2022 NBA consensus mock draft 1.0: How experts see the first round for Houston

Here’s a look at the dozen or so prospects who are currently projected to be within range of the two Houston Rockets picks in the first round of the 2022 NBA draft.

March is arriving shortly, and that will bring plenty of postseason college basketball action in the form of conference tournaments and the NCAA Tournament, known best as “March Madness.”

It also means we’ll see some potential NBA superstars on the biggest stage as they look to turn heads before the 2022 NBA draft. Mock draft season — which is already happening — will hit another gear.

To guide us on who to watch for, our friends over at For The Win compiled a consensus mock draft based on who experts around the Internet are currently picking. The list includes Bryan Kalbrosky, The Athletic, ESPN, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, and NBAdraft.net. The list averages out where each prospect was taken at in the first round.

From a Houston Rockets perspective, we’re focused on possibilities for their own first-round pick and the one headed their way from Brooklyn. While most mock drafts at the moment have those picks at No. 3 overall and No. 16, those are merely projections based on current standings. Eventual changes to the standings over the final six weeks of the 2021-22 season — along with draft lottery results — could make each pick go up or down a few spots, relative to current projections.

With that in mind, here’s a look at the general range of players that could be available with both selections. For the Houston pick, we’ll focus on prospects from No. 1 to No. 7 based on current lottery probabilities, while we’ll go with a range of No. 15 to No. 18 for the Brooklyn pick.