Indiana Pacers mock draft round up prior to the NBA Draft Lottery

With the NBA Draft Lottery set to take place tonight, let’s take a glance at recent mocks for the Indiana Pacers.

The Indiana Pacers are an interesting team to mock players to in the upcoming NBA Draft thanks to the current state of the roster. With no perimeter defense and depth leaving in short time, the Pacers need to nail this year’s draft.

Whether they look at guards to replace Aaron Holiday and T.J. McConnell or a forward that can ease them out of a two-big lineup, Indiana has plenty of options. They are projected to hold the 13th overall pick, which has a good history of late. What do the experts think will happen?

Bleacher Report projects James Bouknight to the Indiana Pacers

Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report recently placed James Bouknight to the Pacers with the 13th overall pick. Bouknight, a sophomore guard at UCONN, is a pure finisher with a nice cutting dynamic to his game. While his three-point shot struggled a bit last season, Bouknight is still an extremely skilled scorer that can do it from all three levels.

Bouknight can attack the cup or pull up from the midrange, adding another talented scorer to the mix in Indiana. Indiana using him off the bench to spell Caris LeVert or T.J. Warren would keep a consistent scorer on the floor at all times.

There are a lot of tools to work with for Bouknight on the offensive end despite his lack of speed in the open floor. His regression as a shooter and lack of defensive impact is a bit worrisome but there is plenty of time to work on those. If he can become a better passer while shooting at a decent clip, Bouknight is a solid option for Indiana.