2006 NBA Mock Draft

updated 2006 nba mock draft as of 4/23/06

Here is an Early look at the 2006 NBA Draft and who I think will go in the first round as well as players on the bubble and who I think should wait another year.

1. Portland Tyrus Thomas PF, LSU - Raw freshman talent who plays very strong around the hoop and has shown good rebounding and shot blocking ability.Typical tremendous upside potential pick. Had a spectacular NCAA tournament and I would take him over Aldridge no question. Morrison should recieve strong consideration here.

2. Chicago LaMarcus Aldridge, PF/C Texas - Only a sophomore. Most effective outside the paint or in the high post. Seriously thought about turning pro out of high school but smartly decided not to. Ideal size, a top five lock at this point.Had a very stong game against West Virginia in thetourney but then disappeared against LSU.Stll, in my opinion, Aldridge and Gay will be battling for the number one overall spot. Has the heart and tenacity of a corpse, not a banger and this very well could be the bust in the draft considering how high he will be picked.

3. Charlotte Adam Morrison G/F Gonzaga- The premier scorer right now in college. Has a similar game to Larry Bird offensively. Defensively, a big work in progress. His workouts will be huge for him as not every team is going to be sold on him right away. Could slip from this spot.

4. Atlanta Andrea Bargnani, PF, Italy - Big man with usual Euro question marks. May not even come out this year even though stock is at a high.Great shooter for a big, will be able to play down low rebound once NBA trainers get a hold of him and put him on a program. Right now he wouldnt have a chance. Overall great prospect could be compared to a KG/Dirk. GM's are getting more cautious with drafing outside the U.S so we will have to see how this plays out.

Here is a highlight video of Bargnani:

http://nuno.typepad.com/nbafanblog/2006/03/andrea_bargnani.html

5. Toronto Josh Mcroberts- The versatile bigman will sneak into the lottery if he comes out but I think he stays for another year at Duke.Not even close to being NBA ready but will be in another season. Did show huge progress as the season went on. Rudy gay would be a great fit here.

6. Seattle Rudy Gay G/F UCONN - Dynamic scorer who doesnt push things and plays within his means. Versatile G/F who could florish in on an uptempo team. Could have gone lottery straight out of high school. Can do a little bit of everything well. Can be dominant but is somewhat held back in Calhouns system. Legit player of the year candidate and All American. Stock is slipping after solid but underwhelming NCAA tournament.

7. Orlando Brandoy Roy G, Washington- Fearless leader who is having a phenomenal season up at Washington. Extremely versatile, is a all around threat, including defense.Carried Washington on his back this season. Projects as NBA 2 guard. Paul Pierce type player.

8. Boston Randy Foye PG, Villanova- The man behind the high powered Villanova offense. Good scorer but also has top notch playmaking ability. Should make a solid pro as more of a combo guard. Stock could really rise with a strong NCAA tournament. This pick seems to be available for the right team. Salary dump of Lafrentz would have to be included in any trade.

9. Minnesota Mardy Collins G Temple- Comes from defensive oriented program at Temple which limits his offensive numbers. Well rounded game will fit well in any teams system. Needs work on free throws. Good size for a PG. Should be the top PG in this draft, however, Rondo may be selected first based on potential.Good workouts against other big name PG's should bring him somwhere around this pick.

10. Golden State Ronnie Brewer G Arkansas- Good defender very lanky, needs to hit the weight room. Smart on court IQ. Height (6-7) allows versatility. May have the ugliest shot in the NCAA but it is somewhat effective, needs to improve.Falling down many teams draft boards but should stay in the lottery.

11. Houston J.J. Redick, SG, Duke - Great shooter/scorer in a similar mold as Reggie Miller. Undersized for an NBA 2 guard. Not much upside at this point but one of the top 3 best players in college basketball. Has carried Duke on his back to big wins thoughout his college career. Best case scenario would be Ben Gordon type role. May even go higher.

12. Chicago Rodney Carney G Memphis- Absolute athletic phenom. Plays very solid defense, offensively dynamic a la Ricky Davis. Adding some bulk is a primary focus for him as well as showing he can consistently play within the teams system. Low Basketball IQ may hurt his stock.

13. Philadelphia Marcus Williams PG, UCONN -Would be a great fit for a team looking for a true point guard. Stock has risen since NCAA tournament. Still turns the ball over and plays a little wild at times, not sure I'm sold on him as a lottery pick as some scouts predict.

14. Utah Rojon Rondo G Kentucky- Versatile, athletic combo guard with a ton of upside. Could play SF in spots as well. Showing inprovement in shooting the 3 ball. Pencil thin frame could be an issue in the NBA. Only a sophomore but very strong chance he comes out as he has been under-utilized in tubby smiths system. Update: Has declared and hired an agent.

15. New Orleans Tiago Splitter, C, Brazil - Familiar name for draft fans and yes he will finally be in the draft this year. 6-11 helps him down low but his game is all over the court. Has a nice stroke, will have an extra year of experience playing internationally which should help his transistion to the NBA.Buyout issues still remain and needs to bulk up.

16. New Orleans Richard Roby SG, Colorado- Having a sensational season in his sophomore year. Great shooter with decent size for NBA 2 guard although needs a little more weight/muscle. Is a lock to turn pro at the end of the season, has been on scouts radar all season and has risen to the occasion.

