NBA Draft updates: MSU's Dawson heading to New Orleans

FIRST ROUND

1. Minnesota: Karl-Anthony Towns, C, Kentucky

2. Los Angeles Lakers: D'Angelo Russell, G, Ohio State

3. Philadelphia: Jahlil Okafor, C, Duke

4. New York: Kristaps Porzingis, F, Latvia

5. Orlando: Mario Hezonja, G, Croatia

6. Sacramento: Willie Cauley-Stein, C, Kentucky

7. Denver: Emmanuel Mudiay, G, China

8. Detroit: Stanley Johnson, F, Arizona

9. Charlotte: Frank Kaminsky III, C, Wisconsin

10. Miami: Justise Winslow, F, Duke

11. Indiana: Myles Turner, C, Texas

12. Utah: Trey Lyles, F, Kentucky

13. Phoenix: Devin Booker, G, Kentucky

14. Oklahoma City: Cameron Payne, G, Murray St

15. Atlanta: Kelly Oubre, F, Kansas (rights traded to Washington)

16. Boston: Terry Rozier, G, Louisville

17. Milwaukee: Rashad Vaughn, G, UNLV

18. Houston: Tyus Jones, G, Duke

19. Washington: Jerian Grant, G, Notre Dame (rights traded to New York via Atlanta)

20. Toronto: Delon Wright, G, Utah

21. Dallas: Justin Anderson, F, Virginia

22. Chicago: Bobby Portis, F, Arkansas

23. Portland: Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, F, Arizona (rights traded to Brooklyn)

24. Cleveland: Tyus Jones, G, Duke (rights traded to Minnesota)

25. Memphis: Jarell Martin, F, LSU

26. San Antonio: Nikola Milutinov, C, Serbia

27. Los Angeles Lakers: Larry Nance Jr., F, Wyoming

28. Boston: R.J. Hunter, G, Georgia St.

29. Brooklyn: Chris McCullough, F, Syracuse

30. Golden State: Kevon Looney, F, UCLA

SECOND ROUND

31. Minnesota: Cedi Osman, G, Turkey (rights traded to Cleveland)

32. Houston: Montrezl Harrell, F, Louisville

33. Boston: Jordan Mickey, F, LSU

34. Los Angeles Lakers: Anthony Brown, F, Stanford

35. Philadelphia: Willy Hernangomez, C, Spain

36. Minnesota: Rakeem Christmas, F, Syracuse (rights traded to Cleveland)

37. Philadelphia: Richaun Holmes, F, BGSU

38. Detroit: Darrun Hilliard, G, Villanova

39. Charlotte: Juan Vaulet, F, Argentina (rights reportedly traded to Brooklyn)

40. Miami: Josh Richardson, G, Tennessee

41. Brooklyn: Pat Connaughton, G, Notre Dame (rights traded to Portland)

42. Utah: Olivier Hanlan, G, Boston College

43. Indiana: Joseph Young, G, Oregon

44. Phoenix: Andrew Harrison, G, Kentucky

45. Boston: Marcus Thornton, G, William & Mary

46. Milwaukee: Norman Powell, G, UCLA (rights traded to Toronto)

47. Philadelphia: Arturas Gudaitis, C, Lithuania

48. Oklahoma City: Dakari Johnson, C, Kentucky

49. Washington: Aaron White, F, Iowa

50. Atlanta: Marcus Eriksson, G, Sweden

51. Orlando: Tyler Harvey, G, Eastern Washington

52. Dallas: Satnam Singh Bhamara, C, India

53. Cleveland: Sir Dominic Pointer, F, St. John's

54. Utah: Daniel Diez, F, Spain

55. San Antonio: Cady Lalanne, F, UMass

56. New Orleans: Branden Dawson, F, MSU

57. Denver: Nikola Radicevic, G, Serbia

58. Philadelphia: J.P. Tokoto, F, North Carolina

59. Atlanta: Dimitrios Agravanis, F, Greece

60. Philadelphia: Luka Mitrovic, F, Serbia

Branden Dawson taken by Pelicans

Branden Dawson had to wait, but he was eventually taken by New Orleans with the 56th overall pick.

Dawson has struggled to stay motivated at times during his collegiate career, but when he's going good, he's going real good. The young man will have to work hard and earn minutes at the next level.

Pistons take Villanova guard in 2nd round

The Pistons used their second round pick on a spot up shooter, Villanova's Darrun Hilliard, who will have to earn his way onto the roster.

It's not a bad pick. The Pistons need shooters. You put this guy in the summer league and see how he responds. Hilliard has good length and could contribute as a role player down the road.

