Group 1 (One Man Gang)
JULIUS RANDLE, PF, KENTUCKY
The big news came down yesterday saying Randle will likely need foot surgery after the draft and he'd be out probably 2 months, missing rookie camp. Randle then called out Woj on twitter, I (everyone) still believes Woj. But how much will this hurt his stock?
The 6'9 freshmen with a 7 foot wing span was an absolute double-double machine. Shades of Zach Randolph (on the court!) in his game. I'd pass on him at 6 but there's no way he should slip out of the Top 10. The C's will get all the medical info on him and then make their decision based on that.
Group 2 (Classic 6 Pack)
JORDAN CLARKSON, G, MISSOURI
Like so many recent players and many in this draft class, Clarkson is a guard. Shooting guard? Probably. Point guard? Maybe (especially if it will help his draft stock). The 22 year old junior was a productive scorer in the SEC but didn't shoot it well from 3 (under 30%). My guess is he will be a late 1st round pick.
GARY HARRIS, SG, MICHIGAN STATE
The Spartan sophomore might be the best shooting guard in the class. Of course there has been some talk that he can play point too... He can make it as a 2 despite being just 6'4. Bradley Beal is doing just fine, and although Harris doesn't shoot like Beal, he does a lot of everything and should be a productive NBA player. My guess is he goes somewhere between the two Celtics picks.
ZACH LAVINE, G, UCLA
Another "guard" who played mostly 2 in his only year at UCLA, but has a point guard background. He was one of the best athletes at last months Draft Combine. Great vertical, size, quickness, etc. he even shot a better % from 3 (37.5) than Harris and Clarkson, although not nearly as productive at the offensive end. The 19 year old is an upside pick. No use at 6 but very intriguing at 17.
ELFRID PAYTON, PG, LOUISIANA-LAFAYETTE
Love this guy. The Sun Belt is not great competition obviously compared to the power conference everyone else in this group attended, but Payton played on the Under-19 Team USA team a year ago and got the chance to play with and against good competition where he did very well. He can score but he can't shoot. Comparable to Rajon Rondo although he is 3 inches taller. Could become a legit pass first point guard while he develops his shot. He's a junior but only 20 years old. He's been moving up Mock Drafts and it wouldn't be a stretch to take him at 17. Payton has done well against other top players on the workout tour and he has another chance in Waltham.
MARCUS SMART, PG, OKLAHOMA STATE
Another one of my favorite players in the draft. By comparison, he is 1 inch shorter than Elfrid Payton, but he is 40 pounds heavier. 40 pounds! 6'3, 225. Beast. He won't get pushed around at the next level. He could post opposing points a la Billups, Kidd, Parker. Needs to work on his shot, a clear weakness. He returned to school for his sophomore year to work on his point guard skills and his shooting, and overall it was a disappointing year. He pushed that racist fan and that became a thing, but that seems behind him (and everyone else). I'd consider him at 6 depending how the Top 5 went. He won't fall out of Top 8.
NIK STAUSKAS, SG, MICHIGAN
One of the best shooters in the draft. I was really down on him during the year (I watched one of his worst games all year), but after watching more of him, he's a legit shooter. He's got good enough size to be a SG that doesn't have explosive speed. He's got an underrated handle and gets his shot of extremely quick. I'm not sure how good of a pro he will be but I also thought J.J. Redick would be terrible, so who knows? I don't want him at 6 and don't think he'll drop to 17.
Can't wait for June 26th. I'll have a full Mock Draft up sometime next week.
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