Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
The 6-foot-5 Murray moved to No. 16 from No. 21, and the 6-3 Briscoe moved into the No. 19 spot after previously being absent from the 2016 mock.
Murray recently committed to Kentucky after reclassing to 2015 and said he planned to be one-and-done.
Incoming Kentucky big man Skal Labissiere remains the projected No. 1 pick, followed by Cal wing Jaylen Brown at No. 2, LSU forward Ben Simmons at No. 3, Duke forward Brandon Ingram at No. 4 and European forward Dragan Bender at No. 5.
Kentucky also has sophomore forward Marcus Lee at No. 29 and junior forward Alex Poythress at No. 57.
North Carolina, projected as the No. 1 team in some preseason polls, also has five projected draft picks in freshman small forward Justin Jackson at No. 23; sophomore center Kennedy Meeks at 25; freshman small forward Theo Pinson at 26; junior power forward Brice Johnson at 28; and junior point guard Marcus Paige at 47.
Maryland, meantime, has three projected picks in incoming big man Diamond Stone at No. 10; junior small forward Jake Layman at No. 24; and freshman point guard Melo Trimble at 35.
Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle.
A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013.
He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.
Kentucky freshman guards Jamal Murray and Isaiah Briscoe both moved up in the latest 2016 NBA Mock Draft from DraftExpress.com, giving the Wildcats a total of five players in next year’s mock.
