NBA Mock Draft

Not to be confused with our Mockery of a Mock Draft, Kamp and Gudy have decided to actually try to predict, prognosticate, foretell, or guess at the actual outcome of the upcoming NBA draft. This should be interesting, because Gudy knows very little about the NBA, and is rather annoyed by the league, and Kamp's feelings are pretty evident as well. The format will be much like our Viking's Draft Recap, except Kamp will be taking the odd numbered picks, and Gudy will be taking the even ones. Each pick will be made one at a time, with the selector explaining his pick, the other responding to that, and finally the selector responding to the response. We hope you enjoy!

1. Portland - Greg Oden, C, Ohio State University
   
• Kamp - The temptation is to say that they should select Kevin Durant based on the fact that they have LaMarcus Aldridge and Zach Randolph to play on the front line, and they could use perimeter help. However, Aldridge is young and talented enough to play the 3, and they could use a solid center to rebound and play defense, which we know Oden can do well. Any offense they get from him can be viewed as a bonus.
• Gudy - I believe that for a rebuilding team like the Blazers, the right move is to trade Randolph during this off-season or next, and to build around Oden, Roy, and Aldridge. This is pretty much a no-brainer.
  
• Kamp - I don't know why it is, but I keep forgetting about Roy on this team. He's a great player in the making. With the addition of Oden, Portland has a great young nucleus of players.
  
2. Seattle - Kevin Durant, SF, Texas
• Gudy - The temptation here is to see Portland without a swingman, and with Aldridge and Randolph already manning the paint. Seattle doesn't really have a viable big man, but I think Rashard Lewis' time is limited with Seattle, and Durant makes a nice combo with Ray Allen and has a good point guard in Luke Ridnour to get him the ball.
• Kamp - Durant actually fits in with what Seattle likes to do better than Oden. Oden would run out of gas in a big hurry in the up-and-down style that Seattle plays. The problem, of course, is that if Seattle takes Durant and keeps Lewis, who plays/guards the likes of Garnett, Duncan, and Nowitzki in the West?
  
• Gudy - That's why I think they let Lewis walk...I don't think it really fits into their philosophy to keep both of them on the same team...plus, I just read that Lewis opted out of his contract, so he is officially a free agent now.
  
3. Atlanta - Al Horford, PF, Florida
• Kamp - What we decided to do in this mock draft is to make those picks that we would make if we were the team. Horford comes from a winning program that prided itself on working together as a team. Hopefully, he can help solidify an Atlanta team that has been in disarray for years now. Mike Conley, Jr., could also be the pick here.
  
• Gudy - If Atlanta really has their eye on Conley, I'm wondering if they'd consider trading down a few spots to take him. I can see someone falling in love with Horford or the Chinese guy and putting something together to move up to this spot.
  
• Kamp - I don't usually like the idea of moving down when the player that you want is there. If you really like Conley, take him even if you think that you could get him a few picks later, because you can't be certain that he'll still be there.
  
4. Memphis - Brandon Wright, F, North Carolina
• Gudy - This is another team with a distinct PG need, although I still don't think anyone is ready to reach for Conley yet. Wright and Horford are going back-to-back in most mocks on the internet, and if Horford is gone when Memphis picks, I could see them going Wright here.
• Kamp - I don't know that Wright is a good pick for them here unless they're moving Pau, which is a real possibility. Wright is still raw, so he gives Memphis another excuse as to why they're not winning yet.
  
• Gudy - I pretty much made this pick under the assumption of a Gasol trade. Trading Gasol means that they need to land a PG, though. If Chicago is still in the running for Gasol, I could see Ben Gordon as a real possibility, although he's not really a true PG.
  
5. Boston - Yi Jianlian, FC, China
• Kamp - I have to admit that even though I'm the one making the pick, I'm not that crazy about it. It's a very high risk/high reward sort of pick which I don't normally like teams making (e.g. Ndudi Ebi). At the same time, the only centers that the Celtics have on the team right now are Olowakandi and Ratliff. Most of the other positions have established people (Jefferson, Pierce, and Szczerbiak, for instance). Again, Conley is another possibility.
• Gudy - Looking it over, my guess is that Jianlian could end up going to Memphis as well, but this pick makes sense for the Celtics. He's starting to get the same type of buzz that Andrea Bargnani had going into last years draft, and if he plays scrappy, the C's might not have to wait so long for him.
  
