Orlando Magic Daily Mock Draft 2.0: After the ping pong balls drop

Orlando Magic Daily Mock Draft: The rest of the first round

By Timmy Monaghan

The draft is very guard-heavy at the bottom of the first round. So the New York Knicks draft the best available point guard in Florida’s Tre Mann with both Elfrid Payton and Derrick Rose hitting free agency. It is unlikely that both return. Mann is going to be an effective shot-making point guard on the next level.

By Isaac Ryu

Joshua Primo is one of the best shooters in the draft and despite his young age, 18, he still can put in the work on the perimeter. The Los Angeles Lakers are looking to retool after an early playoff exit and Primo could be the player for them.

Despite reports of the Lakers looking to add veteran guards Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul, the Lakers should look to draft someone who can have an immediate impact. Primo shot 38.1-percent from behind the arc on 113 attempts and showed an ability to shoot off the catch and launch it from deep. His mechanics are good as well which would save the Lakers a lot of time.

By Omar Cabrera

The Houston Rockets are drafting at all positions in this draft to go with their young core of Christian Wood, Jae’Sean Tate and Kevin Porter Jr. The Rockets selected Jalen Green with the second pick in the draft to support their backcourt with Kevin Porter Jr. Taking a swing on Isaiah Jackson to possibly fill their frontcourt of the future with Christian Wood. Kentucky produces solid NBA players and Jackson makes sense as Huston looks to start their rebuild.

By Justin Szemes

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl has NBA size and is a great passer and decision-maker, especially for a power forward.  On the defensive end of the floor, he has shown the ability to be elite.  It would not be surprising to see him become one of the best defenders out of this class.  Looking at his upside David West would be a good comp and that would be excellent value in this part of the first round.

By Dan Bennett

With the 25th pick, the LA Clippers get an older rookie who can come in and help the team’s title challenge straight away. At 24, Chris Duarte is not one for the future but possesses excellent scoring and shooting ability, making 42.4-percent of his three-point attempts at college last season. He will be an excellent option off the bench for a team that focuses heavily on shooting from behind the arc.

By Isaac Ryu

While the Denver Nuggets were able to tread water without Jamal Murray, his absence was crushing. Especially since Will Barton may not return next season after declining his $14.7-million option, the Nuggets are going to need a secondary creator who is more reliant than P.J Dozier and Facundo Campazzo.

Ayo Dosunmu may be that player for the Nuggets. Controlling tempo, defense and passing is the name of the game for Dosunmu. He averaged 20 points, 5.3 assists and 6.3 rebounds on 30-percent usage.

He will not be hitting usage that high with the Nuggets, but he is more than capable of providing solid minutes behind Murray as a ball handler. He will need to improve his shooting mechanics before he can become a reliable shooter and play a functional role off of Nikola Jokic and co.

By Jean Racine

In a guard-heavy draft, the Brooklyn Nets select the best big available. Bassey is NBA-ready with three years of college experience.

By Philip Rossman-Reich

If the Philadelphia 76ers are going to hang onto their pick, they need someone who can contribute quickly to a title team. They need someone who can defend and shoot on the perimeter without the ball. Someone with maturity and poise in big moments. That is Houston guard Quentin Grimes. He was a great scorer at Houston but could easily slide off the ball and his defense should be something Philadelphia can quickly cultivate.

By Timmy Monaghan

At 6-foot-5 and 180 pounds, Gonzaga guard Joel Ajayi has the measurements to handle playing either guard position. He spent three years at Gonzaga. So, the experience aspect is there.

He has played in the Final Four and got better every year. He has a good 3-pointer with a high basketball IQ. He can be a playmaker, is a nice facilitator and holds his own on the defensive end, too. If the Phoenix Suns do not want to overpay to keep Cameron Payne around as a backup point guard, this guy can fill the void. Even better, Chris Paul will be a terrific mentor for him.

By Andres Rosero

Cameron Thomas would provide some scoring burst on a Utah Jazz backcourt that is reliant on the playmaking and scoring of its starting guard in Donovan Mitchell and needed scoring and driving punch off the bench.

Thomas is a heat-check scorer who can take over a game with his ability to score at all three levels of the half-court. Cameron Thomas may only project as a bench scorer in the NBA. But as we have seen with players like J.R. Smith, Jordan Clarkson and Lou Williams in the past — backup guards that can take over a game with their scoring will always have value.

This post has been a collection of the Orlando Magic Daily staff conducting its mock draft since the completion of the Lottery. We will have one more mock draft to go on Draft day with a final prediction of what will happen.