lease.
2. Charlotte, Thomas Robinson, PF, 6'9"
This gets a bit tougher but on a team with holes everywhere, the biggest hole resides at the PF spot as classic underachiever Tyrus Thomas is the only 4 under contract for next year. Robinson's never say die attitude will rub off well on a team that clearly put no effort in losing their final 23 games last year.
3. Washington, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF, 6'6"
Another high character guy who helps the Wizards on and off the court as they transition from a team of goofballs to a respectable unit.
4. Cleveland, Bradley Beal, 2G, 6'4"
Very tempting to go for Andre Drummond here but too many question marks from low FT% to questionable attitude. Beal is the catch and shoot type who will work well with Kyrie Irving as the Cavs rebuild after losing Lebron.
5. Sacramento, Harrison Barnes, SF, 6'8"
Best player available. Kings have to decide what to do with Tyreke Evans. If Barnes starts at SF, Reke could move to PG, the bench or just get traded.
6. Portland, Andre Drummond, C, 6'11"
The 6th slot looks to be a good spot to take a chance on Drummond with. Portland needs a pivot man after finally throwing in the towel on Oden and trading Camby.
7. Golden State, Damian Lillard, PG, 6'3"
Oakland native stays home and gives the team much needed insurance for oft injured Stephen Curry.
8. Toronto, Jeremy Lamb, 2G, 6'5"
Lamb works in a lot of ways with Toronto. He can come off the bench behind Demar Derozan or start and play alongside him if the Raps move Derozan to his natural SF spot.
9. Detroit, Jared Sullinger, PF, 6'9"
The Pistons can go in many directions here. Maybe take a center and move Monroe to PF or back him up at the pivot. Or if they take a natural 4 man, there is also Arnette Moultrie, Perry Jones and John Henson available. Detroit banks on the heady Sullinger over players with a higher ceiling.
10. New Orleans, Austin Rivers, 1/2G, 6'4"
Best player available with arguably the most upside. Solid family background helps. Not sure what his long term position is but the Hornets will eventually figure out where he best fits.
11. Portland, Kendall Marshall, PG, 6'4"
With no guarantee of Ray Felton resigning, the Blazers go with a solid, heady floor leader who can backup Felton or even start if pressed for duty.
12. Milwaukee, Tyler Zeller, C, 6'11"
Zeller is the best big man available as the Bucks nab Andrew Bogut's replacement.
13. Phoenix, Terrance Ross, 2G, 6'6"
Tough spot for Phoenix. They would love to grab a floor leader with Nash's days in the valley of the sun seemingly numbered but with Lillard, Rivers and Marshall off the board, the Suns would be wise to shore up a weak position on their depth chart by taking a shooting guard.
14. Houston, Meyers Leonard, C, 7'0"
Camby is old and the Rockets are unsure about Dalembert's future with them so they make the safe pick and get a big man.
15. Philadelphia, Arnett Moultrie, PF, 6'10"
Elton Brand is getting old and Moultrie is the best on the board so the Sixers kill 2 birds with one stone by shoreing up a need and getting the best player available.
16. Houston, Perry Jones, PF, 6'11"
Tons of upside here. Jones may never pan out as he has a questionable motor but outside the lottery, the Rockets can afford to take a gamble.
17. Dallas, John Henson, PF, 6'10"
Dallas grabs this highly skilled big guy. This is about as low as he'll drop and with some good workouts, he can get into the top 10.
18. Minnesota, Kevin Jones, PF, 6'8"
The Wolves are still up in the air about bringing back Michael Beasley or Anthony Randolph so they would love to grab one of the top power forwards. Assuming the top guys are off the board, the Wolves grab this hard worker.
19. Orlando, Fab Melo, C, 7'0"
The Magic plan for life after Dwight.
20. Denver, Evan Fournier, 2G, 6'6"
Tough call here. The Nuggets are deep so they can take a foreign player who may not suit up for them for a couple years due to buyout issues. It's doubtful that anyone drafted this late can get minutes on this deep roster.
21. Boston, Doron Lamb, 2G, 6'4"
Underrated and overlooked on talented Kentucky squad, this could turn out to be a real steal for the Celtics.
22. Boston, Festus Ezeli, C, 6'11"
After going small with the previous pick, the Celtics look for a true big man here.
23. Atlanta, Tony Wroten, 1/2G, 6'4"
With only 6 players under contract, the Hawks look for someone versatile enough to cover a couple spots so they take a chance on this raw talent.
24. Cleveland, Marquis Teague, PG, 6'1"
The Cavs take talented floor leader to play backup to Irving.
25. Memphis, Tyshawn Taylor, 1/2G, 6'1"
The Grizz take a chance on this experienced guard to provide depth in the backcourt.
26. Indiana, Royce White, SF, 6'8"
If he can overcome fear of flying, this guy is a steal this late.
27. Miami, Robert Sacre, C, 6'11"
The Heat fill a gap as they have no backup big men worthy of decent minutes.
28. Oklahoma City, Jeffrey Taylor, SF, 6'7"
Thunder grab arguably the best player available.
29. Chicago, Malik Wayns, PG, 6'1"
Unsure of Derrick Rose's return date, the Bulls get some help behind C.J. Watson and possibly John Lucas III.
30. Golden State, Drew Gordon, PF, 6'9"
The Warriors make it 2 for 2 on bay area natives as they get San Jose's Drew Gordon to play behind David Lee.
