NBA SIMS LEAGUE
NSL Insider - 2023 Mock Draft - Week of the Draftby Vitticus, updated on Tuesday, July 04 2023, 12:24 am EST I figure I do a Mock Draft right before the actual draft. I won�t dig
too deep into player analysis. At this point in the cycle, anyone who
has stock in the draft should already know the prospects in their
range. 1. Indiana Pacers � Victor Wembanyama � This is no brainer. 2.
Utah Jazz � Scoot Henderson �Jason has the chance to grab Brandon
Miller, but the vibes around Miller thus far has been negative. So I
picture Jason taking Scoot instead. 3. Toronto � Brandon Miller � Despite the negative vibes on Brandon Miller, I think Dylan still takes him. He is an obvious fit with Trae, Simons, Dorian, and Nurkic. 4. Detroit Pistons � Amen Thompson � Amen is the next best player on the board. It is a good fit for Sheed since he already has Jalen Green, Devin Vassell, and Ivica Zubac on the books. He fills a need at the point guard slot. Anthony Black could be an option, but Amen Thompson is an outlier athlete. 5. Detroit Pistons � Jarace Walker �Ausar Thompson and Anthony Black are the next best players on the board, but I think Sheed reaches down 3 slots for Jarace Walker. I think he could use a power forward since the new 15% rule will go into effect eliminating a lot of center cheesing. And once Sheed sees how cheesy Myles Turner and Jarace Walker are in the NBA, he�ll want to replicate said cheese in the NSL. But he�ll need to trade for a Myles Turner type of center to make it happen. Ausar is a good option though, but if Sheed has a chance at a future star vs a cheesy front court, I think he would go with the cheesy front court. 6. Atlanta Hawks � Dereck Lively � I picture a big reach here. With Dame, Bane, and Hunter already on the books, I can see Atlanta needing either another forward or another center to build around these guys. While Bulldog could take Ausar Thompson, I feel like the swing on a center is more tantalizing considering his current centers are Isaiah Stewart and Santi Aldama. It fills a bigger need. Atlanta also has pick 12 where Gradey Dick, Jett Howard, or Cam Whitmore should be available. Lively won�t be on the board by then and Bulldog would have to reach down into the 20s and 30s for Clowney or Nnaji if he doesn�t take a center here.  7.
Washington � Taylor Hendricks � Ausar Thompson is still on the board
here, but I think Josh goes with Hendricks here. He already has Ivey,
Booker, George, and Capela. Hendricks should complete his core. 8.
New Orleans Pelicans � Ausar Thompson � Leeroy has a type. And Cason
Wallace is that type. But Leeroy has also been known to take fallers in
the draft like he did with Patrick Williams a couple years back. So I
think he takes the higher upside guy in Ausar Thompson. And if he still
wants Wallace in the future, he can just trade Ausar for him +
additional draft compensation. 9. Miami Heat � Bilal
Coulibaly � Pete also has a type. Standing at 6�6 with a 7�3 wingspan,
he is definitely Pete�s type � long. Very, very long. 10.
Dallas Mavericks � Anthony Black � Everybody knows LJ would love to get
his hands on NBA Dallas Mavericks center Dereck Lively. Especially since
he�s drawn comparisons to Dallas Mavericks legend Tyson Chandler. And
maybe Lively actually falls here. But if he doesn�t, I still think
Anthony Black will be a good addition for LJ still. The NSL Mavericks
have an overabundance of forwards and could use some guards. There is
still worry about his shooting. And until his shooting picks up, he�s
going to look like Killian Hayes for the first couple of years. 11.
LA Clippers � Gradey Dick � I use to think that Andrew was an upside
swing kind of guy, but I actually think Andrew likes to draft for size
(6�5+ for guards, 6�7+ for forwards, and 6�10+ for centers). Gradey
Dick and Jett Howard are the size guys here. I see Andrew going with
Dick since his defense is more believable than Jett�s. 12.
Atlanta Hawks � Jett Howard � I had Bulldog selecting a center earlier
to build around Dame, Bane, and Hunter. I think another forward could do
it for him. So I have Bulldog selecting Jett Howard. There are major
concerns about Jett�s defense, but I think Atlanta could hide him in
between Bane and Hunter. Atlanta now has a core of Dame, Bane, Jett,
Hunter, and Lively. Would he enjoy that more than something like Dame,
Ausar, Bane, Hunter, and Clowney had he not reached for Lively? I�m not
sure. This is something Bulldog will have to think about as we approach
draft day this Friday. If he isn�t happy with Jett�s defense, then Cam
Whitmore could be an option here. 13. Chicago Bulls �
Keyonte George - Rumor has it that the Bulls have traded for Lamelo Ball
and Mikal Bridges. With Cam Thomas and Nicolas Claxton already on the
roster, the Bulls could use a power forward. I cannot see Bulldog
reaching for a senior like Jaime Jacquez or for a junior like Kris
Murray (who is actually older). So I have Chicago taking the player who
he views as having the highest trade value. Keyonte could ultimately end
up being better than Cam Thomas. But if he really wants a power
forward, I think he should consider trading down with the LA Clippers
who hold picks 14, 18, 19, and 20. The LA Lakers who hold picks 15, 16,
23, and 25 could also be a potential trade partner. 14. LA
Clippers � Cason Wallace � Again, Andrew likes size. Jordan Hawkins,
Kobe Bufkin, and Jalen Hood-Schfino are all 6�5 guards. I think Andrew
goes with Kobe Bufkin since he is the youngest of this group. But wait,
Cason Wallace is still on the board. Cason Wallace is only 6�4. That is
good size for a point guard. Andrew generally wants them to be 6�5, but
one inch short of expectations isn�t so bad. And Cason is a tier or two
above all these 6�5 guards on the board. So I have Andrew going with
Wallace. 15. LA Lakers � Cam Whitmore � The Lakers could use
a forward to play alongside Cade, Mitchell, and Gobert. Think Cam is
the best option here.  16.
