{"id":37241,"date":"2023-03-15T11:34:48","date_gmt":"2023-03-15T15:34:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/?p=37241"},"modified":"2023-03-15T11:34:48","modified_gmt":"2023-03-15T15:34:48","slug":"with-the-first-pick-pre-march-madness-mock-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/2023\/03\/15\/with-the-first-pick-pre-march-madness-mock-draft\/","title":{"rendered":"With the First Pick: Pre-March Madness Mock Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Luke Scotchie<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Ah, the sounds of March.<\/span><\/p>\n

Birds chirping, nets swishing, universities celebrating and Luther Vandross\u2019 \u201cOne Shining Moment\u201d playing in the background. Cheers and tears alike permeate the rowdy arenas that host some of the world\u2019s best basketball this month. You couldn\u2019t ask for a better environment. Nowhere else will you witness this much chaos, this much excitement or this much madness.<\/span><\/p>\n

March madness, that is.<\/span><\/p>\n

Yes, the most prestigious tournament in sports is about to commence. Starting Tuesday, 68 of the best basketball teams in NCAA\u2019s Division I will duke it out in the month-long tournament that changes fortunes, careers and even lives. Brackets will be busted, bars and stadiums will be packed and many of the country\u2019s best young players will have a chance to prove to scouts that they are worthy of playing in the National Basketball Association.<\/span><\/p>\n

I take special interest in that last fact. The NCAA Tournament is without question the biggest event of the Draft Cycle behind the draft itself. It\u2019s the biggest stage that any of these athletes have ever faced so far, where having great performances is necessary for the teams that want to keep dancing. This will be the ultimate test for these players, a final collegiate exam that asks just one simple question: Do you have what it takes to go pro?<\/span><\/p>\n

Well, we don\u2019t know the answer to that. But now that the regular season and conference tournaments are both officially over, we have a good idea of which players are most likely to pass that test. I present to you my latest mock draft, how I would choose the 2023 NBA Draft order if it were being held today, just ahead of this year\u2019s NCAA Tournament.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s worth noting that each team has a different grading rubric for this exam, meaning that a player can pass Milwaukee\u2019s test but fail Houston\u2019s. That\u2019s why this list is not a big board or a player ranking, but a list that attempts to ascertain which player a given team would select given their draft position and players available. This means that sometimes, a team will pass on a slightly better player for a significantly better fit on their roster, a fact I reflect in this mock frequently. Without further ado, here is my latest mock draft.<\/span><\/p>\n

*Draft order is based on the reverse order of NBA standings as of Mar. 13, 2023<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Detroit: <\/span>Victor Wembanyama:<\/b>\u00a0Metropolitans 92<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Houston: <\/span>Scoot Henderson: <\/b>G-League Ignite<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0San Antonio: <\/span>Amen Thompson: <\/b>Overtime Elite<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Charlotte: <\/span>Brandon Miller: <\/b>Alabama<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Orlando: <\/span>Jarace Walker: <\/b>Houston<\/span><\/li>\n
  6. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Washington: <\/span>Anthony Black: <\/b>Arkansas<\/span><\/li>\n
  7. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Portland: <\/span>Cason Wallace: <\/b>Kentucky<\/span><\/li>\n
  8. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Indiana: <\/span>Cam Whitmore: <\/b>Villanova<\/span><\/li>\n
  9. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Orlando (via Chicago): <\/span>Gradey Dick: <\/b>Kansas<\/span><\/li>\n
  10. Toronto: <\/span>Nick Smith, Jr.: <\/b>Alabama<\/span><\/li>\n
  11. New Orleans (via LA Lakers): <\/span>Keyonte George: <\/b>Baylor<\/span><\/li>\n
  12. LA Lakers (via New Orleans): <\/span>Ausar Thompson: <\/b>Overtime Elite<\/span><\/li>\n
  13. Oklahoma City: <\/span>Taylor Hendricks: <\/b>UCF<\/span><\/li>\n
  14. Utah: <\/span>Jalen Hood-Schifino: <\/b>Indiana<\/span><\/li>\n
  15. New York (via Dallas): <\/span>Rayan Rupert: <\/b>New Zealand Breakers<\/span><\/li>\n
  16. Utah (via Minnesota): <\/span>GG Jackson: <\/b>South Carolina<\/span><\/li>\n
  17. Atlanta: <\/span>Jett Howard: <\/b>Michigan<\/span><\/li>\n
  18. Golden State: <\/span>Kris Murray: <\/b>Iowa<\/span><\/li>\n
  19. Miami: <\/span>Brice Sensabaugh: <\/b>Ohio State<\/span><\/li>\n
  20. Houston (via LA Clippers): <\/span>Dariq Whitehead: <\/b>Duke<\/span><\/li>\n
  21. Brooklyn (via Phoenix): <\/span>Kyle Filipowski: <\/b>Duke<\/span><\/li>\n
  22. Portland (via New York): <\/span>Dereck Lively II: <\/b>Duke<\/span><\/li>\n
  23. Brooklun: <\/span>Terquavion Smith: <\/b>NC State<\/span><\/li>\n
  24. Memphis: <\/span>Jordan Hawkins: <\/b>Connecticut<\/span><\/li>\n
  25. Sacramento: <\/span>Maxwell Lewis: <\/b>Pepperdine<\/span><\/li>\n
  26. Indiana (via Cleveland): <\/span>Julian Phillips: <\/b>Tennessee<\/span><\/li>\n
  27. Utah (via Philadelphia): <\/span>Colby Jones: <\/b>Xavier<\/span><\/li>\n
  28. Charlotte (via Denver): <\/span>Leonard Miller: <\/b>G-League Ignite<\/span><\/li>\n
  29. Indiana (via Boston): <\/span>Kobe Bufkin: <\/b>Michigan<\/span><\/li>\n
  30. Los Angeles Clippers (via Milwaukee): <\/span>Jalen Wilson: <\/b>Kansas<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The draft order has shifted considerably since my last mock draft. Some teams are using their post-trade deadline acquisitions to make a playoff run, while others have sold their souls (and players) to the Tank Gods at the very bottom of the standings. This means that there are several player-team couples that I haven\u2019t discussed yet. Here are a few of my favorites.<\/span><\/p>\n

