NBA
NBA PM: An Early 2016 NBA Mock Draft
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
An Early First Round Mock Draft: It’s never too early to take a look at the upcoming draft class, right?
The projected 2016 NBA Draft class may not be as top heavy as say this year’s rookie class, which has produced some solid early contributors. The 2016 Draft Class looks to be a two-man race at the top with LSU’s Ben Simmons and Kentucky’s Skal Labissiere as the “must have” guys; however, the next tier of players could be five or six guys deep and the middle and bottom of the draft, as it looks today, could yield some solid rotation players.
A big thing to keep in mind about Mock Drafts this early in the year is that as many as eight first-round picks could end up with other teams from previous trades, and the ninth (belonging to the L.A. Lakers) could change hands too if all the draft protection criteria are actually met. So this Mock Draft could look very different in June as a result.
So without further ado, here is what we’ll call the Kyler Mock Draft Version 1.0.
Steve Kyler - Mock Draft - 12/3/15
| Pk | Team | Player |
|---|---|---|
| $1 |  | Ben Simmons SF/PF 19 years old; 6'10"; 239 lbs. LSU, Freshman |
| $2 |  | Skal Labissiere PF/C 19 years old; 7'0"; 216 lbs. Kentucky, Freshman |
| $3 |  | Brandon Ingram SF 18 years old; 6'9"; 196 lbs. Duke, Freshman |
| $4 |  | Dragan Bender PF 18 years old; 7'1"; 216 lbs. Maccabi Tel Aviv, International |
| $5 |  | Jaylen Brown SG/SF 19 years old; 6'7"; 222 lbs. California, Freshman |
| $6 |  | Jamal Murray PG/SG 18 years old; 6'5"; 201 lbs. Kentucky, Freshman |
| $7 |  | Kris Dunn PG 21 years old; 6'4"; 205 lbs. Providence, Junior |
| $8 |  | Cheick Diallo PF/C 19 years old; 6'9"; 220 lbs. Kansas, Freshman |
| $9 |  | Jakob Poeltl C 20 years old; 7'0"; 235 lbs. Utah, Sophomore |
| $10 |  | Henry Ellenson PF 18 years old; 6'10"; 231 lbs. Marquette, Freshman |
| $11 |  | Diamond Stone PF/C 18 years old; 6'10"; 250 lbs. Maryland, Freshman |
| $12 |  | Furkan Korkmaz SG 18 years old; 6'7"; 185 lbs. Anadolu Efes, International |
| $13 |  | Timothe Luwawu SG/SF 20 years old; 6'7"; 205 lbs. Mega Vizura, International |
| $14 |  | Stephen Zimmerman C 19 years old; 7'0"; 235 lbs. UNLV, Freshman |
| $15 | | Damian Jones PF/C 20 years old; 6'10"; 248 lbs. Vanderbilt, Junior |
| Pk | Team | Player |
|---|---|---|
| $16 |  | Denzel Valentine SG 22 years old; 6'6"; 223 lbs. Michigan State, Senior |
| $17 |  | Demetrius Jackson PG 21 years old; 6'1"; 194 lbs. Notre Dame, Junior |
| $18 | | Ivan Rabb PF 18 years old; 6'10"; 215 lbs. California, Freshman |
| $19 |  | Jonathan Jeanne PF/C 18 years old; 7'0"; 0 lbs. Espoirs Le Mans, International |
| $20 |  | Malik Newman PG/SG 18 years old; 6'4"; 179 lbs. Mississippi St., Freshman |
| $21 | | Zhou Qi C 19 years old; 7'2"; 209 lbs. Xinjiang, International |
| $22 | | Thomas Bryant PF/C 18 years old; 6'9"; 225 lbs. Indiana, Freshman |
| $23 | | Caris LeVert PG/SG 21 years old; 6'7"; 200 lbs. Michigan, Senior |
| $24 | | Domantas Sabonis PF/C 19 years old; 6'10"; 231 lbs. Gonzaga, Sophomore |
| $25 | | Isaiah Briscoe PG/SG 19 years old; 6'3"; 218 lbs. Kentucky, Freshman |
| $26 |  | Devin Robinson SF 20 years old; 6'8"; 180 lbs. Florida, Sophomore |
| $27 |  | Troy Williams SF 20 years old; 6'6"; 195 lbs. Indiana, Junior |
| $28 | | Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk SG 18 years old; 6'8"; 191 lbs. Kansas, Sophomore |
| $29 |  | Petr Cornelie PF 20 years old; 6'11"; 220 lbs. Le Mans, International |
| $30 |  | Justin Jackson SF 20 years old; 6'8"; 201 lbs. North Carolina, Sophomore |
As things stand today, the Nets pick would go to the Celtics. The Wolves also owe a pick to the Celtics. The Knicks pick would end up in Toronto by way of Denver. The Celtics are also owed the Mavericks pick, while the Nuggets are owed the Grizzlies pick. The 76ers could end up picking back to back as they are owed the Thunder and HEAT’s first-round picks. The Suns round out the first round with the Cavaliers pick.
The Lakers pick is top-three protected, so if that pick fall outside the top three it will belong to the 76ers.
Keep in mind, pick debt is based on the actual pick placement, not where a team finishes so lottery luck is still a factor in who ultimately gets a pick.
Who Are The Names To Know? Check Out the Top 100 Draft Prospects powered by DraftExpress.
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