The 2015 NBA Draft Lottery will be held Tuesday evening and once the ping pong balls are revealed, the order will officially be set for the 2015 NBA Draft. Two big men are projected to be selected 1-2 in the draft; Duke’s Jahlil Okafor and Karl-Anthony Towns of Kentucky. Okafor is one of the most advanced low post scoring young big men to come out of college basketball in quite some time while Towns brings more of an inside/outside ability to the floor.
Here is a breakdown of each team and if they win the 2015 NBA Draft Lottery, who they should select with that top pick.
If you believe in the NBA Draft Lottery conspiracy theories, check out Paul M. Banks’ article predicting how the ping pong balls will roll out Tuesday night.
Click here for The Sports Bank’s 2015 NBA Mock Draft.
Minnesota Timberwolves (25%)- Karl-Anthony Towns
In already having a pair of true centers, the T-Wolves do not need another five like Okafor. Therefore, Towns is a better fit since his versatility on the offensive end would allow him to play the power forward position alongside either Nikola Pekovic or Georgui Dieng. There have been rumblings that Minnesota currently prefers Okafor so if they did draft the Duke big man, it would allow them to shop Pekovic in hopes of landing another piece or two.
New York Knicks (19.9%)-Jahlil Okafor
Okafor is so insanely talented as a low post scorer for someone his age and should be a dominating low post threat in the NBA for a long time. The Knicks need a franchise big man inside to open up some space on the perimeter for Carmelo Anthony to operate.
Philadelphia 76ers (15.6%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
This is an interesting one since Philly has drafted Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid the past two years so they have two young building blocks inside. If you were drafting off pure need, Ohio State combo guard D’Angelo Russell would actually be the best fit. However, Noel and Embiid don’t possess a ton of versatility on the offensive end like Towns would bring so the Sixers would be better served drafting him, stacking assets, and figuring it out down the road.
Los Angeles Lakers (11.9%)-Jahlil Okafor
Going back decades, the Lake Show’s franchise has been built with dominant big men. That’s Okafor. He and Julius Randle would be a terrific young frontcourt duo of the future and assuming Kobe is back and healthy this season, an inside force who could take some of the pressure off his aging and banged up body.
Orlando Magic (8.8%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
With Nikola Vucevic locked up to a long-term deal, the Magic would be better off pairing him with an inside/outside and more athletic threat like Towns.
Sacramento Kings (6.3%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
Read my write-up about the Magic except replace “Nikola Vucevic” with “Boogie Cousins.” I also think the Kings would take a deep look at Russell as well.
Denver Nuggets (4.3%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
With Kenneth Faried and Jusuf Nurkic, the Nuggets have a young pair of frontcourt players for their future but neither have the superstar potential of Towns or Okafor. Towns would be able to play with Faried or Nurkic whereas Okafor couldn’t play alongside Nurkic, so the Kentucky Wildcat gets the nod.
Detroit Pistons (2.8%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
Since Andre Drummond is already manning the middle, Towns is the better fit by far since he can play the four and stretch defenses more with his outside shooting. This would be extremely interesting for the Pistons since Greg Monroe is a free agent. Would Detroit pass on re-signing Monroe or try to sign-and-trade him? Maybe deal the top pick for a wing? Now that I’m thinking about this, I’m kind of rooting for Detroit to land number one.
Charlotte Hornets (1.7%)-Jahlil Okafor
The Hornets have selected post players the past two seasons in Noah Vonleh and Tyler Zeller. They also have Al Jefferson but he holds a player option and could be a free agent this summer. Okafor makes more sense and not just because he played college hoops in the same state which sure wouldn’t hurt ticket sales. I can’t imagine Big Al sticking around long-term and Vonleh and Zeller aren’t exactly the back-to-the-basket scoring threats that Okafor is and will be.
Miami Heat (1.1%)-Jahlil Okafor
Even with Hassan Whiteside’s breakout season, a Jahlil Okafor/Chris Bosh frontcourt tandem would be the way to go since Bosh can operate from the perimeter and open things up down low for the skilled Okafor.
Utah Jazz (0.7%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
With the development of Rudy Gobert this past season and the physicality of Derrick Favors already on the roster, the Jazz need a more versatile big man like Towns rather than another low paint player like Okafor.
Indiana Pacers (0.7%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
This is an interesting one. Roy Hibbert has fallen out favor a bit in Indy so drafting Okafor would give the Pacers the option to deal Hibbert. However, David West is in the final year of his contract so Towns would be a potential replacement. In the end, I think Towns’ versatility wins out but the Pacers could be another team that takes a serious look at Russell.
Phoenix Suns (.6%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
The Suns used a high lottery pick on Alex Len two years ago so drafting Okafor would stunt his growth. Towns is a better fit stylistically with the up-and-down Suns since he is a better athlete and could play either the four or five whereas Okafor is a true five man.
Oklahoma City Thunder (.5%)-Karl-Anthony Towns
With how well Enes Kanter played after getting traded to Oklahoma City, and other young bigs like Steven Adams and Mitch McGary, drafting Okafor would only further crowd things up at the five. Again, Towns’ versatility wins out in this scenario.
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Milwaukee to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft and the most accurate 2012 NBA Mock Draft on the internet (Yup, repeat champ… #humblebrag), and finished with the second most accurate 2013 NBA Mock Draft (nearly a three-peat.) You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik.
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