Now that they’re about to add the No. 26 pick to their draft asset list, the Rockets are considering swapping in the draft, reports Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer in his latest mock draft . According to O’Connor, Houston has asked to rise from No. 3 to one of the top two spots in the draft, and has also explored the possibility of rising from No. 17 to the final lottery.
Like Houston, the Nuggets have agreed to acquire an additional first-round pick (No. 30) and are trying to pack it with No. 21 to go through the middle of the first round, O’Connor writes. However, O’Connor expects Denver to add a young player or a future asset to his pack in order to make real progress.
O’Connor’s new mock draft includes some more interesting details, including his suggestion that there’s still a bit of “talk” about teams trying to switch to Magic’s No. 1 general election.
Here are some more updates related to the draft:
- Five more players have been invited to the green room for next Thursday’s draft, reports Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link). Tari Eason, Jalen Williams, TyTy Washington, MarJon Beauchamp and Jaden Hardy received invitations, joining an initial list of 16 guests. Of the 21 players invited to the Green Room, only Hardy (No. 22) and Beauchamp (No. 23) are among the top 21 prospects on ESPN’s big board.
- Caleb Houstan of Michigan, one of the only potentials to turn down a combination invitation this year, has been working for the Grizzlies and Nuggets this week, according to a source on Givony (Twitter link). These two teams control the last two elections in the first round.
- Kentucky’s Shaedon Sharpe told reporters today that the Spurs, Thunder and Magic are among the teams he has worked for in the pre-draft process, tweeted NBC Sports Washington’s Chase Hughes. Sharpe will work for the Pacers on Monday, a source told James Boyd of The Indianapolis Star (Twitter link).
- Colorado State striker David Roddy is still training with the Thunder and Celtics, tweeted Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News. By the time draft night arrives, Roddy will have visited “half of the league,” Wolfson adds.