Mocking the Draft

The usual suspects have updated their mock drafts, so I thought I’d keep you updated on what the “experts” are saying about our beloved Sixers. Also, I wrote a full-blown draft preview for a site called Daily Basketball, you can check it out here.

Here are the Sixers latest picks in several mock drafts with a quick comment on each:

Draft Express.com

#12: Julian Wright, SF/PF from Kansas – Not terrible. He’s very similar to Jeff Green, a little smaller, a little longer, with a much less-developed offensive game. Most draft boards have him going higher.
#21:  Rudy Fernandez, SG from DKV Joventut, International – Love this pick. I want either Fernandez or Belinelli here.
#30: Sean Williams, PF/C from Boston College – Again, I love this pick. He’s got some character issues, but a huge upside. 5 blocks per game last year (before being suspended).
#38: Nick Fazekas, PF/C from Nevada – Fazekas is an interesting player. He’s 6’11”, 225 lbs, averaged 20.4 ppg and 11.1 rpg in his senior year at Nevada and shot 43.1% from three. The knock on him is that he isn’t strong enough to play the post, but a guy that size who can stretch the floor could be a real asset, and a steal this late in the draft. Then again, the comparison they make is Keith Van Horn, so you never know.

ESPN.com

#12: Jeff Green, PF from Georgetown – Love it, but I don’t think he’s falling to number 12.
#21: Josh McRoberts, PF from Duke – I can live with McRoberts here, if the guy we get first can start at the #3 or #2.
#30: Marc Gasol, C from Spain – Gasol is a decent gamble. He may not be as soft as his older brother, and he’s still at least a year away from the NBA. I’d prefer getting him with #38, but I wouldn’t complain with this pick.
#38: Apparently Chad Ford is too busy to extend his mock draft beyond the first round. Slacker.

InsideHoops.com

#12: Al Thornton, SF from Florida State – I’m a fan of Thornton’s, but I’d rather have Green.
#21: Alondo Tucker, SG from Wisconsin – Absolutely not. Way too early for him, and he probably isn’t much of an upgrade over Carney.
#30: Tiago Splitter, PF/C from Brazil – It’s doubtful that Splitter would drop this far, if he does, the Sixers have to pull the trigger on the defense-minded Brazilian.

All told, pretty much no one knows what the hell is going on below the top two picks (and no one is 100% certain what’s going to happen there either). These mock drafts are futile, for the most part, but still fun to check out.