2015 NBA Mock Draft – Real Version (David Kay’s)
Updated: Thursday, June 26, 2014, 5:40 p.m. Follow me @walterfootball for updates.
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Cleveland Cavaliers: Andrew Wiggins, SF, Kansas, 6-8, Fr. 
Update: Three reasons why I’m changing this pick to Andrew Wiggins: First, the Sixers are desperately trying to move up for him, so he could be Philly’s No. 1 overall choice. Second, the Sixers’ desperate attempt to get Wiggins could convince Cleveland that he’s the better player. The Cavaliers are too stupid to realize this on their own. Third, Jabari Parker has announced that he doesn’t want to play in Cleveland.
What the Cavaliers should do: Trade this pick for Kevin Love. If they do that, LeBron James will almost definitely go back to Cleveland. A trio of James, Love and Kyrie Irving wins at least four championships.
What the Cavaliers should do otherwise: Draft Andrew Wiggins because he’s the best player in this draft, and it’s not even close.
What the Cavaliers will do: The team that took some bum named Anthony Bennett will select Jabari Parker No. 1 overall. The Cavaliers keep talking about wanting to win now, and there’s some weird perception that Parker is most “NBA ready.” Really? If he’s so “NBA ready,” why did Duke have to bench him against Mercer because of his defensive liabilities? That doesn’t sound “NBA ready” to me.
What the Cavaliers can do: Use Dan Gilbert’s son’s dark magic to secure the top selection in the 2015 NBA Draft.
Go here for our real 2014 NBA Mock Draft. Follow me @walterfootball for updates. -
Milwaukee Bucks: Jabari Parker, SF, Duke, 6-8, Fr. 
Update: Jabari Parker has announced that he doesn’t want to play in Cleveland or Philadelphia. In his defense, I wouldn’t want to either, and I’m from the latter city.
My reaction on the forum when the Cavs won the lottery: “Cavs should take Bucks’ owner’s daughter with the No. 1 pick.”
I still stand by it. Dan Gilbert’s son has enough dark magic to confiscate Mallory Eddens from Milwaukee. On the bright side, the Bucks are landing the top player in this draft. -
Philadelphia 76ers: Dante Exum, G, Australia, 6-6, 1995 
I’ve been a 76er fan since I was 8 years old. My dad used to keep track of everyone’s point totals – this was back in 1990, before we had a computer – and I’d see his notepad each morning. One day, I asked him why “C. Broccoli” always had the most points. My dad told me about Charles Barkley, and that’s how I got into sports.
Here are three things I don’t want the Sixers to do:
1. Trade Michael Carter-Williams. Dealing the Rookie of the Year for the No. 7 pick would be idiotic. It would make no sense. “Hey, we spent all of this time working on this promising rookie, so let’s trade him for an unknown commodity who might be worse!” OK, great. Anyone even suggesting this as a positive move is a moron.
2. Pick Joel Oden. I wouldn’t mind Joel Oden at No. 10, but he’s never going to play, so wasting the third pick would be stupid.
3. Select Noah Vonleh. Sounds like a vampire, plays like a zombie.
I would love a Thad trade to move up to No. 1 for Andrew Wiggins, but if the Sixers can’t do that, they should probably take boomerang-thrower Dante Exum. I like the idea of having two tall guards. Sure, neither can shoot very well right now, but shooters can be found in the second round.
Enter our 2014 NBA Mock Draft Contest. Winner gets $200. FREE entry, so there’s no reason not to enter. -
Orlando Magic: Marcus Smart, PG, Oklahoma State, 6-4, Soph. 
I feel like you should have to earn your name. For instance, Rusty Smith in the NFL was a crappy quarterback because he was always rusty. Marcus Smart, however, isn’t very smart. He constantly takes dumb shots, which is why Oklahoma State failed to meet expectations. The Magic needs a point guard though, so the 25 fans they have can look forward to having a point guard who fires up horrible threes every night. -
Utah Jazz: Noah Vonleh, PF, Indiana, 6-10, Fr. 
