The latest 2015 NBA mock draft from ESPN's Jeff Goodman has the Karl-Anthony Towns going No. 1 to the Minnesota Timberwolves and Jahlil Okafor going No. 2 to the New York Knicks, as well as D'Angelo Russell - not Emmanuel Mudiay - being the first point guard off the board.
Until the actual NBA draft lottery takes place on May 19, it's impossible to draw up an accurate mock board. But seemingly with the intent to give NBA fans a small taste of what could happen, Goodman published his latest mock draft Monday with the order decided by the regular-season records of each team.
Minnesota finished the season with the league's worst record and therefore has the first overall pick in Goodman's draft. Although Okafor has long been viewed as the concensus No. 1 pick, Goodman believes Towns - even if Goodman does overplay Town's offensive prowess - will be the first name called if Minesota does in fact end up with the first pick.
"It won't be an easy call for whichever team winds up with the No. 1 overall pick, but the Wolves already have below-the-rim big man Nikola Pekovic, and he's under contract through 2018 for big money," Goodman wrote Monday. "It's tough to imagine a Pekovic-Jahlil Okafor frontcourt, and the Wolves could use a long, skilled power forward. Towns can do more away from the basket than he displayed in his lone season at Kentucky, and it also won't hurt to have Kevin Garnett tutor Towns for a year or so."
Although the top target of Knicks president Phil Jackson reportedly is the defensive-minded Towns, in Goodman's mock draft he has Jackson going with the best player remaining on the board: Okafor.
"The Knicks need just about everything, so team president Phil Jackson has to go with the best player on the board -- and it'll be Okafor if Towns goes No. 1," Goodman wrote. "Okafor is a rare breed, a true center who can score in the post with a variety of moves. He's a high-basketball IQ guy with tremendous footwork and hands. He would take some of the pressure off Carmelo Anthony on the offensive end, but needs to improve on the defensive side of the floor."
Interestingly enough, Goodman has Russell going next to the Philadephia 76ers at No. 3. Although Russell is a gifted two-way player, many project the more physically impressive Mudiay - his game has drawn him comparisons to Derrick Rose and John Wall - to be the first guard off the board.
Goodman then has Mudiay going fourth overall to the Los Angeles Lakers. If Los Angeles ends up with the No. 4 pick, using it on a guard makes sense. Especially given the sparse free-agent market for guards and the recent reports that indicate the Lakers are no longer enthralled by soon-to-be free agent Rajon Rondo, whose value decreased in the wake of his poor season in Dallas.
Justise Winslow, the freshman wing out of Duke, goes fifth to the Orlando Magic in the mock draft. As Goodman pointed out, he's also a good insurance policy if Orlando chooses not to match a hefty offer for soon-to-be restricted free agent forward Tobias Harris.
Goodman's projections for the sixth and seventh picks are two European players. Although they may not be household names in America, both players - Kristaps Porzingis and Mario Hezonja - have drawn a lot of praise from scouts overseas.
Goodman has Porzingis, a 7-foot power forward, going sixth to the Sacramento Kings. Sacramento needs a power forward to complement center DeMarcus Cousins, and given how scouts have compared the Latvian to the likes of Pau Gasol and Dirk Nowitzki, he fits that bill.
Hezonja goes seventh to the Denver Nuggets. One scout characterized the Croatian small forward as a bigger and better-shooting version of Winslow.
READ MORE ABOUT TOP EUROPEAN PROSPECTS.
Goodman's top 10 rounds out with forward Stanley Johnson going eighth to the Detroit Pistons, center Willie Cauley-Stein going ninth to the Charlotte Hornets and forward Sam Dekker going 10th to the Miami Heat.
The NBA draft is on June 25. You can read the rest of Goodman's first-round mock draft HERE.