    I\u2019m very interested in this draft haul for Orlando. Jarace Walker is a player that fits like a glove on many NBA teams, such as Indiana, Charlotte, Oklahoma City and Utah. But at first glance, Orlando doesn\u2019t seem like one of them. They appear to have their frontcourt set with Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr. for the foreseeable future\u2014there doesn\u2019t seem to be enough room for Walker.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    And sure, this does seem like a luxury pick more than anything, but he does fill a need. Carter is this team\u2019s anchor, especially around the paint\u2026when he\u2019s healthy. When he misses time, he\u2019s backed up by the likes of Moritz Wagner and Goga Bidatze. Walker fills that backup center, rebounding and paint presence that Orlando misses without Carter, while also providing elite defense and switchability that only the even-more-injured Jonathan Isaac can replicate. He\u2019s also a really sound playmaker that this bench just doesn\u2019t seem to have.<\/span><\/p>\n

    There\u2019s also a universe in which the Magic, who are notable for their absurdly large lineups, start Fultz and Wagner at guards, while playing Banchero, Walker and Carter at the frontcourt. It\u2019s not a perfect lineup by any means, but it does make sense. Walker adds versatility to an already-versatile Magic team, making head coach Jamahl Mosley\u2019s job much more fun.<\/span><\/p>\n

    But one thing that Walker doesn\u2019t provide is one of Orlando\u2019s biggest weaknesses: shooting. I\u2019ve talked about it before, but the Magic have long been desperate for an elite shooter, especially when Gary Harris is out. And so with Chicago\u2019s pick, why not draft Kansas\u2019s Gradey Dick, possibly the best shooters in this draft? It\u2019s not like he creates a logjam like Walker could; the Magic could use another backup wing to begin with. They need someone who can come in and get buckets off the ball, preferably from the 3-point line. Dick does exactly that, and he fits the Magic perfectly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Walker and Villanova\u2019s Cam Whitmore are two very different players. Walker is a defensive specialist with a budding talent in playmaking, while Whitmore is a bucket-getter both with and without the ball in his hands. And yet, Whitmore fits Indiana\u2019s emerging young lineup almost as well as Walker does. While he doesn\u2019t fill the same gaping hole in their lineup that Walker does, the Pacers could use Whitmore\u2019s cutting potential and athleticism to give star point guard Tyrese Haliburton another toy to play with. He\u2019s even shown flashes of elite shot creation that the Pacers could use more of. Whitmore provides a lot to the Pacers, and I think he\u2019d be a good fit there.<\/span><\/p>\n

