11. Indiana Pacers: D.J. Augustin, PG, Texas
Can anyone trust Jamaal Tinsley to stay "on" the court much and not "in" court or on the injury list? Augustin fills in nicely as Tinsley's heir apparent, as soon as this season.
12. Sacramento Kings: Darrell Arthur, PF, Kansas
Really like the idea of slotting an athletic big man like Arthur into Sacramento's four spot. He'd be a great fit in Reggie Theus' up-tempo attack.
13. Portland Trail Blazers: Joe
Alexander, SF, West Virginia
The Blazers don't need much at this point besides depth. However, Alexander has a real chance to end up on the same starting frontcourt as LaMarcus Aldridge and Greg Oden, especially if Martell Webster keeps shooting poorly from the field.
14. Golden State Warriors: Nicolas Batum, SG/SF, Le Mans
No one loves mismatches more than Don Nelson -- we'd be interested to see how he'll deploy a 6'8" shooting guard.
15. Phoenix Suns: Chase Budinger, SG/SF, Arizona
If Mike D'Antoni stays in Phoenix, Budinger will have a chance to utilize all of his skills and flourish off the bench. However, is D'Antoni staying. If not, a lot will depend on who the coach moving in will be. Either way, keeping Budinger in Arizona is a good thing.
16. Philadelphia 76ers: Russell Westbrook, PG, UCLA
Philly gets a backup to, and eventual replacement for, Andre Miller
17. Toronto Raptors: JaVale McGee, C, Nevada
McGee has some great potential and is developing nicely as a player. He should take away some heat from Chris Bosh down low and is athletic enough to hang with the running game.
18. Washington Wizards: Roy Hibbert, C, Georgetown
Since we seem to be in the midst of a mini-run on centers, we'll keep Hibbert in DC.
19. Cleveland Cavaliers: Kosta Koufos, C, Ohio State The big man is staying in Ohio and he could end up being Zydrunas Ilgauskas eventual replacement, although he's more of a perimeter player. The post game is developing though!
20. Denver Nuggets: Tyson Lawson, PG, North Carolina
Every time I do one of these mock drafts, I wind up making at least one pick that makes me think, "Wow, I hope that happens, because that would be fun to watch." The notion of the lightning-fast Lawson running the point for Denver's high-octane offense is today's example.
NOTE: At 15, the Phoenix Suns receives the Atlanta Hawks' 2008 1st round pick from the Joe Johnson trade in 2005.
