The 2012 NBA Draft, we'll hear, doesn't have a deep class of point guards. There's no one like Kyrie Irving, who went No. 1 overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2011. But there are certainly impact point guards to be found in the 2012 draft. The Weber St. Wildcats' Damian Lillard is possibly the top point guard in the draft, and in Chad Ford's ESPN Insider mock draft, the guard is off the board at No. 9 overall to the Utah Jazz:
Enter Lillard. While the Jazz won't just draft to fill a position, Lillard is as talented as anyone in this range. He's more of a scorer than a pure point guard, but his ability to hit jump shots and get his teammates involved will be alluring to the Jazz.
For a second year in a row, the Jazz would go local with their pick since Weber State is located in Utah (the Jazz went to neighboring Colorado to take the Buffaloes' Alec Burks, a shooting guard who is emerging with the team as the season wears on).
Lillard is the first point guard off the board in this mock draft, followed by North Carolina's Kendall Marshall (No. 12 to New Orleans) and Washington's Tony Wroten Jr. (No. 19 to Atlanta). But first Lillard must declare for the draft, which is expected.
Check out SB Nation NBA and SB Nation NCAA Basketball for more on the 2012 NBA Draft.