U.S. media rearranges NBA 2021 lottery draft: Rockets Shen Jing surges to No. 3 pick, Lakers miss out on undrafted picks

With the arrival of the new season, the American media "fansided" rearranged the NBA 2021 lottery draft based on the achievements and performances of current players. Among them, the Rockets' core insider Shen Jing soared to the third overall pick, while the Lakers picked up a big leak through the undrafted draft.

No. 1 pick: Cunningham (formerly No. 1 pick)

There is no doubt that the No. 1 pick still belongs to Cunningham. As a tall ball-holding point guard, Cunningham has a high level of imagination on both offense and defense. Even though injuries have slowed his growth, Cunningham still achieved a breakthrough last season.

At present, he is already a stable All-Star guard candidate. He has averaged 22.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game so far in his career, and he still has a significant upward trend.

The Pistons have also returned to the playoffs after 6 years under his leadership. In the new season, they are one of the most anticipated dark horses in the Eastern Conference. No big surprise, Cunningham will occupy the top pick position for a long time to come.

Second place: Mobley (former No. 3 pick)

The Rockets made a mistake during the draft and gave up Mobley to bet on Jaylen Green. Judging from his career performance so far, the former's achievements and abilities far exceed the latter.

Mobley is already one of the best defenders and frame protectors in active service. He even won DPOY last season. His excellent defense gives him a very high ceiling.

Mobley has also made great progress on the offensive end. He averaged 18.5 points per game in his career, averaged 3.2 three-pointers per game, and shot 37% from the field. He was successfully selected for the All-Star and All-NBA teams, and averaged an impressive 2.9 assists per game. In the future, Mobley is expected to grow into a higher-level two-way insider.

Third pick: Shen Jing (originally the 16th pick)

The Rockets made a mistake with the second pick, but they picked up the treasure with the 16th pick and selected Shen Jing, the core insider.

As a template for the technical insider Jokic, who is currently the number one player in combat effectiveness, Shen Jing can make great progress on both ends of the offense and defense in almost every offseason. He has become the core of the Rockets' long-term insider training, and was selected as an All-Star last season.

With Van Jordan suffering a serious injury, Shen Jing is bound to play a larger organizational role in the new season. He is expected to grow into a more versatile top insider and help the Rockets return to the championship.

No. 4-8: Wagner Jr. (formerly No. 8 pick), Barnes (formerly No. 4 pick), Jaylen Johnson (formerly No. 20 pick), Trey Murphy (formerly No. 17 pick) and Reeves (undrafted)

It is not difficult to see from this group of players that the 21st class of draft picks are recognized as having high quality, high picks have a very high success rate, and almost all of them play a core rotation role in their teams.

Among them, the Lakers are undoubtedly the biggest winner. They discovered and cultivated Reeves, a quasi-All-Star player through Taobao undrafted.

In fact, during the 2021 draft, many teams tried to bet on Reeves in the second half of the second round. However, because the latter reached an agreement with the Lakers in advance, he rejected the invitations of many teams. In the end, the Purple and Gold Army was able to successfully hunt for treasure through undrafting, which also demonstrated the huge soft power advantage of large-market teams in the NBA competition.

9-14: Suggs (original No. 5 pick), Herbert Jones (original No. 35 pick), Jaylen Green (original No. 2 pick), Guidi (original No. 6 pick), Kuminga (original No. 7) Show), Cam Thomas (original No. 27 pick)

Among them, the most regrettable player is undoubtedly Jaylen Green. The Rockets once regarded him as a core outside player for many years, and Jaylen Green also showed a super high offensive ceiling.

Unfortunately, Jaylen Green's stability is worrying, and he lacks the means to force him at critical moments, which led to the Rockets abandoning the trade and sending him to the Suns during the offseason.

But for Jaylen Green at this stage, joining the Suns in the rebuilding period will be a good thing for him to further improve himself.