The Dallas Mavericks hold the No. 9 pick in the draft and figure to have a wide range of options at the position.
Even though they have been linked to several point guards to this point, the Mavs are holding workouts with five projected first-round prospects that don't play the position, according to Mike Fisher of Scout.com.
The Dallas Mavericks sent scouting department representatives on an Eastern swing this week, sources tell DallasBasketball,com, to observe workouts sponsored by some of the most powerful agencies in the business. The locations: Virginia on Wednesday. New York on Thursday. Chicago on Friday. Of even more importance, among the participants: Kentucky guard Malik Monk, Gonzaga center Zack Collins, Texas center Jarrett Allen, Duke center/forward Harry Giles and UCLA power forward T.J. Leaf.
Of those prospects, Monk and Collins figure to be the only ones in play with the ninth pick, but Giles is the wildcard.
Giles was the top-ranked high school prospect in this class, and was thought to be the slam dunk No. 1 pick whenever he entered the NBA Draft. However, he tore both ACLs in high school, resulting in three knee surgeries and a 14-month layoff before his Duke debut. That caused him to play at much less than 100 percent all season for the Blue Devils.
Pre-injuries, Giles was thought of as a franchise player. He was an elite athlete (which he gradually regained throughout the college season), excellent rebounder and versatile offensive threat that had a polished post game and decent touch on his mid-range jumper. Plus, his athleticism gave him tremendous upside as a rim protector.
Naturally, the medical concerns about Giles are great and create some uncertainly around his draft stock. While some view Giles as a late first-round pick given that injury history, some teams reportedly like him in the 5-10 range because of that skill.
Dallas wants to do their own medical testing on Giles and see if he has any limitations on the court. If he performs well for the Mavs and is medically cleared, Dallas may the be the ones to gamble on him at No. 9.
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