Dallas Mavericks draft: What are the mocks predicting?

Dallas Mavericks draft: What are the mocks predicting?

The Dallas Mavericks have spent over a year scouting the 2020 NBA Draft class. In normal times, the draft is over in June, and the teams immediately start digging in on the next crop. The novel coronavirus pushed things back until Nov. 18 in 2020, which gave scouts more time to pick apart this class.

The Mavs hold the 18th and 31st overall selections on the morning of the draft. They continue to have trade talks, but no deal has tickled their fancy yet. It will be interesting to see if GM Donnie Nelson and company will find one before making the pick.

If the Mavs stay at 18, who are they going to take? Instead of hearing my guess, let us look at what ten mock drafts have predicted for Dallas in the first round.

Dallas Mavericks draft: 10 mocks for the Mavs at 18 overall

ESPN- Josh Green 

The Athletic-Tyrese Maxey 

Sports Illustrated- Aleksej Pokusevski 

CBS Sports- Tyrese Maxey

Yahoo- Aleksej Pokusevski

NBC Sports- Tyrell Terry

Tankathon- Aleksej Pokusevski

The Ringer- Saddiq Bey 

Bleacher Report- Aleksej Pokusevski

The Smoking Cuban- Tyrese Maxey

Four of the sites have the 18-year-old Serbian forward Pokusevski as the pick. Dallas product Tyrese Maxey earned three selections with Terry, Green, and Saddiq Bey each getting one. Assuming they keep the pick, does that answer the following question?

Who will the Dallas Mavericks draft at pick 18?

Every team considers several factors when considering drafting a prospect. The Mavs like to take upside swings in the draft, but that does not a ton of sense here. They are more likely to take a player ready to contribute right away because they want to compete for a championship in 2021. The Mavericks would love to land Bey, Aaron Nesmith, Isaac Okoro, or Devin Vassell. If those players are not available, expect Maxey, Green, or another NBA-ready role player to be taken.

The Mavs will have plenty of options, but the most likely remains trading the pick. Stay tuned for what promises to be an exciting evening.