• Kamp - Boston has plenty of time to wait, though. They seem to be perfectly happy to make questionable move after questionable move and not have the pressure put on anyone to win games. Usually, it's exactly the opposite. It's interesting to me that we have three former Celtics players in positions of authority in the league right now (Bird, Ainge, and McHale) that seem to have managed to not learn anything from Red Aurbach during their time in Boston.
  
6. Milwaukee - Corey Brewer, SF, Florida
• Gudy - While my dreams have him sliding one more pick to the T-Wolves, Brewer is a logical pick for Milwaukee with Mo Williams and Michael Redd at the 1 & 2, and Charlie Villanueva and Andrew Bogut at 4 & 5. Brewer slides in as a defensive stopper/slasher at the 3, and really provides this team with a new dimension.
• Kamp - Fantastic pick for the Bucks. In a relatively short period of time, they've assembled a great group of young players to be a solid core for many years to come. Makes me wonder how they're going to screw it up, but I digress. Brewer strikes me as the kind of player who wants to do whatever it takes to have his team win. From defense to shooting threes and everything in between, he just wants to help the team.
  
• Gudy - Brewer brings a lot to the table. He's an amazing athlete, he's a winner, and I've heard him described as "Trenton Hassell with useful basketball skills."
  
7. Minnesota - Jeff Green, SF, Georgetown
• Kamp - There have been a lot of rumblings about the possibility of taking Conley here, but that doesn't make a whole lot of sense for a very guard heavy team like the Timberwolves unless they can move Mike James and one of McCants/Foye for some front-court help. That's not to say that I'd prefer to have Conley over Green, though. Green really makes sense for the team in need of youth in the front court to help out KG. Green is very much like Brewer in that he wants to help the team win.
• Gudy - I'm not sure I agree with this pick. If Brewer is gone, I'm probably hoping for Joakim Noah in this situation. Another one I'd personally rather have than Jeff Green would be Julian Wright. But I'm usually wrong about the NBA, so maybe this is a good pick.
  
• Kamp - The only stats in which Wright is better than Green are FG% and rebounding along with being an inch taller. I really liked what I saw from Green during the whole NCAA tourney, not just the Final Four. Green is a better scorer and passer. That's why he's the pick. Also, because I forgot about Wright, to be honest. That would have made the pick more difficult to make, but I still think that Green's the better pick for the Wolves.
  
8. Charlotte - Julian Wright, SF, Kansas
• Gudy - He seems like a good fit for Charlotte, especially since the Bobcats are in an almost identical situation with Gerald Wallace as the Sonics are in with Rashard Lewis. He's an unselfish player with exceptional passing skills for a forward, teaming him up with Raymond Felton will help this team maximize their scoring potential by finding easy points on each possession. He's not an offensive liability either, and since he's better at scoring in the post, he may also take some pressure off of Emeka Okafor and help prevent him from being the next Ben Wallace. How's that for name dropping?
• Kamp - Wright is a nice upgrade from Wallace, who had done nothing in the league until, surprise, it was his contract year. He's another guy who's following in the footsteps of Tim Thomas. Charlotte is another team that has a good young core. If only they could get Sean May to care.
  
• Gudy - May's presence was what kept me from going big with Joakim Noah. He still remains a possibility here.
  
9. Chicago - Joakim Noah, PF, Florida
• Kamp - I hate having to make this pick. I had promised myself that I wouldn't pick Noah under any circumstances. However, it makes sense at this point since the Bulls need some young size in the low post which Noah would provide. Now, I must explain. I have inexplicably been convinced that Noah will be the new millennium's version of Christian Laetner. He just strikes me that way.
  
• Gudy - Noah makes sense here, because the Bulls don't really have any players on their team already who are defensive specialists/energy guys that can't play offense. He probably would've been a better fit in Sac-town.
  
