One silver lining to the 1-16 start by the Houston Rockets — which includes 15 consecutive losses and counting, as of Tuesday — involves implications for the 2022 NBA draft, which takes place next June.
Unlike last season, when a top-four-protected pick swap (owned by Oklahoma City from the Chris Paul-Russell Westbrook trade) meant nearly a 50% probability of Houston losing its top draft pick, there is no potential swap attached to the team’s 2022 first-round selection.
In other words, barring a miraculous in-season turnaround, the Rockets are effectively guaranteed to land a top selection. It’s simply a matter of where they slide in during the NBA’s 2022 draft lottery. Should Houston maintain its current position as the league’s worst team, its lowest possible selection would be at No. 5 overall in the first round.
That’s the floor scenario, of course. The upside is that no team would have better odds than the Rockets of securing the No. 1 overall pick. And since draft forecasts have no knowledge of how the lottery will turn out, their projections are based on current records. At the moment, that would mean Houston picks first. The Rockets will also own a 2022 first-round pick from either Miami or Brooklyn, whichever is higher.
With the 2021-22 seasons now underway for college basketball and many international leagues, the first wave of mock draft projections is emerging. On Tuesday, Nov. 23, For The Win’s Bryan Kalbrosky and Sports Illustrated’s (SI) Jeremy Woo made their initial 2022 NBA draft selections, and here’s a look at who they have the Rockets taking. For complete analysis of all picks, visit the For The Win and SI websites.
🚨 NEW MOCK DRAFT 🚨
1. ROCKETS: Paolo Banchero
_
3. MAGIC: Jalen Duren
_
5. SPURS: Jaden Ivey
_
10. RAPTORS: Ousmane Dieng
_
13. SIXERS: TyTy Washington
_
17. CAVALIERS: Peyton Watson
_
21. KNICKS: Trevor Keels
_
28. HEAT: Ochai Agbaji
_The rest ⬇️https://t.co/C888m5dIhq
— Bryan Kalbrosky (@BryanKalbrosky) November 23, 2021
