Which NBA Draft prospects fit the needs of each lottery team?
The NBA Draft is upon us, and the Atlanta Hawks will pick first in a draft that is less anticipated than drafts of years past, but still has plenty of players who can fill team needs. What does each lottery team need, and which prospect can theoretically fill those holes?
Atlanta lucked into the first overall pick and should simply take the player it thinks can provide the most production for the most years. Alex Sarr could be that guy. It never hurts to add a defensive center with a tremendously high ceiling. Atlanta doesn't need a center right now, but need should never interfere with the first overall pick in a draft.
The Wizards could, hypothetically, upgrade at any position on the court, but center is the most immediate issue right now. If the 2024-25 season started today, Washington would likely roll out Marvin Bagley III as its starting center.
Houston doesn't have a glaring need in its starting five, so drafting for depth might be the play here. Reed Sheppard of Kentucky would fit well on Houston, a team that finished in the top 10 defensively last season.
There isn't a perfect fit for the Spurs here - ideally, they'd find a pass-first guard who makes Wemby's life easier. But Stephon Castle fits anywhere. His versatility helped UConn dance to a national championship and that ability to do a bit of everything will shore up a lot of things in San Antonio's backcourt.
Hope has been hard to come by in Detroit the past few years, and that stems from the lack of on-court cohesion. The Pistons should look for players who have an obvious NBA skill that the franchise is confident will transfer immediately.
Needs: Backcourt mate for Melo Charlotte shipped Terry Rozier to Miami last season so there's a pretty sizable hole next to LaMelo Ball in the Hornets backcourt. Filling that hole with one of the best shooters in the draft in Duke's Jared McCain (41.4% on 5.8 attempts per game) would be a great get for Charlotte.
Portland's offense for most of 2023-24 was physically painful to watch. The team finished at or near the bottom of the league in most offensive stats, so the "anyone who can shoot" draft strategy might be beneficial here.
Memphis had one of the worst injury luck seasons in NBA history last year, but there's no reason why this team shouldn't bounce back in a big way in 2024-25. So with no glaring needs, the Grizz can afford to take a massive swing here and take Tidjane Salaun, the 6-foot-9 Frenchman with tantalizing physical tools.
Taylor Hendricks might end up being one of the steals of last year's draft, but Utah should be on the lookout for another power forward, preferably one that can shoot. Matas Buzelis from the G League Ignite is supposed to be that archetype, but he didn't actually shoot the ball well in his time at GLI. Still, he brings en