• Kamp - I'm detecting the sarcasm in your voice. The thing of it is, though, that Noah is about 20 years younger than Ben Wallace looked for a good portion of this year. He fits in better with the Bulls and their current youth movement (Hinrich, Gordon, Deng, Nocioni, Thomas). Also, I think it's a bit of an exaggeration to say that he has no offense.
  
10. Sacramento - Mike Conley, Jr., PG, The Ohio State University
• Gudy - While the Kings probably need to find someone to fill their front line out, it's too tough to pass Conley up here. You get the replacement for Bibby that they've been longing, and Bibby is a very tradeable piece that might bring the size they covet anyway.
• Kamp - If they can get any value for Bibby, then it's a great pick. Otherwise, it makes no sense since Bibby is the best player on the team that's not certifiably crazy.
  
• Gudy - They've been shopping him for two or three seasons now...if they are going to move him, they'll do it with Conley in the fold.
  
11. Atlanta - Jarvis Crittendon, G, Georgia Tech
• Kamp - If this is the way that things pan out, then Atlanta is upset that Conley just went off the board. They would have been ecstatic if he would have fallen to their second pick. As it is, they'll settle for the project that is Javaris Crittenton. He needs to improve the assist/turnover ratio a bit, but he should have fun running with the other very skinny people in Atlanta. I'm looking at you, Josh Smith.
• Gudy - This is a surprising move with Acie Law still on the board, but it actually fits with what Atlanta has done in the past...questionable moves.
  
• Kamp - And that was the decider for me. I was going back and forth between Jarvis and Acie. The thing that tipped the scales was the fact that it's Atlanta.
  
12. Philadelphia - Spencer Hawes, C, Washington
• Gudy - On a squad that is in all-out rebuilding mode, Hawes makes a lot of sense, since they already have a decent guard in Andre Iguodala. This adds another dimension to their offense.
• Kamp - At this point for Philly, they just need warm bodies that can play. The question for Hawes is can he add the strength that he'll need to play the 82 games of an NBA season? After all, he's nearly seven feet tall, but only weighs in at 250.
  
• Gudy - Plus, this would theoretically give Philly a formidable front line with Hawes and Dalembert. I say theoretically because they both might amount to nothing.
  
13. New Orleans/OKC - Al Thornton, SF, Florida St.
• Kamp - Chris Paul gets a running mate in form of a very athletic small forward. This will give David West some help in the paint as well, if Thornton can get the offensive rebounds and put-backs.
• Gudy - I think this is a fairly safe pick for New Orleans. They're probably a team that just needs to add talented players and depth.
  
• Kamp - Talent is what Thornton gives them. His pro comparison is Shawn Marion. That's a good bit of talent.
  
14. LA Clippers - Acie Law IV, PG, Texas A&M
• Gudy - Let's see...Shaun Livingston has a catastrophic injury right now...Sam Cassell is um, Sam Cassell, and he's out the door soon anyway. This pick makes sense.
• Kamp - Very good pick for the Clippers. While I wasn't that impressed with what Law did during the the tourney, he still should be able to become a good point guard for the Clippers. Hopefully, he'll only learn basketball skills from Cassell instead of how to handle the business side of things.
  
• Gudy -If I'm the Clippers, in this situation I'm keeping Law as far away from Cassell as possible...and trying to keep Cassell from even knowing that they drafted him.
  
15. Detroit - Josh McRoberts, F/C, Duke
• Kamp - McRoberts does a little bit of everything. He averaged 10 points and nearly eight rebounds for the Blue Devils last year and while I can't say that he'd be a steal here, he should be a good pick for the Pistons. However, always keep in mind that he's a Blue Devil, so he's probably overrated.
  
• Gudy - This might be a reach, but it's still a solid pick...McRoberts killed his draft stock by staying in school. Perhaps he's a little more mature and savvy, though, and should be able to help out at least a little bit. Plus I'm sure he and Rasheed Wallace will be fast friends.
  
• Kamp - Even if he did kill his draft stock by staying in school another year, he ends up in a better situation than he most likely would have last year. He's going to a team that has been to five straight conference finals and he'll be able to take minutes away from the player formally known as Chris Webber.
  
