21. Dallas Mavericks – Delon Wright, PG, Utah
The Mavericks are expected to make a serious run at LaMarcus Aldridge and probably want to use the draft focus on their black hole at point guard. The trade for Rajon Rondo could not have played out in worse fashion as he was benched during the playoffs, forcing Dallas to use Raymond Felton.
Wright has great length and is a complete player, so teams in need of versatile guards will be taking a long look at him. With Dallas they love players that can play multiple positions, and with Wright being a major upgrade for this unit this pick should be pretty easy.
Rashad Vaughn is possibility here as well. I’m hearing that Dallas has kicked the tires about moving up in the draft as well with the idea of pursuing Cauley-Stein.
22. Chicago Bulls – Montrezl Harrell, PF, Louisville
While Taj Gibson recovers from offseason surgery, the Bulls would be wise to bolster the depth and athleticism among their bigs, especially with Joakim Noah set to hit free agency next season.
Newly hired coach Fred Hoiberg is looking to open up the offense next season. With a loaded perimeter that features Derrick Rose, Jimmy Butler, Tony Snell and Doug McDermott, it seems the Bulls will want to inject some youth into the post to pair with Nikola Mirotic.
Harrell is a great practice player, who is a physical and gritty defender. For a team trying to get over the hump of LeBron James in the postseason finding a defender like Harrell could be a wise move.
23. Portland Trail Blazers – Rashad Vaughn, SG, UNLV
There is growing anxiety in Portland that LaMarcus Aldridge will leave the Trail Blazers this summer. If that is the case, Portland could opt to retool or rebuild around point guard Damian Lillard, who is up for a max extension. With the trade of Nicholas Batum, it seems like the Blazers could focus on their frontcourt.
However, I’m hearing the Blazers and 76ers are discussing a trade for this pick with the idea of Vaughn going to the 76ers and the Blazers getting second-round picks that won’t have a cap hold and thereby allow the Blazers to carve out more cap space for free agency this summer.
24. Cleveland Cavaliers – R.J. Hunter, SG, Georgia State
Cleveland will be targeting point guards, wings that can shoot and defend and international players. It’s no surprise that the Cavs want to keep everyone guessing. Ultimately this pick could be in play for a trade and possibly packaged with Brendan Haywood’s non-guaranteed salary to improve the roster with a veteran.
Since the Cavs aren’t expected to make a splash in free agency, I think they will go for the best value here. Hunter is a great value at this point as he is a versatile scorer and very good shooter, who would fit nicely alongside Kyrie Irving and LeBron James.
Other names linked to Cleveland are Luka Mitrovic, Anthony Brown, Justin Anderson, and Terry Rozier.
25. Memphis Grizzlies – Justin Anderson, SF, Virginia
The Grizzlies are expected to re-sign All-Star center Marc Gasol and want to re-sign backup Kosta Koufos, But with forward Zach Randolph getting on in years, drafting a versatile big and legitimate rim protector would be a good choice.
However, as we saw in the playoffs the Grizzlies lacked a true backup to Tony Allen, and Justin Anderson could be that. With good size and bulk and coming from a strong defensive program, Anderson would be a great fit along the perimeter and for the Grizzlies and could learn under Allen.
Jarrell Martin could be an option here along with Rakeem Christmas.
26. San Antonio Spurs – Nikola Milutinov, C, KK Partizan
San Antonio will be making a run at LaMarcus Aldridge in free agency. A source has said the Spurs will not take on any money on draft night. This strategy leads me to believe the Spurs will go back to their method of drafting and stashing an international prospect rather than taking an American and having him go overseas.
With Milutinov, the Spurs would be getting a fluid athlete with good size that finishes well around the rim. In all likelihood, Milutinov will spend another couple of seasons overseas before coming to the NBA. This pick could also be dealt for future assets.
27. Los Angeles Lakers (from Houston) – Rakeem Christmas, PF, Syracuse
The Lakers could go in many directions here. But if they use the second pick on Russell, they likely will use this pick on on a big. With their expected pursuit of LaMarcus Aldridge, Kevin Love, and Brook Lopez the Lakers will need more rim protectors since that is not Julius Randle’s strength.
Christmas is NBA-ready after a solid career at Syracuse and is a very good shot blocker that can help on the glass and moves well for a big. With UCLA product Kevon Looney potentially here, that could be a very intriguing decision for the Lakers.
The Lakers also could trade this pick or draft and stash to add more cap room for free agency this summer.
28. Boston Celtics (from Los Angeles Clippers) – Kevon Looney, PF, UCLA
This will likely be moved either to a team wanting to add a late first or as part of a package to move up or acquire a veteran. If the Celtics keep this pick, they likely will take an international prospect who will be stashed overseas.
By some scouts’ accounts, Looney has the potential to be a lottery talent and he reminds me of Tristan Thompson in that he is an athletic big that is a very skilled rebounder but raw offensively. Obviously, Danny Ainge has a lot of bigs on rookie deals but Looney is a different type of big.
If the Celtics do keep this pick it seems like a frontcourt player is more likely.
29. Brooklyn Nets (from Atlanta) – Jarrell Martin, PF, LSU
Brooklyn tends to go international in the draft, but Martin is NBA-ready as a scorer in the low block. His production at LSU was very impressive this past season and he can do everything offensively that you want from a big.
Brooklyn is actively trying to trade up into middle part of round one but if they stand pat this is a good pick. This is a bit high but my sources tell me the Nets have interest in Dakari Johnson as well. The Nets are very interested in Harrell as well.
30. Golden State Warriors – Terry Rozier, PG, Louisville
The champs already are very deep and the only potential needs are a versatile guard to upgrade over aging Leandro Barbosa or an extra big to provide insurance in case Marreese Speights leaves in free agency. The Warriors want to move David Lee, Festus Ezeli could be a restricted free agent next summer and Andrew Bogut is getting older.
Rozier is more of a true PG but he does so many of the little things well that he would be perfect in a reserve role for the Warriors.
Joe Kotoch is the Editor-in-Chief of Pro Basketball Draft, a leading scouting service in the world of professional basketball. Before Joe created PBD, he served as an NBPA & FIBA certified agent and scouted players all across the world. Born and raised in Cleveland, Joe also contributes to Fox Sports Ohio and the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Follow him on Twitter.