Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman released a new NBA mock draft on Wednesday morning, one week before the 2024 NBA draft gets underway on June 26, and he paired one recent Duke basketball star with another former Blue Devil.
Wasserman put [autotag]Jared McCain[/autotag] on the Orlando Magic with the 18th overall pick and [autotag]Kyle Filipowski[/autotag] went 28th to the Denver Nuggets, last year’s NBA champions.
McCain would be paired with [autotag]Paolo Banchero[/autotag], who led the Blue Devils to the Final Four in 2022 before winning the 2022-23 NBA Rookie of the Year honors. As a 41.4% 3-point shooter, McCain would provide ideal floor spacing alongside the 6-foot-10 Banchero, and he showed off his form and consistency with a highlight-reel performance at the combine.
Filipowski, a 7-footer who averaged nearly three assists per game last season, would get to learn behind three-time MVP Nikola Jokic, the best 7-footer passer in league history.
The Magic earned the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs last year, taking the Cleveland Cavaliers to seven games before losing in the first round, while the Nuggets earned the third seed in the Western Conference and fell in the second round.