16. Washington - Jason Smith, C, Colorado St.
• Gudy - I'm not exactly sure if the Brendan Haywood/Etan Thomas catfight has been resolved yet, but the Wiz could probably do with shoring up their frontcourt.
• Kamp - Adding a legit center to the Wizards will really help this team on the rise. They have their point guard for the next decade in Arenas, a very good small forward in Butler, and a very good five in Jameson.
  
• Gudy - I don't think Jameson is necessarily a five. He probably classifies as a #4, but still, I get your point.
• Kamp - Oops.
  
17. New Jersey - Thaddeus Young, SF, Georgia Tech
• Kamp - This seems to be a banner year for small forwards in the draft. Thaddeus provides New Jersey insurance for when Vince Carter decides that he's worth a lot more money than he really is and bolts the Nets.
• Gudy - And he provides insurance for when Richard Jefferson looks at himself in the mirror wrong, and throws out his back...or whatever other freak injury awaits him.
  
• Kamp - Yeah, I hate when that happens. You hate to see players who would be really, really good if they could stay healthy. See also: Baron Davis.
  
18. Golden State - Tiago Splitter, F/C, Spain
• Gudy - Not really sure where the Warriors are going here, especially after a fantastic run in the playoffs. I took Splitter because of the unknown factor, and because I'm curious what a Tiago is, and why anyone would want to split it.
• Kamp - I think it's Portugeuse for "Chad Ford loves my upside." I'm also looking forward to when he decides he's a big enough star to go down to one name. Will he go with Tiago or Splitter?
  
• Gudy - I think you would have to go with Tiago in this situation, as you potentially could have Ike Diagu (I think he's a Warrior) and some guy named Tiago.
  
19. LA Lakers - Aaron Brooks, PG, Oregon
• Kamp - The Lakers' biggest need off the court is for someone to tell Kobe to shut up and just play basketball because he's not the GM or the coach. The Lakers' biggest need on the court is a point guard. Brooks is the best one available at this point. He's quick and not horrible on the defensive end of the court. He needs to look for his teammates a little more at the net level, though, since he only averaged a little over four assists per game.
• Gudy -I'm going to guess that anyone in California is going to be more than a little wary of drafting a guy in charge of passing named Aaron Brooks. Just a hunch. At least that's why Golden State, based very near Oakland, passed him up...
  
• Kamp - Yeah, but he's trying to make a name for himself that isn't immediately followed by "is a complete failure."
  
20. Miami - Nick Young, G/F, USC
• Gudy - This is the highest pick left on CNNsi.com's mock draft that we haven't taken yet. I don't know much about him, but he went at #11 over there. If he's still available, it seems like a logical pick for the aging Heat to just take the best player left on the board.
• Kamp - The Heat are continually digging themselves an ever-deeper hole by going for aging veterans and trading away all their youth. Of course, it's gotten them an NBA championship, so what do I know?
  
• Gudy - That's a good debate to get going...What's more valuable, one championship, or several year of enduring greatness where you may not win the championship?
  
21. Philadelphia - Rodney Stuckey, G, Eastern Washington
• Kamp - At 6'4, he's able to play both guard spots and averaged five assists in his Sophomore campaign. There's always a bit of risk in selecting smaller-school players, because you can never be too certain if they're that good of a player, or if they just excelled against inferior opponents. At the same time, let's not mince words. Philly is terrible and needs all the help it can get.
• Gudy - As we delve further into this draft, we are increasing the percentage of players I've never heard of. So, I'm just going to agree with you on this one.
  
• Kamp - As it should be, my friend. As it should be.
  
22. Charlotte - Alando Tucker, F, Wisconsin
• Gudy - I waffled on this one a bit. It was between Tucker and Afflalo, and ultimately I went with Tucker because Charlotte could really use a mature player who's ready to contribute. Tucker is certainly that. While I doubt he'll ever be a star in this league, he should at least be a useful player who can make a positive contribution to the Bobcats.
• Kamp - Didn't we just give Charlotte a small forward a few picks ago? Let me check. (scroll, scroll, scroll). Yes, we did. What they needed at this spot was the best shooting guard available. I'm disappointed by this pick. Mainly because I wanted to cause controversy.
  
