2015 NBA Draft shopping list: Central Division

What should teams look for in Thursday’s draft? Our shopping list details the projections and needs of all 30 squads.

Chicago Bulls

2014-15 Finish: 50-32, third in the East

1st Round Picks: No. 22

2nd Round Picks: None

This isn’t a criticism, because save for the selection of Marquis Teague in 2012 (the jury, with a coaching change in place, is still out on Doug McDermott) the Chicago Bulls have drafted very well. With that in place, the team tends to focus its attention on players from programs that spent extensive time on CBS in March, older players from big programs that have been well-vetted on a national stage.

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With swingman Mike Dunleavy and point guard Aaron Brooks set to hit the free agent market, Chicago could use perimeter help. Point guards Terry Rozier (Louisville) and Delon Wright (Utah) are two steady, defense-first types that could sop up minutes immediately, while swingman sorts Justin Anderson (Virginia) and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (Arizona) also fit the bill as potential three-and-D guys. Taj Gibson’s ankle injury should have Chicago worried, but no obvious 2015-16 replacement will likely be around at No. 22; in spite of Chicago stealing Gibson at No. 26 back in 2009.

There is always the possibility that Chicago could use its lone selection to stash an overseas prospect in its coffers in order to save luxury tax money next season, but even with the team’s enviable (when healthy) depth up front the franchise still faces too many holes on the roster to risk giving up on the chance to add an intriguing development project on the cheap. On top of that, with international scouting so prevalent and pristine in the modern era, there aren’t many semi-unknown Nikola Mirotic-types to be had towards the end of the first round of this draft.

Cleveland Cavaliers

2014-15 Finish: 53-29, second in the East

1st Round Picks: No. 24

2nd Round Picks: No. 53

The Cavaliers, infamously, were exposed as an incredibly thin batch of Eastern Conference champions during the NBA Finals, but that’s what tends to happen when three opening night starters go down with season-ending injuries. The Cavs did well to rebuild mid-season with a series of trades, but free agent worry over the possible defection of J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert, or even Kevin Love will have the team pouncing on the best player available when it comes time to choose.

As we learned last summer, when Cleveland dealt the two previous No. 1 overall picks for Love, rookies aren’t exactly in LeBron James’s (who will turn 31 in December) best interest at the moment. With Cleveland staring down perhaps the largest payroll in NBA history, however, any inexpensive talent will help. Hollis-Jefferson’s defensive potential would fit here, as would shooting from Justin Anderson – anything to take minutes away from James Jones and Mike Miller.

Despite Matthew Dellavedova’s creeping ubiquity in the postseason, the Cavs still need a point guard to offer stable reserve minutes, and the squad could reach for Rozier or hope Notre Dame’s Jerian Grant falls into the mid-20s.

Detroit Pistons

2014-15 Finish: 32-50, 12th in the East

1st Round Picks: No. 8

2nd Round Picks: No. 38

With Greg Monroe’s likely free agent defection and the worrying Achilles recovery of Brandon Jennings (already an iffy offensive player at times), the Pistons could turn out to be a rather miserable offensive squad in 2015-16. Team architects Stan Van Gundy and Jeff Bower tend to take the conservative route, so taking a chance on versatile guard Emmanuel Mudiay seems a little out of character, but you never know with an evolving roster that was mostly put together before SVG and Bower came to Michigan.

Willie Cauley-Stein was probably going to be available even before news of his foot woes hit, but he seems a little redundant with Andre Drummond already on board. Kentucky guard Devin Booker’s sweet shooting would appear to be a hit with the Pistons, but teams (well, mostly Sacramento) have been left wanting after selecting one-dimensional players around this spot, even if Booker is quite good at his one dimension.

Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky could turn into the stretch power forward of SVG’s dreams, but selecting him this high seems like a reach, the Pistons have already committed two more years and over $16 million to Ersan Ilyasova, and Kaminsky is only six years younger than Ilyasova, who is about to enter his prime. The Pistons are said to be lusting after Spanish swingman Mario Hezonja, but he might be off the board by the time the team selects.

Indiana Pacers

2014-15 Finish: 38-44, ninth in the East

1st Round Picks: No. 11

2nd Round Picks: No. 43.

It would seem uncomfortably symbolic for the Pacers to draft Willie Cauley-Stein with its first-rounder, as the do-it-all Kentucky big man seems like the perfect 7-footer for the modern age. Pacers el jefe Larry Bird was typically candid following his team’s near-miss of the postseason in telling media that he would prefer to run a faster lineup in 2015-16, just about daring hulking center Roy Hibbert to opt out of his contract this summer.

Hibbert won’t, but he and fellow holdover David West will likely have some youngsters to fight against this autumn. If Cauley-Stein is unavailable or if Bird is wary of his injury issues, Texas 7-footer Myles Turner could be the answer at No. 11, providing the team with an athletic shot in the arm. If Bird wants to laugh down his sleeve at stereotype, he could go for the 22-year old Kaminsky, who would work well alongside Hibbert, or versatile Kentucky power forward Trey Lyles.

One thing is for certain: Indiana needs to find an impact player with its lower-rung lottery pick, as it attempts one last go with West still productive, with Hibbert in tow, and with the still-fluid recovery process of Paul George influencing just about everything. With point guard play at a premium in this league, and with incumbent George Hill failing to move the needle significantly in Indianapolis, don’t be surprised to see the Pacers reach for Murray State’s Cameron Payne in available.

Milwaukee Bucks

2014-15 Finish: 41-41, sixth in the East

1st Round Picks: No. 17

2nd Round Picks: No. 46

Milwaukee is right back in the middling center, a place Bucks fans understandably moaned about for years, but for once this intriguing squad is filled with high-potential talent that has a chance to yank this franchise out of its 41-win doldrums. Just one season after selecting Jabari Parker second overall, the Bucks are fielding a versatile squad that could still use help at every position, even Parker’s (who tore his ACL midseason) power forward slot.

As such, the best player available scenario will hit. Milwaukee is unlikely to risk alienating recent addition Michael Carter-Williams by adding a point guard, but if plucky potential reserves Tyus Jones or Jerian Grant are available the team could pull the trigger. The Bucks won’t find at center replacement for Zaza Pachulia at No. 17, but Arkansas power forward Bobby Portis seems to fit the team’s do-everything style.

Milwaukee ended its season scoring just 66 points against the Chicago Bulls, and even with free agent Khris Middleton likely to return (Parker and Pachulia, at about $1.5 million less than the league’s average salary, are the team’s highest-paid players) the Bucks will have a plethora of swingman options at No. 17 to add to the team’s slowly-evolving offense. Justin Anderson, Georgia State’s R.J. Hunter, and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson all should be on the board. The team’s second-round pick, similarly, should be spent on whoever is available that can shoot.

Read Ball Don’t Lie’s other 2015 NBA Draft shopping lists: Pacific Division, Northwest Division.

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Kelly Dwyer is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KDonhoops