The New Orleans Pelicans have two picks in the first round of the NBA draft Wednesday night.
The Pelicans own picks No. 7 and 23. They don’t have any second-round picks in what will be the first draft of the Joe Dumars’ era.
Dumars was hired in April as executive vice president of basketball operations, replacing David Griffin who was fired after six seasons.
Dumars and his new right-hand man, senior vice president of basketball operations Troy Weaver, will try to find the pieces in this year’s draft class to complement what is already on the roster.
Before Dumars and Weaver make their selections Wednesday, let’s take our turn in the decision-making chair and pick for the Pelicans in a mock draft.
For this exercise, we used a draft simulator to make the picks leading up to the Pelicans’ picks. The simulator drafted picks 1-6, with me making the seventh pick for the Pelicans. Then the simulator drafted picks 8-22 with me making the 23rd pick. To keep it simple, we didn’t allow for any trades in this mock draft.
Here it goes:
1. Mavericks: Cooper Flagg (Duke)
2. Spurs: Dylan Harper (Rutgers)
3. 76ers: Ace Bailey (Rutgers)
4. Hornets: VJ Edgecombe (Baylor)
5. Jazz: Tre Johnson (Texas)
6. Wizards: Kon Knueppel (Duke)
7. The New Orleans Pelicans are now on the clock. The Pelicans were one pick away from a chance to grab Knueppel, who would have been a perfect fit for the roster. He’s one of the better shooters in the draft and would be a good complement to put around Zion Williamson. If Knueppel is still here at 7, he’d be the first choice.
The simulator has Ace Bailey going third, which is where he was originally projected to go. But his unwillingness to work out for several teams could lead to him sliding. How far he slides remains to be seen. If the Pelicans have a high grade on him and feel they can get past the reports that say he wants to be a star right away, perhaps they take a chance on Bailey.
Since he’s also not available in this mock, I’ll use the seventh pick on Duke center Khaman Maluach. His size (7-foot-2), athleticism and ability to protect the rim is too good to pass up, even on a roster that already has the promising Yves Missi. Maluach is only 18, so there’s plenty of upside.
Speaking of upside, there was strong consideration here for 18-year-old Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears. Don't be surprised if he's the pick, but I'm leaning toward Maluach.
Back to the simulator for picks 8-22.
8. Nets: Derik Queen (Maryland)
9. Raptors: Jeremiah Fears (Oklahoma)
10. Suns: Kasparas Jakucionis (Illinois)
11. Trail Blazers: Thomas Sorber (Georgetown)
12. Bulls: Egor Demin (BYU)
13. Hawks: Collin Murray-Boyles (South Carolina)
14. Spurs: Carter Bryant (Arizona)
15. Thunder: Jase Richardson (Michigan State)
16. Grizzlies: Noa Essengue (France)
17. Timberwolves: Cedric Coward (Washington State)
18. Wizards: Rasheer Fleming (Saint Joseph’s)
19. Nets: Asa Newell (Georgia)
20. Heat: Danny Wolf (Michigan)
21. Jazz: Nolan Traore (France)
22: Hawks: Nique Clifford (Colorado State)
23. If the Pelicans can get Florida guard Walter Clayton here, you’d have to call this draft a success. A key part of the Gators winning the national title, Clayton is a great shooter at all three levels and came up big in the clutch time and time again.
The other player I was hoping would fall to the Pelicans here was Nique Clifford, taken one pick earlier by the simulator. Most draft boards have Clayton still around at 23. If he’s there, this could be a steal even bigger than the Pelicans getting Missi with the No. 21 pick a year ago.
So those are my two picks: Duke center Khaman Maluach and Florida guard Walter Clayton.
The real picks come Wednesday night.