Louisville star taken by Rockets

Montrezl Harrell was one of my favorite college basketball players. This guy has a motor that no one can match. He's a little undersized for a big man, and that's why he was taken in this spot, but I can definitely see him carving out a spot for himself in the NBA and having a nice career.

Final Four's MOP heading to Minnesota

Tyus Jones is a point guard with a smooth shot and great ball skills. If he were a little bigger, he could have easily been a lottery pick.

Jones played alongside a lot of talented guys at Duke, but he was the one that walked away as the Most Outstanding Player for the national champion.

Jones was taken by Cleveland at No. 24, but then traded to Minnesota for the 31st and 36th overall picks.

Former Wolverine Hardaway Jr. traded to Atlanta

Tim Hardaway Jr. is part of a proposed trade that would send him to the Hawks for the 19th overall pick, Notre Dame's Jerian Grant.

That's a lot of dealing tonight for the Hawks, who traded their original first round pick to Washington for this selection, then turned around and shipped this pick to New York for a guy that can occasionally light up the scoreboard.

Keep in mind, none of these trades are official until the NBA signs off on them.

Wisconsin's Dekker is a Houston Rocket

Sam Dekker came out of nowhere to star for the Badgers in 2015.

He's a big body that can shoot and get to the hole. Dekker will fill the role that Chandler Parsons left after leaving for Dallas prior to last season.

Oubre heading to Washington via trade

The Hawks are trading 15th overall pick Kelly Oubre to the Wizards for tonight's 19th overall pick and two future second round selections.

Top shooter heading to the desert

Devin Booker was someone that could've been on the Pistons radar tonight, but picking him at No. 8 was probably a bit of a stretch.

Booker is considered by man the best spot up shooter in the draft. He didn't get a lot of room to show off his athleticism at Kentucky, but a lot of experts think he can turn into a Klay Thompson-type of player.

Pistons take Arizona's Stanley Johnson

This is sure to get the fans talking. With a chance to draft Duke forward Justise Winslow at No. 8, the Pistons went with Stanley Johnson from Arizona, an athletic wing that can get to the hole and defend with the best of them.

I really thought Winslow would be the pick here. He's every bit as athletic as Johnson, but with a more polished offensive game at this point. Both are questionable outside shooters.

I still think Johnson has a chance to be a very good player. Perhaps his game will mature with time, but it is a bit perplexing to see the Pistons take him over a guy that many would peg as a perfect fit.

That being said, Johnson is an excellent defender and seems genuinely excited to be heading to Detroit.

Pistons target goes fifth overall

Mario Hezonja was on the radar of a lot of Pistons fans, but there was always a possibility the stretch-forward would be taken by the Magic in this spot.

The good news, Pistons fans, is that Justise Winslow is still on the board. He would be considered a prime selection at No. 8.

Okafor to Philly

Talk about a shocker. Jahlil Okafor, perhaps the draft's best prospect, is heading to Philadelphia.

Now it's not that Okafor isn't one of the best three players in the draft, it's that the 76ers have two young big men they've drafted in the past two years in Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid.

There could be a trade in the works for one of these guys. Otherwise, I have no idea what Philadelphia is doing.

Lakers go point guard at No. 2

The Lakers had a decision to make. Do they go with the big man in Jahlil Okafor that is considered by most to be the best prospect in the draft, or do they go with a surefire point guard that can lead the team when Kobe Bryant retires? They decided to go with the latter.

Russell is a playmaker. This pick has future success written all over it.

Kentucky center heading to Minnesota

Karl-Anthony Towns, a two-way player with tremendous upside, is heading to the Timberwolves with the first overall pick.

While Minnesota likely debated about taking Towns or Jahlil Okafor, they ultimately settled on the better rim protector.

Pairing towns with Andrew Wiggins and Ricky Rubio gives Minnesota a solid core of players to build around over the next few years. They need to add some shooters, but I wouldn't be surprised to see them competing at a high level in two to three years.

Draft night ready to roll

There's a lot of mystery surrounding the Pistons and the 8th overall pick. A lot of what they do will depend on what happens in front of them. Don't be surprised to see Stan Van Gundy pull a fast one and trade up if the player he's targeting looks to be within reach.

The top of the draft has some talented big men in Kentucky's Karl-Anthony Towns and Duke's Jahlil Okafor, but the steal of the night could be Ohio State's D'Angelo Russell, considered by many experts to be the surest thing in this class.

Stay here for NBA Draft news from The News' Geoff Robinson, who'll be providing updates all night long.