6. Chicago Bulls - Jayden Quaintance
Kentucky - 6'9" - C/PF
The Bulls finally get their center of the future. Not only that, but they get a guy who can anchor their defense which is also something they have lacked - ever since they traded away Alex Caruso. Since then, they've had offensive firepower with guys like Coby White, Matas Buzelis, Demar Derozan, Josh Giddey and Zach Lavine - but no one with the potential to be a truly elite defensive anchor.
Quaintance gives them that. As long as things go smoothly with his recovery from a torn ACL.
I thought about Brown Jr. in this spot but I don't think it makes sense to pair him with Giddey. They are both point guards (so it'd redundant) and both have defensive limitations so pairing them together would hurt a defense which already has some issues.
7. Memphis Grizzlies - Caleb Wilson
UNC - 6'9" - PF/SF
Best player available here is either Wilson or Brown Jr. Similar to the Bulls pick, I don't love the fit for Brown Jr. in Memphis either since then you'd have two point guards on the same team who need the ball in their hands - who both have defensive (and size) limitations with Brown Jr. and Ja Morant.
Wilson is the type of guy who could slide in in fit on pretty much any team, who doesn't need the ball in his hands to make an impact. He could play the three in Memphis if they could big with Jaren Jackson Jr at the four and someone like Zach Edey at the five. Or Wilson could play the four. Its a pretty easy pick.
8. Sacramento Kings - Mikel Brown Jr.
Louisville - 6'3" - PG
This is also an easy pick to make. Brown Jr is the clear cut best player available in this slot and the Kings desperately need a point guard. They probably need a point guard more than any other team. So it's pretty much a match made in heaven.
The only reason why the fit great but not perfect is because the Kings do have some struggles on defense. They have a good amount of offensive firepower but they could use some guys who are better on defense. Brown Jr. is more of an offensive oriented player. However, he has shown some intriguing flashes on the defensive end, which this article touches on.
9. Atlanta Hawks - Karim Lopez
NZ Breakers - 6'8" - Wing
Okay, this is kind of funny. If you asked me who I think are the three best players available here, I would say Karim Lopez, Sergio De Larrea or Dash Daniels.
Yes, you read that right.
It is possible that the Hawks got draft Dash Daniels here and pair him up with his older brother, Dyson Daniels. And you could make an argument that Dash Daniels is the best player available here so it's not like it would even be that much of a reach to pair the brothers up together.
It could happen and it would be prett funny if it did. And I'm sure the Daniels brothers would love playing together. But I'm not doing it in this mock.
Why? Because I don't think it's a good fit. Dash Daniels is basically the same type of player as Dyson. Pairing them together (while it would be funny) is not the wisest decisions from a team building / roster construction perspective. They would be too redundant.
Also, I don't think Dash is the best player available here. I think Karim Lopez is. So Lopez is the pick.
While the fit with Lopez is not quite ideal in Atlanta (it might be somewhat of a logjam with all of these big wing SF/PF types there with Lopez, Zaccharie Risacher and Jalen Johnson) I think you can rotate them in and out of the lineup. You can afford to bring Lopez along slowly rather than just throwing him into thw starting lineup before he's ready. Maybe he ends up being a super 6th man, with Johnson and Risacher starting. But you could also play them together at times, at the two, three and four positions.
It's a better fit than Dash Daniels and it's a better fit than De Larrea since you would often have two guards on the floor together with defensive concerns (Trae Young and De Larrea).
10. Miami Heat - Dash Daniels
Melbourne United - 6'6" - Guard
It's probably either Daniels or De Larrea here for best player available. But I think there's a bit too much overlap between De Larrea and the player who Miami just drafted with a top 20 pick in the 2025 draft - Kasparas Jakucionis.
Therefore, I think Daniels is a better fit in Miami. I think you can play him in the back court next to Davion Mitchell. Mitchell can play point guard and Dash Daniels can play shooting guard which is Daniels' natural position. Daniels has some questions about his perimeter shootign ability, but Mitchell has developed into a capable shooter and of course Miami has othger shooters like Tyler Herro.
Coach Spoelstra likes tough, gritty guys who can defend - Daniels fits that. And Daniels is so young (still just 17 years old) that he has enough long term potential that picking him at 10 could end up looking liker a steal down the road.