Mock Draft #2: Is power forward the way to go?
Earl K. Sneed continues his mock draft series while looking at two power forwards that may potentially fall to the Dallas Mavericks with the No. 17 pick.
Mock Draft #2: Is power forward the way to go?
With an army of personnel headlined by president of basketball operations and GM Donnie Nelson and head coach Rick Carlisle, the Dallas Mavericks’ front office monitored the NBA Draft Combine last week in Chicago with watchful eyes.
But as the Mavericks prepare to potentially add a young piece into the fold with the No. 17 in the draft on June 28, which player or position were those eyes locked in on?
Mavs.com took a look at just that last week with the first in a series of mock drafts, highlighting North Carolina point guard Kendall Marshall and Ohio State big man Jared Sullinger as two potential candidates. But while CBSSports.com reports that Marshall will work out individually for the Mavs on Friday, both NBA.com and DraftExpress.com see the team heading in a different direction with two 6-foot-11, 230-pound power forwards possibly joining the Dallas frontline.
In NBA.com’s initial mock draft, writer Scott Howard-Cooper sees the Mavs as a potential suitor for Mississippi State’s Arnett Moultrie, citing the big man’s ability to score inside and out coupled with mobility as a possible fit behind 11-time All-Star Dirk Nowitzki.
Moultrie averaged 16.4 points and 10.5 rebounds (3.7 offensive rebounds) last season as a junior for the Bulldogs after spending his first two years at UTEP. Perhaps more impressively, the rangy forward connected on 54.9 percent from the floor and hit 8-of-18 from behind the three-point arc.
The only knock on Moultrie, however, appears to be his lack of commitment to the defensive end of the floor, averaging less than a block per game.
Meanwhile, DraftExpress.com has the Mavericks going for a local product in Baylor’s Perry Jones III.
Jones utilized his long build and 7-2 wingspan to his advantage while averaging 13.5 points and 7.6 rebounds as a sophomore. The 20-year-old former star at Duncanville High School shunned the draft after a freshman season that had many thinking he could be a top five selection, but his shooting percentage dropped from 55 percent to 50 percent from Year 1 to Year 2, as did the frequency of his trips to the foul line, leading many to project him outside of the lottery selections.
Now, the rare combination of athleticism, size and do-it-all skill set could land back at home if he falls in the Mavs’ lap at No. 17.
