2024 NBA Mock Draft 3.0: Hawks court chaos, Spurs speed up rebuild, Lakers surprise

5) Detroit Pistons-Matas Buzelis

With the fifth pick in the draft, predicting who the Detroit Pistons will take is tricky since they have quite a few recent first-round picks on their roster and there is bound to be overlap. Nevertheless, the general consensus seems to be that they will pick Matas Buzelis of the G-League Ignite. While his draft stock has seemingly been all over the place, he might make sense in Detroit. 

Adding Buzelis could be viewed as a gamble since he has the potential to be a star given his size at 6'10 and versatility but he doesn't yet look like much of a shooter and his effort level tends to come and go. His most notable skill is playmaking as a big wing but playing alongside Cade Cunningham would likely result in him playing more off-ball and having to settle into a role as a second or third option.

Still, if he can become a good shooter, he can be a steal at five and give Detroit an unconventional lineup that features a 6'7 point guard and a 6'10 small forward. On the other hand, if he can't, he might look like a questionable pick.