17.Sacramento Shelden Williams F, Duke - Could be the best defensive player to come out this year. Will it translate to the NBA is the question. The offensive game could use some work as well.

18. Washington Josh Boone PF/C Uconn- Very smart, scrappy, and unemotional player. Does not make many mistakes on the court but can disappear at times. Not a scorer by any means but shoots very high percentages from the field when he wants to but cant shoot from the line well. This could be a reach here but strong workouts could get him this high.

19. Indiana Patrick O'Bryant C, Bradley- Raw seven footer who is about as inconsistent as they come but will be drafted high based on strong NCAA tournament and pro potential . This is a high risk/high reward pick.

20. Phoenix Cedric Simmons C, NC State- May declare but needs another year at State to get him into next years lottery.Lot of raw talent, hard to pass up especially this late.

21. New York Hilton Armstrong, PF/C, Connecticut - Strong inside force with a who plays intelligently with the ball. Takes good shots and has a nice touch from the free throw line. Very good shotblocker. Strong workouts could put him a few spots higher..

22.Cleveland Steve Novak F, Marquette- For a big, one of the best outside shooters in the NCAA. Could have a solid NBA career as a zone buster. If he was a Euro, he may have been a top five pick by now.

23. Memphis Paul Davis C Michigan State - Quality big man who will never become a star but could be a servicable center in a league starving for big men. Solid career at Michigan State, has played in many big games against top competition. Gives good effort every time out.

24. New Jersey Aaron Gray, C Pittsburgh - Legit 7'0 center, having a breakout season this year although inconsistent. May return to Pitt next season and probably should.

25. New Jersey Paul Millsap PF, Louisiana Tech _ Maybe the best rebounder in NCAA right now. Not much exposure but should rise in workouts/camps.

26. LA Lakers Nick Fazekas F, Nevada - Smooth shooting big man who helped carry Nevada into the NCAA's. Could have success in Phil Jackson's triangle offense and find his niche in the league.

27. Phoenix Dee Brown G Illinois - Lighting quick guard, although undersized could be a great backup guard for a team that plays a style like Phoenix.

28. Dallas Bobby Brown G, Cal St.- Fullerton- This late in the draft is when teams tend to gamble a little, here is a somewhat unknown player up until now for fans but not for scouts. He has been widely considered the top NBA prospect in the conference since he was a freshman.

29. Portland Quincy Douby G Rutgers- Excellent four year player who played on a below grade team in the tough Big East. Can score with just about any move you can think of and has very good range as well. Reminds me of Cuttino Mobley and should have a similar type of role as well.

30. New York Hassan Adams G, Arizona -Had a good season finally after everyone projected him to have it last year. Shooting career highs, playing all around good defense as well. A strong tournament appearance could really boost his stock. Getting suspended from the PAC 10 Tournament wasnt the best career move but still could be late first round material.

On the bubble

Kevin Pittsnogle F, West Virginia- Playing exceptionally well this season should make a big push for the first round. Still a step slow though. Reminds me of the Boston Celtics version of Raef Lafrentz.

Mike Gansey G, West Virginia - Scrappy, Manu Ginolbli type player, does all the little things well. Should have a solid NBA career.

Craig Smith F, Boston College- Undersized, but dominant at the collegiate level. Proving he can play with the ACC's best this year.Comparable to Mike Sweeney when he was at G-town before his weight started getting out of control.

Taquan Dean G, Maryland -Dynamic offensive talent. Can fill it up from just about anywhere on the floor. Will need to prove in camp that he can play PG at the NBA level. Another detraction is the fact that he is crackhead skinny.Second round material.

Taj Gray PF, Oklahoma- Not a first round prospect at this point.Undersized.

Maurice Ager G, Michigan St. -Explosive player having a strong senior season.

Roko Ukic G, SPLIT (Croatia)

Justin Williams F/C, Wyoming - Double-double man for Wyoming. Superb shot blocker, maybe one of the best in the country. Limited offensive game.Huge wild card coming into the draft, could go first round or undrafted.

Mario Kilingsworth F, Indiana - Stock is falling but would be a good value in second round.

Wait Til Next Year

Tyler Hansborough F North Carolina- Only a freshman but has improved steadily in pretty much every game he's played in the tough ACC. I do not think he goes pro but if he does he is a lock to be a lottery pick. Tough player. Update: Is returning to UNC next season.

Al Horford F, Florida- Strong, athletic post player who showed on occasion he could step out and hit the open J as well. Still raw and has a lot of improvements to make. Should return for one more season to solidify himself as a lottery pick.Noah is returning as well.

Jared Dudley F, Boston College- More of a second round prospect at this point. Can shoot well, and is also a solid rebounder as well. Not the fastest player, average ball handler, good size. Not afraid to take the big shot.

Brandon Rush G, Kansas-May come out, if he does, is in the first round no question.Update: Has decided to return to Kansas for his sophomore season.

Darius Washington PG, Memphis -This kid can really play but another year at Memphis might serve him well as there are at least 4/5 PG's ahead of him in this draft at this point.

Glen "Big Baby" Davis F, LSU- Great athleticism for having 300+ pounds. Can bang but can step out for the occasional jump shot as well.Measurements will play a huge part in draft position. Is he a legit 6-9?