ESPN's Chad Ford released his first 2011 NBA mock draft on Thursday, one day after Michigan's Darius Morris announced he was going to leave Ann Arbor and go pro. Many have said that Morris will likely be a late first-rounder or early second-rounder (myself included), and Ford has the Houston Rockets picking the former Michigan point guard with the 23rd overall pick.
↵Ford explains that the Rockets could take Morris because it's not clear if Kyle Lowry is the "long-term answer at the point." Morris has great court vision and is a different kind of player than Lowry, so he could be the pick here.
↵Ford also explains that Morris' stock may be hurt a bit by his "lack of elite quickness and shooting ability." Those are two things many believed could be improved upon with another year at Michigan, but now the hope for Morris is for NBA teams to draft him based on potential improvement. Ford said in another story that he liked what he saw at a workout Morris had, so it seems as though his stock may actually be on the rise right now despite him needing to work on some things in his game.