CHICAGO — The Orlando Magic were the big winners of Tuesday night’s draft lottery, walking away with the No. 1 pick and a franchise-changing decision to make over the next month. Joining them in the pantheon of great results were the Thunder (who moved up to No. 2 from No. 4) and the Kings (who grabbed the No. 4 pick and moved up from No. 7). The lottery took place amidst a busy week here at the draft combine, where G League Elite camp wrapped up Tuesday and the combine proper begins on Wednesday. With the entire NBA gathering in one place and the rumor mill heating up behind the scenes, the draft puzzle will only get more fascinating from here.
As usual, this mock draft aims to predict what the picks would look like if they took place on a given day. My projections are heavily informed by intel from around the NBA and ongoing conversations with executives, scouts and others around the industry, in addition to my own personal evaluations of players, which in many cases date back years. Note that these are *not* player rankings: for that, take a look at our latest Big Board, which we’ll update again after players make final decisions on whether to stay in the draft.
David Banks/USA TODAY Sports
