#19. San Antonio Spurs – Darius Garland
For two straight drafts, the San Antonio Spurs will be selecting in the late teens with their own pick. Just like in 2018, the Spurs will also be able to reap the benefits of a player falling down draft boards in the 2019 NBA Draft by selecting Darius Garland 19th overall.
Many mock drafts have Garland as a dead ringer for a lottery selection, with him being mocked as high as 3rd and 4th depending on how the board shakes out.
However, in this scenario, teams have lingering concerns about Garland’s injury and tiny frame. With that being the case, the Spurs would be happy to take a chance on a more offense-first guard as opposed to the two defensively talented established guards on the roster in Dejounte Murray and Derrick White.
Last year, the team also selected a guard in Lonnie Walker, but not all of those guards need to have the ball in their hands to be effective, so there wouldn’t be too much of a worry about overlap in the backcourt.
Beyond that, the Spurs already nabbed a big man at the end of the first round, so there’s no reason to plug that hole with this selection.