The Jazz betrayed their fans last year by selecting two non-white players in the first round last year. Do they make amends by reaching for Doug McDermott? I think it’s highly possible, but they’ll take the zombie vampire instead. -
Boston Celtics: Joel Embiid, C, Kansas, 7-0, Fr.
Danny Ainge thinks he’s smarter than he really is, so he’ll see taking Joel Oden an opportunity to acquire an asset. Instead, Joel Oden will be out of the league in five years because he won’t be able to walk anymore. -
Los Angeles Lakers: Julius Randle, PF, Kentucky, 6-9, Fr. 
One of the dumbest things I’ve heard leading up to the draft is that the Lakers want to pick someone who Kobe Bryant likes. Umm… who gives a f*** what Kobe likes? Kobe is pretty much done being a good player. He’ll be out of the league soon enough. Jurgen Klinsmann, the American soccer coach – for those of you, like me, who do not enjoy boring, communist sports – was absolutely right when he said that Americans pay people too much on past production. The contract the Lakers gave Kobe will go down as one of the worst deals in the history of professional sports. -
Sacramento Kings: Aaron Gordon, PF, Arizona, 6-9, Fr. 
There’s some concern that Aaron Gordon will get into trouble like his older brother, Josh Gordon, but if anything happens, I’m sure Kevin Johnson will get him straightened out. (Edit: I’m not sure if Aaron and Josh Gordon are related; I’m just making assumptions.) -
Charlotte Hornets: Doug McDermott, SF, Creighton, 6-8, Sr. 
Update: Besides drafting the worst player available, Michael Jordan likes to pick prominent players like Cody Zeller, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Kemba Walker. I feel like Doug McDermott is the player who most matches that description.
So glad the Charlotte Bobcats are officially the Charlotte Hornets again. Now, if they’d only go back to their old logo…
Anyway, Michael Jordan will stick to his philosophy of drafting the worst player available. Rodney Hood had a poor performance against Mercer, so he must be another “NBA ready” player. -
Philadelphia 76ers: Zach LaVine, SG, UCLA, 6-5, Fr.
Update: I had Doug McDermott here last update, but a tall guard works fine.
I run a Live NBA Draft Blog every single year, and one thing people tell me that they look forward to is my dad’s reaction to whom the Sixers pick. It’s added incentive to go to my parents’ house for the NBA Draft every June.
Here are some of my dad’s past reactions to his beloved Sixers’ selections:
2013 NBA Draft:
8:31: Sixers dealt Jrue Holiday and a first-round pick in 201? (couldn’t hear it because Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose were yelling.)
8:32: My dad’s going nuts. “The Sixers are crazy! They are crazy! What are they doing!? Holiday… he’s the best player on the team!”
8:34: “F***ing idiots!” My dad yelled, walking to the bathroom.
8:35: “Keeping Evan Turner and giving up Jrue Holiday!? How can they do this? What a f***ing idiot team!” my dad yelled, walking out of the bathroom.
2012 NBA Draft:
8:57: My dad’s super pissed that ESPN cut to a commercial. “They’re always against the Sixers! They hate the Sixers! Always commercials when they draft!”
With the 15th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft, the 76ers select Moe Harkless, F, St. John’s
8:59: Uh oh…
“Who the f**k is that? WHO THE F**K IS THAT!? SIXERS ALWAYS DO SOMETHING STUPID! ALWAYS!”
9:01: My dogs are freaking out because my sister walked in. My dad, pissed about the pick and all the noise, just freaked out: “SHUT UP! SHUT UP! IDIOTS! SIXERS AND THE DOGS ARE ALL IDIOTS!”
2009 NBA Draft:
8:49: The Sixers are just four picks away. My dad wants Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson or Wayne Ellington. Yeah, he’s not a front-runner.
8:50: With the 13th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Indiana Pacers select Tyler Hansbrough, PF, North Carolina – My dad just groaned. “Oh no, my guy!”
9:03: My dad is beaming. The Sixers will have their choice of Ty Lawson and/or Wayne Ellington:
“Watch, if the Sixers draft these guys, they’re going to be good next season.”
9:09: My dad’s pretty confident they’re taking Lawson or Ellington… He also thinks they may take B.J. Mullens and trade him.
