{"id":2431,"date":"2016-06-22T21:06:44","date_gmt":"2016-06-23T01:06:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sullyonsports.com\/?p=2431"},"modified":"2019-06-26T16:50:57","modified_gmt":"2019-06-26T20:50:57","slug":"2016-nba-mock-draftbig-board","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sullyonsports.com\/?p=2431","title":{"rendered":"2016 NBA Mock Draft\/Big Board"},"content":{"rendered":"

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I’m sure you probably forgot about it with the NBA Finals going to seven games, but the NBA Draft is this Thursday in Brooklyn. This draft promises to be interesting on a number of levels, with a deep international pool and can’t-miss prospects at the\u00a0top of the class.<\/p>\n

I’ll start things off with my big board; it consists of 54 players, most if not all of which will be drafted Thursday night. \u00a0Here it is, followed by an explanation of a couple of rankings that might jump out at you:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Brandon Ingram<\/li>\n
  2. Ben Simmons<\/li>\n
  3. Buddy Hield<\/li>\n
  4. Jamal Murray<\/li>\n
  5. Dragan Bender<\/li>\n
  6. Jaylen Brown<\/li>\n
  7. Kris Dunn<\/li>\n
  8. Marquese Chriss<\/li>\n
  9. Deyonta Davis<\/li>\n
  10. Furkan Korkmaz<\/li>\n
  11. Henry Ellenson<\/li>\n
  12. Malik Beasley<\/li>\n
  13. Dejounte Murray<\/li>\n
  14. Denzel Valentine<\/li>\n
  15. Domantas Sabonis<\/li>\n
  16. Jakob Poeltl<\/li>\n
  17. Skal Labissiere<\/li>\n
  18. Demetrius Jackson<\/li>\n
  19. Timothe Luwawu<\/li>\n
  20. Ivica Zubac<\/li>\n
  21. Malachi Richardson<\/li>\n
  22. Taurean Prince<\/li>\n
  23. Ante Zizic<\/li>\n
  24. Patrick McCaw<\/li>\n
  25. DeAndre\u2019 Bembry<\/li>\n
  26. Wade Baldwin IV<\/li>\n
  27. Tyler Ulis<\/li>\n
  28. Brice Johnson<\/li>\n
  29. Thon Maker<\/li>\n
  30. Rade Zagorac<\/li>\n
  31. Stephen Zimmerman<\/li>\n
  32. Juan Hernangomez<\/li>\n
  33. Paul Zipser<\/li>\n
  34. Guerschon Yabusele<\/li>\n
  35. A.J. Hammons<\/li>\n
  36. Cheick Diallo<\/li>\n
  37. Caris LeVert<\/li>\n
  38. Ben Bentil<\/li>\n
  39. Zhou Qi<\/li>\n
  40. Isaia Cordinier<\/li>\n
  41. Diamond Stone<\/li>\n
  42. Malcolm Brogdon<\/li>\n
  43. Wayne Selden<\/li>\n
  44. Chinanu Onuaku<\/li>\n
  45. Jake Layman<\/li>\n
  46. Juan Hernangomez<\/li>\n
  47. Gary Payton II<\/li>\n
  48. Georgios Papagiannis<\/li>\n
  49. Isaiah Whitehead<\/li>\n
  50. Damian Jones<\/li>\n
  51. Pascal Siakam<\/li>\n
  52. Fred VanVleet<\/li>\n
  53. Kay Felder<\/li>\n
  54. Yogi Ferrell<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    A couple of things to explain here. \u00a0Number one, I put Brandon Ingram at #1 on my board, and I did this for a variety of reasons. \u00a0The obvious one is that he’s a far,\u00a0far<\/em> better shooter than Simmons. \u00a0Simmons will have to get a jump shot if he wants to be successful in the NBA, at least offensively. \u00a0While he often looks to get his teammates involved, a la LeBron James or Magic Johnson, his shot needs an awful lot of work. \u00a0I also really like Ingram as a defender, and I think this makes his value as a wing skyrocket.<\/p>\n

    Another thing I should really address is Buddy Hield’s presence at #3. \u00a0While this sounds hyperbolic (and maybe it is), Hield is the best shooter the draft has seen since Steph Curry came out of Davidson in 2009. \u00a0Hield’s career progression kind of reminds you of Curry’s; he was a four-year student-athlete at Oklahoma and wasn’t recruited by more basketball-rich schools because of his lack of athletic ability. \u00a0Sound familiar? \u00a0Yeah, I think Hield is going to be really good in the NBA; his work ethic enables him to continue to improve, even at 22, and he should be able to contribute right away to whichever team takes him.<\/p>\n

    With all of that being said, it’s time for our first-round mock draft. \u00a0If this tweet is any indicator, I should be getting about two of thirty of these picks right:<\/p>\n

    \n

    Text from a scout on unpredictability of this draft: “Mock drafts are about to go up in flames.”<\/p>\n

    \u2014 Jonathan Wasserman (@NBADraftWass) June 17, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

    So that’s nice. \u00a0In any event, let’s give it a shot. \u00a0Here’s my 2016 mock draft. \u00a0Let’s hope it doesn’t go up in flames.<\/p>\n

    1. Philadelphia 76ers<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The pick: Ben Simmons<\/p>\n

    F\/LSU<\/p>\n

    The only other logical pick for the 76ers here would be Brandon Ingram. \u00a0Simmons and Ingram\u00a0are the two best players in this draft, and it’s a pretty big gap between two and three.<\/p>\n

    The most impressive part of Simmons’ game, other than his athleticism, is his passing ability. \u00a0 Watch this play against Florida in January. \u00a0Pay close attention to how he looks off the defender and whips the pass into the paint for a shot under the basket:<\/p>\n