Hey there,

here's my Mock Draft for the first round. I have added a short comment on why i put a guy at which position. Hope you like it. Leave a message if you agree/disagree.

1     Wizards:      John Wall - No brainer. Questions remain if he and Arenas can co-exist on the court, but i don't think the Wizards have major concerns about it. See what Flip Saunders thinks. That doesn't mean the Wiz woulnd't pull the trigger if they could find a way to deal Arenas away though.

2     76ers:      Evan Turner - Other options would be Favors or Cousins. But a lineup of Holiday, Turner and Iggy definately can run and may cause matchup problems to smaller teams. Turner and Iggy can switch the SF and SG positions during matches, only problem is to find playing time for Young. Rumours that Iggy will be dealt have surfaced from time, and i'm sure the 76ers will consider such a deal if they could include Brand's contract.

3     Nets:      Derrick Favors - It's a safe pick for the Nets, since Favors has huge upside and the Nets are in rebuilding mode. Makes more sense than Cousins, who is playing more like a center than a PF. Favors and Lopez give the Nets an impressive frontline. Wes Johnson has an outsider chance to get picked at #3 if the Nets are sure they can add a top PF in free agency (Lee, Boozer or Stoudemire). But it's a safe bet right now that they will go big and pick either Favors or Cousins.

4     Timberwolves:      Wesley Johnson - Should the Wolves keep Jefferson and Love, Johnson as a wing player is the one pick which makes sense here. Some people doubt his upside, but he can be a leader for the Wolves, which they are certainly lacking right now. On the other hand, if the Wolves are planning to deal either Jefferson or Love, they will almost certainly go big and pick a player like Cousins, who can play center.

5     Kings:      Al-Farouq Aminu - For the Kings it comes down to the decision between Cousins or Aminu. Both are still very young and have extreme upside. But Cousins is considered a little immature at this point. In case he doesn't prove GMs wrong is the interviews, i guess the Kings will go safe with this pick and take the more versatile player in Aminu. ***Update: and here is what Jonathan Givony tweeted about the interviews of Aminu and Cousins.***

6     Warriors:      DeMarcus Cousins - Looks like jackpot for the Warriors, right? At #6, picking Cousins is an absolute no-brainer for them. Plus, he would fit great in the run and gun offense.

7     Pistons:      Greg Monroe - For the Pistons it's essential to pick a center. Question is, who fits better in their system, Aldrich or Monroe? I think they will go with Monroe. He's a special kind of player, not your typical center, always looking for open teammates. Plus, they don't expect him to be THE man, like they were in Georgetown, which could benefit his playing.

8     Clippers:      Cole Aldrich - A great SF is what the Clippers are in need of right now. Since no quality SF is available at this point, they will go safe and pick a backup for the injury-prone Kaman.

9     Jazz:      Patrick Patterson - Most mocks have him in the 12 - 15 range, but i think he fits quite well personality-wise in the Jazz team. If they don't plan to re-sign Boozer, he is a mature backup for Milsap and could see quite a few minutes in his first season. His last seaosn did good to his draft stock although his stats didn't blow you away.

10     Pacers:      Xavier Henry - They need a PG, but picking Bledsoe that high is unlikely. Henry is a scoring shooter who can provide instant scoring punches off the bench and could also find his way into the starting lineup. He's a safe pick.

11     Hornets:      Donatas Montiejunas - I know nothing about this guy, but mocks had him ranked in the 2 - 5 region not too long ago. Weaknesses seem to be athleticism and defense. He seems to be a project. If he develops the right way he gives the Hornets a big shooting guy. Maybe this is ranking him too high, we will see.

12     Grizzlies:      Ed Davis - Most mocks have him ranked higher, but i'm not so sure about his skills. He was expected to be the go-to-guy for the Tar Heels, and in my opinion he wasn't that the whole time. Plus his injury may hurt his draft stock. For the Griz this pick makes sense because he is not as raw and more talented than all the other available players. If he proves me wrong, he could be a steal.

13     Raptors:      Ekpe Udoh - The Raptors are likely to lose Bosh in free agency or s&t. I assume them to go to rebuilding mode, so Udoh, who's is kind of raw offensively, is a project who could be a valuable asset the next few years, or a complete bust.

