Another day, another mock! I joined 11 other analysts in a nine-cat, head-to-head mock draft that was hosted by Adam King on Fantrax, selecting from the fifth spot. The other unique aspect of this draft is that it had a third-round reversal, which flips the draft order after the second round.
The top four picks in every draft should be pretty much locked in, which makes the fifth pick an interesting place to start, leaving you with plenty of options.
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Round 1
1. Nikola Jokic (C – DEN)
2. Victor Wembanyama (C – SA)
3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (G – OKC)
4. Luka Doncic (G – LAL)
5. Giannis Antetokounmpo (F – MIL)
6. Anthony Davis (F – DAL)
7. Anthony Edwards (G – MIN)
8. Cade Cunningham (G – DET)
9. James Harden (G – LAC)
10. Trae Young (G – ATL)
11. Devin Booker (G – PHO)
12. Karl-Anthony Towns (C – NY)
To me, Giannis is the way to go, and he’s a fun player to build around, with a clear punt path. He’s dominant in a handful of categories, and his weaknesses are clear, meaning you can either try and make up for it, or lean into them. I opted to lean into his strengths by emphasizing points, rebounds, assists, steals and field goal percentage while largely disregarding the other four categories. The end of the first round feels weak this year, so the third-round reversal helped even out the league.
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Round 2
13. Stephen Curry (G – GS)
14. Tyrese Maxey (G – PHI)
15. Evan Mobley (F – CLE)
16. Domantas Sabonis (C – SAC)
17. Kevin Durant (F – HOU)
18. Donovan Mitchell (G – CLE)
19. Amen Thompson (F – HOU)
20. Jalen Johnson (F – ATL)
21. Jalen Williams (G – OKC)
22. Josh Giddey (G – CHI)
23. Jaren Jackson (C – MEM)
24. LaMelo Ball (G – CHA)
I felt comfortable taking Johnson here. I’m expecting him to be an All-Star this year, and he fits in well with Giannis. I would’ve loved to get Thompson, but he went one pick before me, which made my decision regarding Johnson much easier. I also thought about Williams, who I have ranked higher than Johnson, but I opted for the better fit. There are quite a few options I really like in round two.
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Round 3
25. Myles Turner (C – MIL)
26. Jamal Murray (G – DEN)
27. Scottie…
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