On July 29th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, the best young talents in basketball are set to gather, all ready to be picked by NBA teams looking for fresh players to boost their rosters in the eat-or-be-eaten world of the big league. Let’s take a look now at how our writers predict the 2021 NBA Draft will go down
TopBet Writers’ 2021 NBA Mock Draft Picks and Predictions
Where: Barclays Center – Brooklyn, N.Y.
When: Thursday, July 29, 2021
TV Broadcast: ESPN
Live Stream: ESPN.com or via ESPN mobile app
Team
Ryan Simpson
Richmond
Rex
1– Detroit Pistons
Cade Cunningham
Cade Cunningham
Cade Cunningham
2 — Houston Rockets
Jalen Green
Jalen Green
Jalen Green
3 — Cleveland Cavaliers
Evan Mobley
Evan Mobley
Evan Mobley
4 — Toronto Raptors
Jalen Suggs
Scottie Barnes
Jalen Suggs
5 — Orlando Magic
Jonathan Kuminga
Jonathan Kuminga
Scottie Barnes
6 — Oklahoma City Thunder
Scottie Barnes
Jalen Suggs
Jonathan Kuminga
7 — Golden State Warriors
Davion Mitchell
Josh Giddey
Davion Mitchell
8 — Orlando Magic
Moses Moody
Alperen Sengün
James Bouknight
9 — Sacramento Kings
Keon Johnson
Kai Jones
Keon Johnson
10 — New Orleans Pelicans
Franz Wagner
James Bouknight
Josh Giddey
Some Important Questions About the 2021 NBA Draft:
Is Cade Cunningham a lock to go No. 1 overall?
By and large, Oklahoma State Cowboys product Cade Cunningham is expected to be taken first overall in the 2021 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons. Of all the possibilities that could happen on draft night, it’s fair to say that it’s the closes thing to a lock. That being said, until his name gets read aloud as the first overall pick, there will always be a chance that the Pistons could do something else with that selection. It’s not beyond the realm of possibility that the Piston will trade their No. 1 pick. Imagine the Pistons trading down to No. 2 or No. 3 which means that they would still get a shot at landing either Jalen Green or Evan Mobley. You could also throw Jalen Suggs’ name in there. What we’re saying is that there are reasonable ulterior motives for the Pistons to at least entertain the idea of NOT selecting Cunnigham No. 1 overall.
Will Luka Garza be drafted?
Luka Garza was the best player of the last NCAA basketball season. Even though he was not able to lead the Iowa Hawkeyes to a March Madness title, that doesn’t change the fact the Garza won the John R. Wooden Award, Naismith College Player of the Year honors, and the Oscar Robertson Trophy all in his last eligible year in college. NBA scouts are not too high on Garza, though, as they’re simply not excited of his chances of bringing his dominance in college to the pros. Garza is neither fast nor athletic, but a scorer with his size should still at least get attention from teams drafting in the second round.
Will the New York Knicks trade any of their draft capital?
As it stands, the Knicks have four picks in the 2021 NBA Draft. They own the 19th and 21st overall picks. They own the rights to the 32nd (from Detroit) and 58th (from Philadelphia) overall picks. New York is coming off a surprising season in which Tom Thibodeau managed to lead the team to the playoffs. The Knicks didn’t make it out of the first round of the postseason, but they could just be a solid point guard away from getting to the next level. With Derrick Rose, Frank Nitilikina, and Elfrid Payton all headed to free agency, the Knicks could use their picks as trade offers for an elite point guard. We’ll just have to wait and see whether the Knicks would and whether a team would listen to such an offer.
