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NBA Mock Draft 2016: Latest Projections for Marquee 1st-Round Prospects
- Updated: May 12, 2016
Ben Simmons leads the 2016 NBA draft class, one of the most notable from a name-recognition standpoint in a long time.
Even with the big names, the draft itself continues to have a hard time outshining the NBA playoffs right now. It makes sense considering the seemingly unstoppable Cleveland Cavaliers, a unanimous MVP and Kevin Durant leading the shocking Oklahoma City Thunder to a series lead against the San Antonio Spurs.
Soon, though, Simmons and Co. will occupy the stage alone. With the combine on the way and subsequent team workouts and interviews in the pipelines, much will change about the complexion of the draft in the coming weeks.
Before the outlook gets too shuffled, let’s take a look at an updated mock and highlight some of the marquee names.
2016 NBA Mock Draft
4. Phoenix Suns: SG Buddy Hield, Oklahoma
Other than Simmons and Brandon Ingram, it’s hard to go wrong with Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield as the face of the draft.
Hield didn’t seem like a household name before the NCAA tournament, which is a shame because he posted averages of 25.0 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. His name exploded in the Big Dance, though, where he posted 26, 17 and 37 points over the course of Oklahoma’s first three games.
At 6’4″ and 214 pounds with an endless motor and a well-rounded set of skills on the offensive end of the court, the biggest knock on Hield seems to be his age after his four years with the Sooners.
Defense is a bit of an issue as well with Hield, but as an ESPN.com scouting write-up mentioned, the class itself could push him quite high: “In this draft, with so few potential superstars available, could he sneak into the top five? After Simmons and Ingram (and perhaps Dragan Bender and Jamal Murray) there are a lot of questions marks. We’ve moved him up to No. 5 on our latest top 100.”
It could take a team with multiple picks to grab Hield so early, which is why the Phoenix Suns seem like such a great fit.
Folks will clamor over the fact the Suns already added Devin Booker last year, but the reality is the Suns want to …
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