    I\u2019ve seen Arkansas\u2019s Anthony Black to the Wizards quite a lot among draft speculation, for good reason. Washington needs point of attack defense since they choose not to play Delon Wright. They also need an elite facilitator that can set up great looks for Bradley Beal, Kyle Kuzma and Kristaps Porzingis. They\u2019re in luck, because Black is all of those things rolled into one very tall point guard. He immediately slots into the starting lineup and will immediately take pressure off Beal to create for himself. Sixth overall does seem high for a guy who doesn\u2019t have an above-average jump shot, but I can see the Wizards taking a small reach for a guy I\u2019ve always liked in Black. I\u2019d imagine they like him even more than I do given their needs.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Portland and Kentucky\u2019s Cason Wallace is a match made in heaven that no one talks about. I\u2019ve been very vocal about how much I love Wallace. He\u2019s one of my favorite players in this draft for being its best guard defender while being a solid shooter. He will absolutely be an important piece on a championship team one day, something that Portland seeks to build soon. But before that day comes, they need to replenish their perimeter defense and add some off-ball threats. Wallace fits both of those needs at once, while also giving head coach Chauncey Billups much more versatility than the three score-first guards on his roster. He\u2019s been in a little bit of a slump as of late, but I believe that will pass by the time he enters the league.<\/span><\/p>\n

    I\u2019ve been a fan of Ohio State\u2019s Brice Sensabaugh for a while now. He\u2019s a bucket-getter with the ball in his hands and an elite shooter without it. He had a breakout freshman season this year, jumping from unranked to a bona fide first round pick. I have a bit of personal attachment to him too; he grew up not too far away from me in Orlando, Florida. I think he\u2019s going to be great and I\u2019m finally glad I get to talk about him now.<\/span><\/p>\n

    In this scenario, Sensabaugh falls to Miami simply because some of the teams ahead of the Heat have more pressing concerns or already have players with similar skillsets as him. But I don\u2019t see a world in which Miami doesn\u2019t take him if they have the opportunity to. He\u2019s the best player available and gives them another shot creator to ease the pressure off of Jimmy Butler. Sensabaugh\u2019s presence also gives Miami the wing depth that has been either inconsistent or injured all season. Sensabaugh is possibly the best thing that could happen to Miami\u2019s offense in this draft.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The final intriguing player-fit combination in this draft is Pepperdine\u2019s Maxwell Lewis and the Sacramento Kings. Earlier in the season, Lewis shot up draft boards after putting his Pepperdine Waves on the map with some dominant, 30-point victories against Rice and Alabama State. Some considered Lewis to be a lottery talent. His team looked solid and fun\u2026up until Pepperdine lost to UCLA 100-53. Conference play wasn\u2019t much better for the Waves. They finished with a West Coast Conference record of 2-14, the worst in the league. As the losses kept piling up, Lewis\u2019s draft stock began to tumble. Now, he\u2019s a borderline first round pick. Worth a flyer, but not much else.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Except for a team that could use him in the right situation, Lewis\u2019s defensive skillset or shot creation are not yet at an NBA level, but what he does have is elite-level catch-and-shoot ability. Plugging him into Sacramento\u2019s offense gives the Kings even more lethal shooting, meaning more weapons for Domantas Sabonis to work with and more chances for Kevin Huerter and Malik Monk to get some rest. He slots perfectly into that rotation too, having him back up Harrison Barnes and come in on shooting-centric or taller lineups.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Sure, his defense worries me, as he does zero favors for the Kings, who aren\u2019t the most defensively gifted team under the sun. But he has the length and quickness to one day become a good defender in a way that no other King has. And if he does so in Sacramento, he just becomes an even better fit.<\/span><\/p>\n

    The 2023 NBA Draft is still months away, but March is here, meaning that the madness has only just begun. Over the next month, these players and more will have to prove to NBA teams that they should be drafted. And the only way to do that is to perform well enough to answer that one easy, yet excruciatingly difficult question to determine:<\/span><\/p>\n

    Do you have what it takes to go pro?<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    By Luke Scotchie Ah, the sounds of March. Birds chirping, nets swishing, universities celebrating and Luther Vandross\u2019 \u201cOne Shining Moment\u201d playing in the background. Cheers and tears alike permeate the rowdy arenas that host some of the world\u2019s best basketball this month. You couldn\u2019t ask for a better environment. Nowhere else will you witness this […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21480,"featured_media":37245,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1023,1024,19],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37241"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/21480"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37241"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37241\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37244,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37241\/revisions\/37244"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/wtbu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}