Shots in the dark: My 2013 NBA Mock Draft

Even with less than three days to go until the 2013 NBA Draft, I remain clueless.

2013 is being called a fairly weak year in the draft, and with no sure-shot answers to the problems plaguing the lottery teams, there is no way to expertly predict the sequence at which young players will accept their team hats on Thursday night.

As a matter of fact, I probably feel more confident of predicting next year’s draft class than the one three days from now.

Nerlens Noel 

Still, a draft is to be conducted, and so, in my annual tradition, a draft is to be mocked.

About a month ago, the Cleveland Cavaliers won the lottery and the rights to the number one pick. The Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Bobcats, and Phoenix Suns rounded up the top six. All of these teams have desperate needs to bolster their squads, and all have multiple positions where they need help.

In Kyrie Irving and John Wall, the Cavs and Wizards respectively have a couple of important pieces to build around. The rest of the top five – and many other teams in the lottery – will just about take anyone that is available.

So who is available? Every near, nearly all upcoming rookies have some question marks about their professional abilities, but this year, the questions seem to be bigger than ever.

Nerlens Noel is big and talented, but he has serious health concerns. Ben McLemore is a stupendous wing scorer reportedly has teams ‘worried’ because of his lack of preparation/maturity. Alex Len has great size and mobility, but has been inconsistent and inefficient in the post.

Otto Porter is a jack of all trades but perhaps master of none. Some scouts worry that Trey Burke’s college dominance won’t translate against more athletic NBA point guards. Cody Zeller might be a great high IQ college player but few expect him to be able to handle the intensity of the NBA.

Shabazz Muhammad was a high-school prodigy but his uneven college year saw his stock plummet. CJ McCollum showed great upside in a small sample of games, but it is that same small sample which makes teams wonder if the senior might be a risky pick.

Ben McLemore

So, with utter lack of confidence in my predictions, but full faith to defend them, here is my 2013 NBA Mock Draft of the lottery (1-14) picks: