Jordan Mickey could hear his name called sooner than many anticipated come Thursday night’s NBA Draft.
According to sources, an NBA team selecting in the early 20s of the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft has promised to select Mickey with its first round pick.
Many draft experts have projected Mickey, who averaged 15.4 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 3.6 blocks per game in a First Team All-SEC sophomore campaign at LSU, as a second round selection, but sources close to the player say he “has been given a guarantee by a team” somewhere between picks 20 and 25 to go off the board in round one.
Sources did not confirm the team’s name, but picks No. 20 through 25 are as follows: Toronto, Dallas, Chicago, Portland, Cleveland, and Memphis.
News of Mickey’s soaring stock has already hit NBA front offices, causing teams selecting even higher than Toronto to think twice. The Celtics, who have reportedly been very impressed with the former Tiger, will bring Mickey in for a final workout Wednesday, with an eye on potentially picking him at No. 16.
Mickey’s stock has been on the rise since his excellent NBA Combine showing. He measured 6-foot-8 ¼ with shoes and boasted a 37 ½ inch vertical and a 7-foot-3 ¼ wingspan, and in his first Combine scrimmage, Mickey posted 18 points, 8 rebound, and 8 blocks against a field of aspiring draftees.