NBA Mock Draft 2.0: Which players are on the rise after the draft combine? The latest projections for every pick
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While in Chicago this past week at the NBA Draft Combine, I kept thinking about the last time I was there in 2019. I was inside the private lottery room when the balls bounced New Orleans’ way, giving the Pelicans the first pick and a shot at Zion Williamson. Alvin Gentry stood up and did the “ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?” routine from Gladiator. It was incredible. Executives literally high-fived him. Everyone thought it was the turning point. The league’s most cursed franchise had finally landed the guy.
Zion was supposed to be the next Charles Barkley. Maybe even the next LeBron. But six years later, the Pelicans still haven’t won a playoff series with him. He’s played just 214 games. They’ve averaged 35 wins and shuffled through roster constructions like it’s fantasy basketball. Gentry didn’t even last a full season after his big lottery night celebration, and David Griffin, who drafted Zion, got canned last month. The team hit the jackpot and somehow ended up right back in the lottery.
There’s a buzz now over Dallas landing Cooper Flagg, who is a much safer prospect than Zion, but there’s still no guarantee he becomes a star. You can land the most hyped prospect and still end up right back where you started. Talent matters, of course. But so do health, development, culture, fit, timing, coaching, and a dozen other factors.
That’s why teams aren’t just focused on the top of the board. They’re digging for prospects that might outplay their slot and look like the true prize when we do re-drafts years from now. That’s what teams use Chicago for: seeing players up close, asking them questions, and collecting information that doesn’t show up on Synergy clips. In a year where eight teams hold multiple first-round picks, a ton of movement is expected. Teams with ammo to make trades will be targeting the player they define as the likely steal of the draft.
After a week in Chicago, a few of those names are rising in this mock draft.
Could the draft night steal be Carter Bryant, the versatile Arizona freshman forward who began to blossom to close the season? Or Cedric Coward, who’s gone from Division III to projected first-rounder? Or maybe it’s a guy who wasn’t even in Chicago, like French forward Noa Essengue, who’s shining to close his season overseas.
Zion is a reminder that the top of the draft doesn’t always deliver a franchise cornerstone, and that the best player in a class is often found further down the board.
So with that in mind, after a week of interviews, front office whispers, and recalibrated evaluations, here’s my latest mock draft.
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Dallas Mavericks: Cooper Flagg, F, Duke
All indications at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago are that the Mavericks will indeed keep the first pick and select Flagg. With that said, Nico Harrison did say at his end-of-season press conference: “You’ll see when our team is healthy again, we’re going to be competing for a championship.” Does a rookie actually help that mission? Flagg would but not as much as a proven star. So if a significant offer is on the table, wouldn’t Nico at least listen? Even if so, perhaps other powers that be in Dallas wouldn’t allow it to happen because Flagg is someone that can still help in both the short-term and long-term as a do-it-all forward who hustles like a madman, makes his teammates better as a passer, and has dialed in a knockdown jumper. He’s both the best offensive and defensive prospect in this draft class, making him the safest No. 1 pick in ages. As long as his jumper falls, he could play as a small forward next to Anthony Davis and another big. It’s his growth as a shot creator that will decide if he reaches his All-Star floor or soars to his Hall of Fame ceiling. -
San Antonio Spurs: Dylan Harper, G, Rutgers
If the Spurs keep the second pick and don’t trade out of this position, it seems like Harper will be the pick. Harper is a big-bodied lefty combo guard with NBA blood in his veins, as the son of Ron Harper, who was a 20/5/5 guy before winning five titles as a role player. Like his father, Harper has a high floor with the skill, poise