NBA Mock Draft 2.0: Wolves trade down, Warriors surprise?

NBA Mock Draft: Detroit Pistons Evan Mobley at #2

The Detroit Pistons might be the most interesting team to watch when it comes to this draft. After gutting their roster (and buying out Blake Griffin!), the team has regressed to one of the worst in the league. General manager Troy Weaver has made it a point to go after big men, drafting Isaiah Stewart and signing Mason Plumlee last offseason.

This draft positioning is a bit awkward for Detroit, however, as Evan Mobley is the clear-cut 2nd-best player in the draft. The gap between he and Green/Suggs is large enough to where you shouldn’t really consider taking another player here. I don’t think the Pistons move out of this spot, either. They didn’t get rid of basically every one of their players to select someone that wasn’t at the top of this draft class.

Mobley is a fine player, though. He’s a very, very good big prospect, and has a complete defensive game. At USC, no one challenged him at the rim – and when they did, things did not tend to go well for them. Mobley has the ability to switch onto the perimeter and guard smaller players.

He also shows shades of being a special player offensively. There are some instances of Mobley finding (and threading) a tough pass from the elbow. He also can handle (albeit minimally), and shoot the open 3-pointer.

Isaiah Stewart might be on an All-Rookie team this year – it’s not unlikely, but you cannot allow someone of the caliber of Stewart to prevent you from taking the clear-cut second best player in the draft. And if it does, there needs to be a dialogue started about how you have gone about constructing a roster.

Evan Mobley could be a bust. But his floor is higher than anyone else left in the draft – and with his potential, you cannot pass on that.