NBA Draft 2014 | Andrew Wiggins still the mock draft favorite, Bucks open pre-draft workouts with Brust

DraftExpress | Extended 2014 Mock Draft #1
Whether it's group-think or just stating the obvious, we're seemingly back to where we started last fall: all of the "experts" seem to think Andrew Wiggins will be the number one overall pick in the 2014 draft. Count DraftExpress' Jonathan Givony among the believers, pegging Wiggins to the Bucks in DX's first official mock of the year.

Milwaukee will be looking to draft the best talent available here, but it doesn't hurt that they have a fairly glaring hole at the swingman position. With Larry Sanders' situation looking unstable at the moment, they will certainly give Joel Embiid a hard look here as well, depending on the results of his medical examination, as they were forced to start Zaza Pachulia for much of the season. Either way they will need to somehow address their leaky defense, which ranked second worst in the NBA last season.

Sporting News | Deveney: Milwaukee could buck trend, pick Wiggins at No. 1
The Sporting News' Sean Deveney previously had taken more of a need-based approach to the Bucks' pick (ie Jabari Parker), but his latest mock shows that he's also coming around on the Wiggins logic.

[The Bucks] have new ownership and there’s no telling what that ownership is going to do with the coaching staff and front office. Forget drafting for need—they’re going to take the best player they can get.

And the best player, the one with the highest upside in this draft, remains Kansas small forward Andrew Wiggins. Though we won’t know the draft order until the lottery is conducted on May 20—and it’s probable that the Bucks won’t land the top pick—we will at least now move Wiggins into the top slot.

To be honest I'm not sure why a need-based approach would necessarily hurt Wiggins in the first place. His ability to defend both shooting guards and small forwards should allow him to share the court with Giannis Antetokounmpo, who defended both positions this year and may eventually see some time at PF as well. And while having both Wiggins and Giannis on the roster might squeeze Khris Middleton's playing time down the road, that's more of an imaginary problem when you're talking about a team like the Bucks. As much as I like Middleton, Giannis and even Larry Sanders, I wouldn't let any of them stand in the way of picking the guy I liked most on draft night. Now if only I knew who that happened to be...

Bucks.com | Boeder: Everything you need to know about the lottery
Whether we'll still be talking about the Bucks picking number one depends on what happens May 20, and thankfully our man Alex Boeder has a concise post breaking down all the relevant details for lotto night.

Bucks.com | Brust headlines first pre-draft workout
The Bucks kicked off their pre-draft workouts on Friday with a decidedly local flavor, bringing in Wisconsin guard Ben Brust and Marquette guard Jake Thomas for a four-man workout that also featured North Dakota State forward Taylor Braun and Oregon forward Mike Moser. All four are currently outside DraftExpress' top 100 prospect rankings, with Moser (#37 among seniors) and Braun (#45 among seniors) the most highly-rated out of the group.

Don't expect to see any big names roll through until after the draft order is determined on May 20, though the Bucks' three second round picks make it likely that we'll see a ton of potential late first and second round guys over the next six weeks.

Biz Journal | Initial reaction positive to Millennium Park-like corridor downtown
BREAKING: a few people who know stuff about urban planning and design like the idea of a corridor connecting the Wisconsin Center and a potential new Bucks arena. Rich Kirchen reports:

Matt Rinka of Rinka Chung Architecture Inc., of Milwaukee, said tying together the city’s cultural assets is essential and a pedestrian corridor could accomplish that. If attractions like the convention center, an arena and the Milwaukee river walk and the lakefront can be linked, mixed-use private development would follow, he said.

"I love ideas of thinking big and thinking in terms of trying to tie our many exciting pieces of the city together," Rinka said. "As for Millennium Park, I’d love to see it in the city. It would be great to see it on the lakefront."

While we haven't gotten to the point of debating potential site locations, the lakefront vs. downtown question is probably the most relevant one to watch out for going forward. On the plus side, either would be better than putting it out near West Allis.