CHICAGO — The basketball gods have spoken through the oracle of the draft lottery, delivering on Tuesday one of the more memorable nights in recent history as the San Antonio Spurs secured the No. 1 pick and the right to draft French sensation Victor Wembanyama. It's the third time in franchise history the Spurs will pick No. 1 after doing so in 1987 and 1997, in both cases securing franchise cornerstones in David Robinson and Tim Duncan. Now Wembanyama, by all accounts, appears next in that lineage.
Our first post-lottery mock draft projects as much, anyway, and that likely won't change anytime soon. Wembanyama finished as the leading scorer, rebounder and shot-blocker in the Pro A this season and is well on his way to winning league MVP at a ripe 19 years old. He's been viewed for months -- if not longer -- as the front-runner to be the No. 1 pick, and the Spurs are expected to make him that.
Things get interesting beyond Wembanyama, though. With the Hornets winning the No. 2 pick, Scoot Henderson may not be the favorite to be selected in that spot despite being considered one of the top-two prospects in the class. With LaMelo Ball in tow, this version of our mock instead has Charlotte selecting Alabama wing Brandon Miller to pair with Ball as a big-bodied scoring wing for the future.
Henderson in this scenario falls all the way to Portland at No. 3 -- a dream scenario that gives the Trail Blazers a player that may be viewed in other classes as the top prospect. On down, Henderson's G League Ignite teammate Leonard Miller, in the midst of a strong week at the Draft Combine, also cracks our mock at No. 21.
Our full post-lottery mock draft is below.
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