1. New Orleans, Anthony Davis, PF, 6'10"
Obvious pick. Assuming Eric Gordon resigns, the Hornets will have a nice inside outside punch heading into their new lease.
2. Charlotte, Thomas Robinson, PF, 6'9"
This gets a bit tougher but on a team with holes everywhere, the biggest hole resides at the PF spot as classic underachiever Tyrus Thomas is the only 4 under contract for next year. Robinson's never say die attitude will rub off well on a team that clearly put no effort in losing their final 23 games last year.
3. Washington, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, SF, 6'6"
Another high character guy who helps the Wizards on and off the court as they transition from a team of goofballs to a respectable unit.
4. Cleveland, Bradley Beal, 2G, 6'4"
Very tempting to go for Andre Drummond here but too many question marks from low FT% to questionable attitude. Beal is the catch and shoot type who will work well with Kyrie Irving as the Cavs rebuild after losing Lebron.
5. Sacramento, Harrison Barnes, SF, 6'8"
Best player available. Kings have to decide what to do with Tyreke Evans. If Barnes starts at SF, Reke could move to PG, the bench or just get traded.
6. Portland, Andre Drummond, C, 6'11"
The 6th slot looks to be a good spot to take a chance on Drummond with. Portland needs a pivot man after finally throwing in the towel on Oden and trading Camby.
7. Golden State, Damian Lillard, PG, 6'3"
Oakland native stays home and gives the team much needed insurance for oft injured Stephen Curry.
8. Toronto, Jeremy Lamb, 2G, 6'5"
Lamb works in a lot of ways with Toronto. He can come off the bench behind Demar Derozan or start and play alongside him if the Raps move Derozan to his natural SF spot.
9. Detroit, Jared Sullinger, PF, 6'9"
The Pistons can go in many directions here. Maybe take a center and move Monroe to PF or back him up at the pivot. Or if they take a natural 4 man, there is also Arnette Moultrie, Perry Jones and John Henson available. Detroit banks on the heady Sullinger over players with a higher ceiling.
10. New Orleans, Austin Rivers, 1/2G, 6'4"
Best player available with arguably the most upside. Solid family background helps. Not sure what his long term position is but the Hornets will eventually figure out where he best fits.
11. Portland, Kendall Marshall, PG, 6'4"
With no guarantee of Ray Felton resigning, the Blazers go with a solid, heady floor leader who can backup Felton or even start if pressed for duty.
12. Milwaukee, Tyler Zeller, C, 6'11"
Zeller is the best big man available as the Bucks nab Andrew Bogut's replacement.
13. Phoenix, Terrance Ross, 2G, 6'6"
Tough spot for Phoenix. They would love to grab a floor leader with Nash's days in the valley of the sun seemingly numbered but with Lillard, Rivers and Marshall off the board, the Suns would be wise to shore up a weak position on their depth chart by taking a shooting guard.
14. Houston, Meyers Leonard, C, 7'0"
Camby is old and the Rockets are unsure about Dalembert's future with them so they make the safe pick and get a big man.
15. Philadelphia, Arnett Moultrie, PF, 6'10"
Elton Brand is getting old and Moultrie is the best on the board so the Sixers kill 2 birds with one stone by shoreing up a need and getting the best player available.
16. Houston, Perry Jones, PF, 6'11"
Tons of upside here. Jones may never pan out as he has a questionable motor but outside the lottery, the Rockets can afford to take a gamble.
17. Dallas, John Henson, PF, 6'10"
Dallas grabs this highly skilled big guy. This is about as low as he'll drop and with some good workouts, he can get into the top 10.
18. Minnesota, Kevin Jones, PF, 6'8"
The Wolves are still up in the air about bringing back Michael Beasley or Anthony Randolph so they would love to grab one of the top power forwards. Assuming the top guys are off the board, the Wolves grab this hard worker.
19. Orlando, Fab Melo, C, 7'0"
The Magic plan for life after Dwight.
20. Denver, Evan Fournier, 2G, 6'6"
Tough call here. The Nuggets are deep so they can take a foreign player who may not suit up for them for a couple years due to buyout issues. It's doubtful that anyone drafted this late can get minutes on this deep roster.
21. Boston, Doron Lamb, 2G, 6'4"
Underrated and overlooked on talented Kentucky squad, this could turn out to be a real steal for the Celtics.
22. Boston, Festus Ezeli, C, 6'11"
After going small with the previous pick, the Celtics look for a true big man here.
23. Atlanta, Tony Wroten, 1/2G, 6'4"
With only 6 players under contract, the Hawks look for someone versatile enough to cover a couple spots so they take a chance on this raw talent.
24. Cleveland, Marquis Teague, PG, 6'1"
The Cavs take talented floor leader to play backup to Irving.
25. Memphis, Tyshawn Taylor, 1/2G, 6'1"
The Grizz take a chance on this experienced guard to provide depth in the backcourt.
26. Indiana, Royce White, SF, 6'8"
If he can overcome fear of flying, this guy is a steal this late.
27. Miami, Robert Sacre, C, 6'11"
The Heat fill a gap as they have no backup big men worthy of decent minutes.
28. Oklahoma City, Jeffrey Taylor, SF, 6'7"
Thunder grab arguably the best player available.
29. Chicago, Malik Wayns, PG, 6'1"
Unsure of Derrick Rose's return date, the Bulls get some help behind C.J. Watson and possibly John Lucas III.
30. Golden State, Drew Gordon, PF, 6'9"
The Warriors make it 2 for 2 on bay area natives as they get San Jose's Drew Gordon to play behind David Lee.