• Gudy - Again, this pick was about adding talent that's ready to contribute. Julian Wright is a project. Alando Tucker is what he is.
  
23. New York - Rudy Fernandez, G, Spain
• Kamp - Disclaimer: I have never seen this guy play. However, from looking at some of his draft profiles, he strikes me as a slightly more athletic version of Allan Houston. He definitely needs to put on some muscle, weighing in at only 172 pounds, but he can shoot and get to the hoop. After all, the Knicks need scoring.
  
• Gudy - I agree. I think.
  
• Kamp - Well, that makes one of us at least.
  
24. Phoenix - Arron Afflalo, G, UCLA
• Gudy - The Suns have two first round picks, and I see them wanting to add a shooter here, and maybe a project that they can stash away in the NBDL for a little bit. Afflalo fits the profile.
• Kamp - Why waste a first-round pick on someone you want to stash in NBDL? That's what the second round is for.
  
• Gudy - Because if you believe he has first round talent, but you don't want to waste his development time sitting on the bench, you let him play regularly in the NBDL...That's why.
  
25. Utah - Marc Gasol, C Spain
• Kamp - Utah is a team that seems to keep making the right moves. They picked up Okur, who's been a great player for them. They essentially stole Boozer from under the nose of the Cavs, and he finally gave them a full season of work. Gasol gives them a huge body in the middle to take some of the punishment and rebounding duties from Boozer. If he can score as well, bonus.
• Gudy - Plus, his name is way better than his brother's, so he's got that going for him, too.
  
• Kamp - How many times do you suppose Pau has heard "Um...you forgot and 'l'"?
26. Houston - Herbert Hill, PF, Providence
• Gudy - Just what the Rockets need: A mature big man who's ready to step in right away, contribute solid minutes, protect Yao in the paint, and hit the boards. It might be a stretch taking him here, as some people have him projected in early first round, but you draft for need, and that's what I did here.
• Kamp - Yeah, drafting for need worked out so well for the Trail Blazers in '84, didn't it?
  
• Gudy - Well, the Blazers weren't drafting 26th overall, were they?
  
27. Detroit - Marcus Williams, SG, AZ
    
• Kamp - Very good mid-range game and has a three-point shot. Not the greatest on defense, but that should be hidden on Detroit pretty well. Might play some point as well.
• Gudy - If there's any team where "not the greatest on defense" can be compensated for, it's Detroit. Now, it remains to be seen how much he can contribute.
  
• Kamp - I agree with what you said, although it's obvious that Detroit isn't what it used to be on defense. I don't think LeBron would have scored 48 against the Pistons teams with Ben Wallace in the middle.
  
28. San Antonio - Ante Tomic, C, Croatia
• Gudy - Well, they have a few dudes from America, a dude from the Virgin Islands, a dude from France, a dude from Argentina...now they'll have a dude from Croatia. Seems fitting.
• Kamp - San Antonio is one of the best internationally-scouting teams in the league. Their one big misstep was Rasho, but they didn't draft him.
  
• Gudy - I think they have a few more foreigners on the roster that I didn't mention, so this is right up their alley...unless the guy stinks, that is.
  
29. Phoenix - Morris Almond, SG, Rice
• Kamp - Not the insane athlete that one would think Phoenix would normally favor, but he's a great spot-up shooter. With Nash driving to the hoop and dishing to Almond, he should have plenty of open looks from three.
• Gudy - I have read an article that the Suns could potentially be looking at Jared Jordan, a PG out of Marist here, but that might be a reach since most people see him as a "second half of the 2nd round"-type pick.
  
• Kamp - Taking a PG wouldn't' be the worst idea in the world due to Nash's age, but they have Barbosa to spell Nash if he needs it.
  
30. Philadelphia - Gabe Pruitt, SG, USC
• Gudy - Again with the NBA-ready talent theme, Pruitt is a talented college junior, and he'll be most ready to play and contribute for a mostly talentless 76ers squad.
• Kamp - They just need warm bodies, mainly. That and a new GM.
  
• Gudy - I agree.