A lackluster draft class is being badly overshadowed by the most compelling NBA Finals in a generation, but with the big night less than two weeks away, the Mock Drafts must go on. Opinions beyond the top-two vary wildly and finding anyone in the game falling over themselves for those two is a challenge.

1. Cleveland Cavaliers: Kyrie Irving, Duke  

Nobody wants a Michael Olowokandi or Kwame Brown on their hands, and because of this we rarely see teams go for anyone with the first overall pick except the safe and obvious. Kyrie Irving is both and the Cavaliers legitimately seem to have him firmly penciled in here.

But I believe each of the following three picks (Williams, Knight and Kanter) are equally likely to ultimately be considered the best player from the class.

2. Minnesota Timberwolves: Derrick Williams, Arizona 

The odds of David Kahn keeping the pick seem to fall by the minute and the more interesting question is what sort of return does Derrick Williams warrant? He may need a specific type of offense in order to thrive, but that shouldn’t be too difficult in today’s NBA. If a playoff team successfully trades for Williams, the immediacy of his impact will be one of the most meaningful storylines for the 11-12 season.

3. Utah Jazz: Brandon Knight, Kentucky  

Knight is a player that elicits wide sweeping opinions, but he can become an All-Star point guard and his worst case scenario is to rank somewhere in the 20s at the position given his intangibles. It is nearly impossible to imagine the Jazz existing without a top quality point guard. 

4. Cleveland Cavaliers: Enes Kanter, Kentucky 

If Kanter had been allowed to play his freshman season at Kentucky, it is a safe wager that he wouldn’t be slotted fourth overall. He would either be the top player on the board, or we would have seen some of the limitations that weren’t manifest by his increasingly legendary 2010 Nike Hoop Summit performance.

5. Toronto Raptors: Jan Vesely, Partizan   

With Vesely and DeMar DeRozan on the wings, perimeter shooting will continue to be problematic for the Raptors, but you’d probably need to bring in LeBron and Wade to find a team with superior athletes. Vesely is an easy dark horse to win the 2012 NBA Rookie of the Year award given how ready he is physically. With all of the uncertainties in this draft that teams are trying to convince themselves on, Vesely has begun to look more logical in recent weeks.

6. Washington Wizards: Kawhi Leonard, San Diego State   

No matter who they pick, this is the one the Wizards need to succeed on in the way the Sonics/Thunder did when they grabbed Russell Westbrook in 2008. Leonard, like Westbrook, is a remarkable physical specimen that needs to bolster the subtleties of his all-around game.

7. Sacramento Kings: Kemba Walker, Connecticut   

Picking Walker much higher than seventh will feel like a reason to me, even in a weak year, but the Kings are the exception since he is such an excellent fit as a player who can operate offensively without the ball and defend point guards.

As I mentioned on the night of the lottery, Walker is extremely capable of doing that and also brings a lot of the intangibles Evans and DeMarcus Cousins lacks.

8. Detroit Pistons: Jonas Valanciunas, Lietuvos Rytas

Like picks one through three and number seven, Detroit remains the landing spot for Valanciunas. I hope he withdraws, however, because the buyout situation means he probably won’t come over for 11-12 and I have a lot of questions about his game that one more season in Europe would help answer, which could actually see him move into the top-three in 2012 even if it feels like a more crowded draft right now given the presence of Anthony Davis, Harrison Barnes, Perry Jones, Austin Rivers, Michael Gilchrist, James McAdoo, etc.

9. Charlotte Bobcats: Marcus Morris, Kansas 

Morris won’t be the franchise player the Bobcats are so desperately in need of, but we’ve been out of those guys since before the draft began. He’s a building block since he will be the team’s best individual scorer almost immediately.

10. Milwaukee Bucks: Klay Thompson, Washington State  

The Bucks will almost certainly be able to decide between Thompson and Burks, but I see the former’s perimeter game as the prime difference.

11. Golden State Warriors: Alec Burks, Colorado 

I’d prefer to have Bismack Biyombo instead of Ekpe Udoh, but I don’t believe you can draft those two players in consecutive seasons and this is how mistakes sometimes get compounded and turn into a problem that perpetuates into double-digit playoff droughts. Burks fits in nicely next to Stephen Curry if they do trade Monta Ellis, as expected. He is a better fit than Thompson due to his ability to put the ball on the floor like a point guard and create his own offense near the bucket.

12. Utah Jazz: Bismack Biyombo, Baloncesto Fuenlabrada  

If this were a liquored up draft with all of the consequences of a friendly fantasy basketball league, I suspect we would see Biyombo in the top-six, but there are a lot of jobs at stake between five and 12, and his rookie wage scale will reflect that. I’d ideally like to see him with the Wizards, but the Jazz are an interesting possibility in their crowded frontcourt.

