NBA Draft: Where are former Vols falling in the latest mock drafts?

There could be a few former Vols hear their names called during the 2019 NBA Draft. Here is a look at a few mock drafts.

Despite losing an overtime battle against Purdue in the Sweet Sixteen, the Tennessee basketball team won a program-tying 31 games in the 2018-19 season. That is quite a feat considering where the program came from in Rick Barnes’ first season on Rocky Top.

Along with the transformation of the program came transformations of players. It’s well known that Grant Williams, Admiral Schofield, and Jordan Bone were not highly recruited players coming out of high school. In fact, other than D.J. Burns, there wasn’t a single play on the Vols roster that was highly sought after.

Chalk it down to good development or maybe players just being studs; some former Vols have an opportunity to hear their names in the 2019 NBA Draft. Here are a few mock drafts displaying where Williams, Schofield, and Bone could end up this summer.

ESPN

ESPN only releases mock drafts for insider members so I can’t provide details into those picks. However, ESPN does release the best available players from each position. Williams comes in at 24th overall and the 8th power forward. He is listed behind Zion Williamson, PJ Washington, and Rui Hachimura to name a few.

The next VFL to make the list is Admiral Schofield at 32nd. He’s sandwiched between Eric Paschall from Villanova and Dylan Windler from Belmont. Schofield ranks as the 8th best small forward available according to ESPN.

CBS

Gary Parrish from CBS submitted a first round mock draft on April 16. 2019. No surprise at the top, the New York Knicks will select Zion Williamson. But, that was never going to affect Williams and Schofield.

Surprisingly, Parrish has Schofield the first Vol coming off the board at 23 to the Utah Jazz. One thing Schofield improved each season was his ability to knock down the three-point jumper. The Jazz ranked 10th in the NBA shooting 35.6 percent from deep.

Just three picks later, Parrish has Williams heading to Cleveland to play for the Cavaliers. The back-to-back SEC Player of the Year should bring depth to a team that only won 19 games.

Bleacher Report

Steve Silverman of Bleacher Report put out his latest mock draft on April 19. 2019. Silverman’s mock only included the first round. Some notable projections were PJ Washington going as high at number nine to the Atlanta Hawks and Tyler Herro going 16th to the Orlando Magic.

Silverman only has one former Vol projected in the first round which is Williams. With the 22nd pick, the Boston Celtics are projected to select the back-to-back SEC Player of the Year. You have to think this is a great spot for Williams to learn under one of the best coaches in basketball.

It was interesting that Jordan Bone’s name didn’t come up in any mock drafts or best available list. However, there is a really good chance both Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield hear their name called in the 2019 NBA Draft.