Spurs' 2022 mock draft roundup: Who will be the lottery pick?

We're a little over a week away from finding out where the San Antonio Spurs will be selecting in the 2022 NBA Draft.

On May 17th, the NBA Draft Lottery will be taking place, an event that once changed the future of the franchise forever 25 years ago. There are nine different spots in which the Spurs can land after the drawing takes place: any position from 1st-4th and any position from 9th-13th.

While you can find the exact odds of San Antonio landing at each spot here, the most likely scenario (50.7%) is that the Spurs will be selecting 9th in June's NBA Draft. Like their last two lottery picks, Joshua Primo and Devin Vassell, it's highly likely this pick will be someone they can plug in right away to make a difference on the court.

Since there's only about a 3.1% chance the Spurs slip to spots 11, 12, or 13, they'll likely be selecting in the top 10 for the first time since they struck it rich and took Tim Duncan first in 1997. With the draft still about a month and a half away, various names are being floated around as possible picks by San Antonio at the ninth position.

Let's learn a little about each prospect mocked to the Spurs from various outlets, starting with the guys only mentioned once.

Keegan Murray, Iowa

Site: SB Nation
Date of Mock: 4/5/22
Position in last Air Alamo Draft: 11th

SB Nation's Ricky O'Donnell had two-way talent Keegan Murray heading to San Antonio in his early April mock draft. Standing at 6-8 with a 6-11 reach, Murray has the kind of versatility on both ends of the floor the Spurs are lacking.

On offense, he can score inside with shifty paint moves while also burying long-range bombs. He's also an explosive option in transition when he has teammates running the floor alongside him. Defensively, his impressive lateral quickness is something the Spurs also need from their frontcourt, and he keeps his hands active throughout possessions.

A few months ago, Air Alamo's Dylan Carter did a deep dive into why Murray could be a game-changer in San Antonio.

Tari Eason, LSU

Site: Air Alamo
Date: 4/7/22

In his second mock draft for us at Air Alamo, Roberto Araiza took LSU's Tari Eason, another 6-8 forward with impressive statistical showings in college. Eason is certainly a name to watch to climb up boards as the NBA Draft approaches, as he's already starting to turn heads in workouts.

"Eason grabs lots of rebounds, is one of the best in his class at turning defense into offense, has a good handle for his size, will likely be able to guard three or four positions in the NBA, has a knack for getting to the free-throw line, and does lots of the dirty work on both ends of the floor," said Araiza in his assessment of Eason's game.

While his jump shot could be somewhat of a concern, there are several examples of guys without a shot developing that area with Chip Engelland and the Spurs' shooting staff. Tari could be one of the better two-way talents in the 2022 class when everything is said and done.

Dyson Daniels, G League Ignite

Site: Bleacher Report
Date: 4/22/22
Air Alamo Mock: 12th

The last prospect to only be mocked to the Spurs once by outlets recently is the G League Ignite's Dyson Daniels. A few weeks ago, Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report had San Antonio taking the 19-year-old Australian with the ninth selection.

Daniels is a 6-6 guard who averaged 14.0 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 4.6 assists in last July's FIBA U19 World Cup. Although he had several offers from distinguished colleges, he opted to jump to the NBA G League's developmental team and has been shooting up draft boards in recent weeks.

Dyson can be best described as a versatile guard that fills the stat sheet and makes his presence known each time he's on the court. He excels at getting teammates involved and making plays for others, but his shooting can be inconsistent at times.

Considering what the Spurs need this offseason, they probably should steer away from guards (unless they're the next Ja) with their lottery pick.

Johnny Davis, Wisconsin

Sites: Yahoo! Sports (4/5), SI (4/22)
Air Alamo Mock: 10th

Krysten Peek of Yahoo! Sports and Jeremy Woo of SI.com both had the Spurs taking Wisconsin's Johnny Davis with their lottery pick. Davis is a 6-5 shooting guard with a beautiful mid-range game and a general nose for the ball on both ends of the floor.

Davis was often responsible for guarding the best guard on the floor despite being the focal point of Wisconsin's offense, which led to him seeming to tire out a bit as the season went on.

San Antonio doesn't expressly need a guard," says SI's Woo, "but his toughness and intangibles would make a lot of sense if the Spurs are unable to pick from among the top tier of bigs."

Our own Dylan Carter had Davis in the fourth tier of his NBA Draft Big Board, citing positional redundancy as the biggest reason he isn't higher. I tend to agree.

Jalen Duren, Memphis

Sites: The Athletic (4/1), Basketball News (4/17), ESPN (4/25), CBS Sports (4/26)
Air Alamo Mock: 7th

A whopping four outlets suggested the Spurs will take Memphis standout Jalen Duren with their first pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. The 6-11, shot-blocking center is undoubtedly a favorite among many of the Air Alamo staff for San Antonio for what he brings to the court.

Duren has the size, footspeed, two-way potential, and potential the Spurs should be eager to welcome. In fact, probably the only reason our own mock draft didn't have San Antonio picking him up themselves is that we think he'll already be off the board by spot nine.

At just 18 years old, Jalen is already a defensive monster with an athletic, NBA-ready body capable of being a day-one difference-maker. If he somehow slips to ninth, San Antonio absolutely must pick up the teenager.

They might even be wise to pair their later picks to move up a few spots if that's possible.