LA Lakers � Kris Murray � With Cade, Mitchell, Whitmore, and Gobert, I
feel like Kris Murray could be the final piece of the puzzle. 17.
Houston Rockets � Olivier-Maxence Prosper � The Rockets got torched by
Giannis in the postseason. They need a guy who can guard Giannis. Can�t
say whether OMP can do that, but he is the best future bet of this
group. 18. LA Clippers � Kobe Bufkin � Again, I have Andrew taking size picks. Kobe Bufkin is a 6�5 guard, Noah Clowney is a 6�10 power forward, and Dariq Whitehead is a 6�7 small forward. And they�re all only 19 years old. Well Bufkin is about to turn 20. 19. LA Clippers � Noah Clowney � see above 20. LA Clippers � Dariq Whitehead � see above 21. Indiana Pacers � Nick Smith Jr � Nick Smith Jr is the pick here. Jordan Hawkins is on the board, but I�m sure Yeet would prefer the 19 year old over the 21 year old who was ranked #3 in the nation for college recruits and fell because of injuries. I heard Yeet mention NSJ�s name before. So I�m sure he knows about Nick Smith Jr�s high school tape. It�s probably more valuable considering he was injured this year at Arkansas. 22. Boston Celtics � Jalen Hood-Schfino - Toby generally gets tantalized by AAU stars and big names. Usually guys that ESPN likes to talk about at the beginning of the draft cycle. There isn�t any more of those names at this point of the draft unless you want to reach into the 2nd round for GG Jackson or Emoni Bates. So I think Toby goes with Jalen Hood-Schifino. He has been trying to trade Rozier for over a year now. I think JHS could be a guy that eventually fills that void.  23.
LA Lakers � Jaime Jacquez � Think Justin could use additional depth at
the power forward position and the center position. So I have him taking
Jacquez here. 24. Milwaukee Bucks � Brandin Podziemski �
Daz loves the Warriors. Podziemski is a shooter and he can pass. But his
defense is ass. Daz could go for a guy like Jordan Hawkins who has the
defense but he�s not much of a passer. I still have Daz selecting Podz
due to his love for the Warriors. 25. LA Lakers � James
Nnaji � Justin could still use additional center depth. Nnaji is a long
term project though. I don�t understand why, because he did play
professional ball with FC Barcelona. But everyone says he will still be a
long-term project. 26. Minnesota Timberwolves � Brice
Sensabaugh - I know Ethan would like to take a swing on an upside guy
that he could sell later at a higher price. Brice could be that guy. He
is a generational mid-range scorer and he�s way stronger than your
average small forward. Plus he is on a young team where he�ll get plenty
of chances. The reason he is this low on the board is because he is
absolute ass on defense. But why is he so bad? Is it because nobody has
ever taught how to defend? Is it because he has no instincts? Or maybe
it is his bad knees. I don�t think anybody knows. This is why he is such
a risk / reward type of pick. 27. Memphis Grizzlies �
Jordan Walsh � Rootsey has a type, and I believe Jordan Walsh is the top
guy to fall into that realm. It is kind of a reach, but I don�t see
Rootsey swinging on Juniors or Seniors. If you don�t know who Jordan
Walsh is, he�s pretty much a 6�7 version of Grant Williams without the
offense. He�s still raw on the offensive end, and I don�t think anyone
knows where his offense will develop into outside of finishers in the
paint. 28. New York Knicks � Jordan Hawkins � If someone is
going to target a faller, it believe it could be Smokey. I can�t say if
this is true. In the past, it was generally either Leeroy, Laddas, or
Joshua that would grab the fallers (Patrick Williams, Colin Sexton,
Frank Ntilikina) 29. LA Clippers � Leonard Miller � Again,
another size pick. And he�s young. Right now, the only thing he does
well is rebound. There were some casuals that tried to compare his ball
handling to Lamar Odom, but that is total BS. He does have pretty good
ball handle for his size, but there is no way a coach is letting him
dribble unless it is in the G League. 30. Golden State
Warriors � Ben Sheppard � Tim could use either a shooting guard or
center here. All the centers in this range are gone. So I have him
selecting Ben Sheppard. He�s pretty much an older 3&D guard that can
attack close-outs. |
Archive· NSL V NBA - Reaches and Fallers · Finals! The Season of the Finalists · 2023 Mock Draft - Week of the Draft · CF Review: Washington V Milwaukee · R2 Review: San Antonio V Memphis · R2 Review: Portland V Denver |