2021 NBA Mock Draft: Way too early picks for the lottery

As early as it is right now, next year’s class already appears to be much deeper than this year’s. Here’s how it breaks down in this 2021 NBA Mock Draft.

There’s a lot of down time around the basketball landscape at the moment. This gives ample opportunity for various scouting departments to get a jump start on how a 2021 NBA Mock Draft would play out, and how they’ll be able to strategize.

A team like the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, etc. could be down for a while. Heading into the 2021 NBA Draft, the league will be coming off what will likely be a more thorough scouting process than for this year’s go-round. The 2020 NBA Draft will happen without the scouting opportunity presented during the NCAA Tournament.

Due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the NCAA Tournament was cancelled out as were the bulk of most major conference tournaments. But COVID-19 also allowed for extra scouting time for the 2021 NBA Draft, way ahead of time. The NBA season is currently placed on hiatus, and it has been since it was announced that Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19 on March 11.

However, the shape of the draft board for the 2021 class is obviously going to change as the next college basketball season comes around. The next crop of international prospects will also dramatically change the landscape of the 2021 draft class.

The order for this mock draft will be drawn from a mock up from draftsite.com. There’s not much of a pecking order in place yet, so this is something is subject to change too.

Here’s a look into the first 2021 NBA Mock Draft on Pippen Ain’t Easy, going through the potential lottery picks.