NBA Mock Draft 2016: Pre-Combine Edition

One of the unquestionably most divisive figures in the 2016 NBA Draft is that of Thon Maker out of Canada. He’s long been looked at as an intriguing prospect whenever he was going to enter the draft, but the route that he took to enter was less than traditional after finding another year of eligibility in high school ball in Canada and then qualifying for the draft as an international prospect. <p>Now 19 years old, Maker has legitimate size at 7-0 and has the skill and potential to have a real impact on the league if a team develops him properly. However, where Maker is going to go in the draft is highly intriguing at this point. That’s why I have the Raptors taking him at the end of the first round. Not only do they have several picks, but they have faith in their D-League system as seen with Bruno Caboclo and also have the luxury of already being in a good position.</p>. PF. High School/International. Thon Maker. 27. player. 81

C. International. Zhou Qi. 28. player. 66. Another intriguing prospect for a completely different reason than Maker is Zhou Qi out of China. He’s absolutely enormous in terms of length and height at 7-2, but he’s also incredibly slight in regards to his frame and is also already 20 years old. While he’s shown some skill against questionable competition, many wonder if he’s more Yi Jianlin than anything else that he could possibly wind up being. <p>Also having several picks throughout the draft, though, is the Phoenix Suns, which gives theme the luxury to take a number of risks throughout all of their selections. As such, I’d like to see them look at Zhou Qi and potentially take him to either stash in the D-League or even give a chance in a role off of the bench just to see what he’s capable of. </p>