2021 NBA Draft: Mock 1.0, Knicks bolster the backcourt
By Toby Jaffe
NBA Draft Mock 1.0: Suggs falls to 6th
6. Oklahoma City Thunder, Jalen Suggs, G, Gonzaga
The Thunder are having a (mock) NBA draft for the ages. There will be those who argue that Suggs and Mobley are the two best players in this draft and among the most NBA-ready. It is not inconceivable to imagine that a core of SGA, Mobley, and Suggs would have Thunder fans thinking back to the days of Durant, Harden, and Westbrook. Let’s hope the OKC front office does a better job keeping this new core together.
Suggs possesses high levels of athleticism, speed, and shooting and is already a sophisticated decision- and play-maker. Suggs brings to mind Kings’ rookie Tyrese Haliburton — a favorite of NBA nerds — only with a higher ceiling.
7. Washington Wizards, Moses Moody, G, Arkansas
To my eye, this is a six-man draft. Each of the previous six names have franchise player potential and may have gone first overall last year… yes, all six.
Moody is not a bad consolation prize, though. He has prototypical NBA size at 6’6, 185 pounds, and can knock down shots from anywhere on the floor. He projects as a secondary scorer who’ll stretch the floor and play hard. Ironically enough, his game is a bit like Bradley Beal’s, albeit with more size than the Wizards’ all-star. Like Beal, Moody will come into the league with limited dribbling and ball-handling skills and will need a high-level playmaker around him to reach his ceiling.
8. Toronto Raptors, Keon Johnson, SF, Tennessee
Keon Johnson is the kind of prospect we now see once or twice a year. He is Lanky, athletic, and skilled. He is in the same mold of players like, bare with me, Brandon Ingram, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Miles Bridges, Josh Jackson, Jonathan Isaac, Kevin Knox, Jarrett Culver, and Patrick Williams, to name some recent examples. Players like Johnson and the names listed are often quite hyped out of AAU ball due to their athleticism and dunk packages, but the end results have been mixed.