9:10: And on that note, t-minus three minutes and counting until my TV is debacled.
9:13: With the 17th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Philadelphia 76ers select Jrue Holiday, G, UCLA – Oh… no….
9:14: My dad on the pick:
“What the f***!?!??! I was afraid they’d take him. What the f***… I was afraid they were going to take him… I hope we’re going to trade him. Why didn’t they take Ty Lawson? Son of a b****. Why not Ellington? Maybe they’ll trade down. Maybe they’ll trade Holiday…”
9:16: I just told my dad Holiday averaged 8.5 ppg and shot 30.7 percent from three-point range at UCLA last year. He looks defeated.
2008 NBA Draft:
9:01: The Sixers are the clock. We’re two minutes away from my dad throwing the remote at the TV.
9:02: My dad on the pick: “If Billy King were still the GM, he’d take some horrible small forward no one has ever heard of.”
9:04: With the 16th pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, the Philadelphia 76ers select PF Marreese Speights, Florida.
9:05: Silence. My dad hasn’t said anything yet. Hey, I’m not complaining… the TV’s not broken.
9:07: Silence regarding the new Eddie Murphy movie too. There’s mass confusion going on here. My dad hasn’t cheered the pick, and hasn’t criticized it yet either. He’s looking at the Philadelphia Daily News to try and figure out what happened. It’s pretty eerie, I think I’d like to have my TV broken.
2007 NBA Draft:
8:32: With the 10th pick, the Kings select Spencer Hawes. My dad just shouted about 15 curse words in a row: “Billy King’s an idiot. Why didn’t he trade up for Hawes? First, the Sixers refused to tank at the end of the season. Next, King stays idle at No. 12 when the top 10 players are clearly a cut above everyone else!”
8:34: My dad just said the following, “Watch, King’s going to pick Sean Williams at No. 12.”
8:46: With the 12th pick, the Hawks select Thaddeus Young.
8:54: My dad was just on the phone with his co-worker. This is what the conversation sounded like: “Billy King is a f***ing idiot! Can someone fire him? Billy King and Isiah Thomas, two f***ing idiots! How many small forwards can you have? Every team picked up a good player. The Sixers got garbage, as usual. No one has heard of this guy! He was supposed to go No. 19 or 20.” -
Denver Nuggets: Gary Harris, SG, Michigan State, 6-4, Soph. 
Firing George Karl really worked out for the Nuggets. They have fallen from a playoff contender to a lottery team – just as ownership planned. Soon enough, they’ll be the worst team in the league, and their plan will finally be complete. -
Orlando Magic: Dario Saric, PF, Croatia, 6-10, 1993
I’m a big fan of Dario Saric’s game. I’ve watched lots of Croatia games this past season, so trust me, no one knows better than me. I have to say that I was shocked when Croatia didn’t win the NCAA Tournament. I picked them in my pool. -
Minnesota Timberwolves: Nik Stauskas, SG, Michigan, 6-6, Soph. 
The Timberwolves greatest need is a good white player because they’re about to lose Kevin Love. Nik Stauskas fits what Minnesota’s fans are looking for. -
Phoenix Suns: T.J. Warren, SF, N.C. State, 6-8, Soph. 
Update: The Suns apparently have made a guarantee to T.J. Warren. I hope he got that in writing so he could sue them if they lie to him. I’d like to sue the Suns as well for an incorrect mock draft pick.
I suppose it’s time now for the perennial John Calipari interview, where he talks about how proud he is of his basketball players whom he barely knows, and how great it is to be sucking the life out of college basketball. -
Atlanta Hawks: Shabazz Napier, PG, Connecticut, 6-1, Sr. 
I like that the Hawks are going back to their old Pac-Man logo. I enjoyed this Hawks’ logo as well, but I’m all for vintage logos. Having said that, I doubt that anyone in Atlanta noticed because they just don’t care about their basketball team. This franchise could probably choose a logo featuring a fat man taking a s***, and no one in Atlanta will even discuss it.
Go to 2014 NBA Mock Draft: Picks 16-30
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