14     Rockets:      Hassan Whiteside - Speaking of raw players, here's another one. The Rockets have the luxery to pick the most talented guy available, no matter what position he plays. He can learn from Yao the next few years, if Yao stays that be.

15     Bucks:      Daniel Orton - And the raw players go on...Orton is quite a high risk-high reward pick at # 15. But the Bucks desperately need another big man, and Orton is just that.

16     Timberwolves:      Larry Sanders - An above average athlete who can provide scoring off the bench. Some mocks have him gone in the 20 - 25 range, but i think he may go higher than that.

17     Bulls:      Avery Bradley - The Bulls need guards. It's really hard to predict who they will pick, but it seems they're quite high on James Anderson. Bradley hasn't been invited to a pre-draft-workout with the Bulls (yet), but with his great defensive skills and an okay 3pt-shot he may be a better fit for the Bulls. Other players the Bulls may consider include Bledsoe or Warren. Depends on the workouts i think.

18     Heat:      James Anderson - A scoring 2-guard who can turn out in a poor-man's Wade (which would be quite good). Another guy they could go after is Bledsoe if he impresses in workouts.

19     Celtics:      Eric Bledsoe - The Celts pick the player with the biggest upside available, who is Bledsoe. He can learn from Rondo and may be a good backup some time.

20     Spurs:      Gordon Hayward - A typical Spurs pick. Take the good work-ethic guy who is a coaches player. Plus, he has good height for his position.

21     Thunder:      Willie Warren - The Thunder can't afford taking a raw player who's considered a project. They go safe with Warren if he not disappoints them in workouts. He, like Westbrook, isn't your typical PG and therefore might fit well into the system.

22     Trail Blazers:      Solomon Alabi - They go big in this draft if they can. Alabi is quite raw too, but he can provide good defense and may be a good backup plan in case the Blazers big men get injured again.

23     Timberwolves:      Damion James - Lots of mocks have him ranked higher. I dunno, maybe i'm wrong, but i don't think the Wolves are keeping their third first round pick. Depends on who gets it, but James is definately a player you pick at #23 if he's still available.

24     Hawks:      Devin Ebanks - I found his soph campaign quite disappointing. I'm not sure, it's tough to figure out who goes where at the end of the first round.

25     Grizzlies:      Luke Babbitt - He can score and shoot, good all around player. Safe pick here.

26     Thunder:      Kevin Seraphin - Dunno much about him eitherm, but he seems to be quite a good talent. Maybe the Thunder let him play a few more seasons oversees.

27     Nets:      Paul George - The Nets may take Gani Lawal as well, but George is too good a talent to pass on him.

28     Grizzlies:      Stanley Robinson - One of only few seniors in this draft. A safe pick here as well, quite versatile.

29     Magic:      Gani Lawal - He may have hurt his draft stock by staying in school and playing alongside Favors, who stole the spotlight. I think quite high of Lawal, but i doubt he will go higher.

30     Wizards:      Quincy Pondexter - Another senior. Dunno why i picked him going at 30, but when i look at the players who are still left on the board, he's the safest one in my opinion.

There are quite a few stories about this draft, being:

1) Who can sneak into the first round?

From the ones i left off the first round i think the best chances to get picked late in the 1st round have Elliott Williams, Jordan Crawford, but also Dominique Jones or Darington Hobson. This is a very deep draft and it depends on how the workouts turn out. Sad for Elliott Williams that he had to skip the draft combine due to injury.

2) Which team trades/sells their first round picks?

The Wolves have 3 first round picks, so do the Grizzlies. I can imagine the Knicks have some interest in buying one of these picks, probably the late ones. Another taker could be the Bobcats, who currently also don't own a first round pick.

3) Which player can climb up the board?

As mentioned above, i'm quite high on players like Patterson, Sanders, Lawal and Bradley, who i all have ranked higher than most mocks. Other players who might fly under the radar are Luke Babbitt and Paul George, who might impress people with strong workouts. I also think that Willie Warren might help his draft stock if he shows that he is capable of handling point guard duties.

That's it, my first mock draft right after the lottery. For me the first two picks are set in stone. I'm also pretty sure of who stays in the lottery, i think there is a little drop off talent after the 14th pick. Who goes from the 15 - 30 range will be pretty interesting.

Lemme know what you think. And excuse spelling mistakes if you find some, english is not my native language.