NBA Mock Draft: Thunder Use No. 2 Pick on Future Star

The NBA Draft Lottery took place on Tuesday night, setting the stage for next month's draft. Now that every team knows exactly where they'll be selecting in the 2022 NBA Draft, things get a whole lot more interesting.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were fortunate enough to land the No. 2 and No. 12 overall picks, which should allow them to add two more key pieces to their young core. As such, scouting becomes even more important as the second pick could net a future superstar.

Oklahoma City will be the only team in the upcoming draft with two lottery picks, which makes the future of the franchise look even brighter. If Thunder GM Sam Presti is able to hit on even one of these lottery selections, a big three in OKC will officially be formed.

Jeremy Woo of Sports Illustrated released a mock draft for the 2022 class following the lottery, which gives insight into where some of the top players in the upcoming rookie class could land. His projection has the Thunder selecting two forwards that could be starters for the team over the next decade.

1. Orlando Magic: Jabari Smith Jr. (Forward | Auburn)

2. Oklahoma City Thunder: Chet Holmgren (Center | Gonzaga)

3. Houston Rockets: Paolo Banchero (Forward | Duke)

4. Sacramento Kings: Shaedon Sharpe (Guard | Kentucky)

5. Detroit Pistons: Jaden Ivey (Guard | Purdue)

6. Indiana Pacers: Keegan Murray (Forward | Iowa)

7. Portland Trail Blazers: Bennedict Mathurin (Guard | Arizona)

8. New Orleans Pelicans: Dyson Daniels (Guard | G League Ignite)

9. San Antonio Spurs: Johnny Davis (Guard | Wisconsin)

10. Washington Wizards: Jalen Duren (Center | Memphis)

11. New York Knicks: AJ Griffin (Forward | Duke)

12. Oklahoma City Thunder: Jeremy Sochan (Forward | Baylor)

13. Charlotte Hornets: Ochai Agbaji (Guard | Kansas)

14. Cleveland Cavaliers: Malaki Branham (Guard | Ohio State)

Holmgren and Sochan are both spectacular on the defensive end of the floor. If the Thunder were to land these prospects, their ability to limit teams offensively would be tremendous moving forward.

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