13. Phoenix Suns: Jimmer Fredette, BYU 

Unless a team trades up, the Fredette watch will begin in earnest at No. 12 and shouldn’t last much longer than this slot. Maybe Fredette can become an NBA point guard in time and maybe he won’t, but he will at least be able to score off the bench efficiently and at a per minute pace that rivals your favorite gunner.

14. Houston Rockets: Chris Singleton, Florida State 

Singleton remains on the edge of the Lottery, as he was a few weeks ago. He is custom made for a team like the Rockets, especially considering their needs.

15. Indiana Pacers: Tristan Thompson, Texas 

If Thompson were an inch or two longer, I think we would be having a different conversation about his draft stock. The Pacers need a power forward and his lack of height should at least be partially negated playing beside a big center in Roy Hibbert and wings with good size like Danny Granger and Paul George.

16. Philadelphia 76ers: Nikola Vucevic, USC 

With a nearly unguardable jump hook, Vucevic should have no problem transitioning as an effective NBA scorer.

17. New York Knicks: Kenneth Faried, Morehead State 

The Knicks are always at the center of things and this is where I see the draft turning into a somewhat predictable event into an absolute mess full of shocks and stunners. New York’s pool of candidate pool here feels justifiably limited, but Faried still feels like the logical pick should they expect the player at 17 to remain with the team beyond the summer of 2012. The Josh Selby momentum seems more like a pick to be made with the hope and expectation that he blossoms and is flipped for one of those superstars.

18. Washington Wizards: Markieff Morris, Kansas

Morris deserves consideration inside the lottery, but this represents more appropriate value. He has good natural instincts for the game despite some limiations to his skill and should have a long career as a rotation player.

19. Charlotte Bobcats: Josh Selby, Kansas 

Selby seems to be benefiting from his high school reputation more than anything he did during a somewhat stereotypical freshman season for a player that was inappropriately heralded. But you can see that he is capable of greatness, but he won’t contribute to any team for several seasons.

20. Minnesota Timberwolves: Donatas Motiejunas 

I’ve been impressed with the development of Motiejunas over the past few seasons, but I still can’t get behind him as anything more than a rotation player.

21. Portland Trail Blazers: Reggie Jackson, Boston College 

I don’t expect the Blazers to retain this pick given their need to improve with another veteran and a run of good health. Jackson would make some sense for the team and is deserving of a pick in this part of the draft. 

22. Denver Nuggets: Travis Leslie, Georgia 

Leslie is a showstopper of an athlete and though it would be difficult for other teams to produce a good return on the value of taking him with the 22nd overall pick, the Nuggets play a style that would benefit him.

23. Houston Rockets: Davis Bertans, Union Olimpija    

Bertans is extremely young, but with his preternatural jumper and great feel for the game, he could evolve into a starter in this league and one of the finest all-around players from this draft class.

24. Oklahoma City Thunder:  Jordan Hamilton, Texas 

Hamilton lacks the requisite athleticism to become anything more than a niche spot-up shooter, but considering the talent level of some of the players asked to spread the floor during the playoffs, there will be NBA minutes available.

25. Boston Celtics: Justin Harper, Richmond 

Harper has an excellent combination of skill and size, not unlike Jeff Green ironically. Similar to Green, Harper may struggle to excel in one specific area since he has a basic all-around game that doesn’t immediately wow you. I would have no problems with Harper going even higher than this slot, though the Celtics would be an idyllic fit for him.

26. Dallas Mavericks: Tobias Harris, Tennessee 

Harris is another player that looks like your basic, all-around combo forward, which means he has very little shot at ever becoming anything more than a 20 minute per night reserve. But he can score it as a spot-up shooter and in transition. I see him ultimately as a big small forward rather than a small power forward and his fitness will be the foremost factor either way.

27. New Jersey Nets: Iman Shumpert, Georgia Tech   

Shumpert is one of the most versatile players in the draft and would thrive in an uptempo system where he doesn’t have too narrow of a job description. He was asked to do too much and given too much leeway while at Georgia Tech, so the structure of being the fourth or fifth best player on the floor at any given time will help him succeed more consistently.

28. Chicago Bulls: Nolan Smith, Duke

Smith fits the profile of the type of player the Chicago front office tends to gravitate towards, plus he would instantly be a serviceable backup to Derrick Rose. Smith should be able to score in small doses at the NBA level and even could coexist with Rose in the backcourt depending on the opponent.  

29. San Antonio Spurs: Jon Leuer, Wisconsin  

Leuer was a do-everything scorer in college, but will mostly be a spot-up shooter that occasionally exploits a matchup in the post in the NBA. Given the right system and San Antonio has proven to be a good fit for players such as Leuer.

30. Chicago Bulls: JaJuan Johnson, Purdue

This pick assumes the Bulls move the selection, which leaves Johnson going to a team to be determined later. Johnson has vastly improved his game from where he was a few seasons ago (especially his overall comfort with the ball in his hands and when he puts it on the deck), but how much more room to grow does he possibly have?