The Golden State Warriors chose their big man of the future in the mock draft compiled by Sports Illustrated’s Jeremy Woo.
Center James Wiseman, who briefly played for the Memphis Grizzlies, was taken by the Warriors with the No. 2 pick after the team was slotted their from Woo’s mock draft lottery.
Wiseman “plays a position of dire need and at least has the elite physical profile to fit in and help in some capacity right away,” Woo wrote.
It’s tough to evaluate Wiseman as a player because there’s so little tape. He played just three games at Memphis, so while his averages of about 20 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in 23 minutes are impressive, it’s a tiny sample size.
The game that is best to use is the one against Oregon, when he put up 14 points and 12 rebounds with one blocked shot in 22 minutes.
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However, Woo’s analysis went beyond the player.
He recommended the Warriors look into trading the pick.
“The long-term financial weight of rostering a top pick and dearth of surefire elite talent makes the value proposition here tricky for a team that can contend immediately with its stars healthy.
Does that mean the Warriors move out of the draft entirely? Not necessarily. But feasibly, if there’s a way for them to move back a few spots and add a prospect who could slide into their rotation (Obi Toppin is an interesting one here), that’s probably something to consider.”
Woo also mentioned Georgia shooting guard Anthony Edwards, who went No. 1 to the Atlanta Hawks in the SI mock draft.
Woo wrote that “(If) Edwards is off the board, Wiseman becomes a viable option here.”
So, three takeaways from this mock draft to consider: Wiseman, despite lack of college play, is a very intriguing option at a position of need; Edwards gets another nod as the best player in the draft; and Golden State should look at trade options.
The draft lottery is scheduled for Aug. 25, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. The Warriors, with the worst record in the league, have a 14% chance of getting the first pick and a 47.9% chance of the fifth pick.
The NBA Draft is scheduled for Oct. 15, according to Wojnarowski.
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