Houston Rockets Make Unpopular Selection in New Mock Draft

There's no telling what the Houston Rockets will do with the third overall pick in this year's NBA Draft. The Rockets could trade the pick for a proven player, they could trade the pick for future picks down the road, or they could even use the pick to select a player of their liking in this year’s class.

The mock drafts have also been ever-changing, as many disagree on what the Rockets need most. Some believe the Rockets need a playmaking guard to eventually replace Fred VanVleet, and think Kentucky's Rob Dillingham fits the bill.

Others think the Rockets may turn to Dillingham's former running mate, Reed Sheppard, who is a long-range sniper and good defender. Some believe the Rockets need a dominant big man, and think Connecticut's Donovan Clingan is the perfect pick at number three.

We haven't heard as much about Clingan's former running mate, Stephon Castle.

Up until now.

The Basketball Bulletin crafted their latest mock draft and Wes Davenport projected the Rockets to select the 6-foot-5 guard.

"I probably would have looked at a backcourt or frontcourt depth addition here, Reed Sheppard or Clingan, but it's hard to argue with another big time perimeter defender. It is also possible Castle has enough on ball juice to be a primary initiator, and that backcourt depth, for this particular team."

Davenport started by noting the difficulty of predicting the Rockets' draft plans.

Castle is a tenacious defender, which is Rockets coach Ime Udoka's area of expertise.

However, Udoka has repeatedly noted the Rockets' need for long-range shooters, and Castle hasn't proven to be that type of player, at least yet. He made just 30.2 percent of his treys (on just 2.3 attempts) and went 1-of-4 from deep in the national championship game.

Sure, he's clearly capable of contributing in other areas, as evidenced by his averages of 11.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, three assists, 47.4 percent from the field, and roughly two stocks per contest.

But the lack of shooting ability would create major spacing issues, as defenses could simply sag off him, due to the lack of a threat of him making them pay for it. This would especially be problematic alongside Amen Thompson, who is a similar player when it comes to being a phenomenal defender but a poor perimeter shooter.

This one doesn't make as much sense for the Rockets as some of the other mocks we've seen.

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