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Apr 2, 2016; Houston, TX, USA; Oklahoma Sooners guard Buddy Hield (24) works around the defense of Villanova Wildcats guard Phil Booth (5) during the first half in the 2016 NCAA Men[/caption]
The NCAA Tournament finished with a bang on Monday night as North Carolina’s Marcus Paige knocked down a double-clutch three-pointer to tie the national title game just before Villanova’s Kris Jenkins nailed a true buzzer-beater to crush the dreams of the Tar Heel faithful. Jenkins’ three-ball marked the end of the Madness, a month long affair that helped bolster the NBA draft stock of many of its participants. Players like Tyler Ulis, Brice Johnson and Buddy Hield took advantage of the national attention to make themselves household names with big time performances on the sport’s most notable stage.
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The end of the tournament means it is time to turn our full attention toward analyzing this year’s draft prospects. The draft’s new entry rules have received mixed reviews from NBA front offices, but there’s no doubt they have opened the door for more borderline prospects to declare for the draft in order to receive additional feedback. With the larger player pool, NBA teams have more options than ever to examine before making a decision. Let’s take a look (using Monday’s NBA standings) at how the first round could go down.
This mock draft is brought to you by Upside & Motor, part of the Hardwood Paroxysm Basketball Network. You can find more in-depth analysis of the prospects mentioned within, including scouting reports and performance breakdowns, over at Upside & Motor.
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