NBA Mock Draft 2019: The chaos of this draft is only beginning
12. player. 170. . C. Texas. Jaxson Hayes
We would bet Hayes is the most anonymous projected lottery pick in the field. His team didn’t even make the NCAA Tournament and despite the factory coach Shaka Smart has developed for big men in his program, Hayes doesn’t bring the hype of guys like Myles Turner or Mo Bamba in recent seasons.
That doesn’t mean the Hornets should complicate this. They desperately need a big man on the interior who can play both ends — remember the Dwight Howard trade? Charlotte’s new braintrust appears more willing to restructure the roster than former general manager Rich Cho’s front office, meaning we could finally see the team package assets with their albatross contracts to create salary relief, particularly if Kemba Walker leaves in free agency (though that seems less likely by the day).
Regardless, the Hornets hit their 2018 first-round pick out of the park in Miles Bridges and their other young players, from Malik Monk to Dwayne Bacon, still maintain some upside going forward. The cap situation is screwed up, but Charlotte is still in position to retool on the fly and give Walker a better team during his third contract.
In Hayes, they would add the only legitimate young pick-and-roll threat Walker has ever played with, as well as a potential defensive anchor down the line. Smart seems to instill solid defensive instincts in his big men, meaning that may not be so far away.