NBA Mock Draft 15.0: Big name tumbles due to injury; Grizzlies trade up for defensive big

One projected lottery pick takes a tumble down the draft board because of a significant injury in our latest NBA Mock Draft.

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BASKETBALL-EUROLEAGUE-FENERBAHCE-CRVENA-ZVEZDA | ALTAN GOCHER/GettyImages
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7. Portland Trail Blazers - Tidjane Salaun, F, France

The Portland Trail Blazers will enter the 2024 NBA Draft with the idea of making lemonade out of lemons. After falling out of the top 5, the Blazers will now have the No. 7 overall pick (and the No. 14 thanks to the Golden State Warriors). But in what has been declared a "weak" draft class by many, it'll be interesting to see how the Blazers navigate these waters. One potential path the Blazers could explore with this first draft pick is to take the biggest high-risk, high-reward prospect still on the board at this point.

If the Blazers did want to explore that avenue, this selection could lead them to Tidjane Salaun. The 6-foot-9 forward is a prospect that has risen quickly up draft boards over the last couple of months and with two weeks remaining, there's a good chance he settles in as a unanimous top 10 pick.

Salaun is an extremely raw prospect but there's not much on the basketball court that he doesn't have the skill set for, and that's one of the biggest reasons why he might be one of the most intriguing prospects still on the board at this point in the top 10.