The MLS Draft is less than 24 hours away, meaning it is time to focus on the final MLS Mock Draft.
As you have figured out by now, none of the several trades expected to take place involving draft picks have been made official yet, or even consumated yet (save for the FC Dallas-New York deal involving the 11th and 13th), so we still don't know what the actual final draft order will look like.
No matter, we can still try and project how the first two rounds of the draft will go based on player values and the team needs of the clubs currently holding their draft places.
I will not be changing my Mock Draft from the mock draft I wrote for ESPN.com today, that will serve as the final SBI MLS Mock Draft. As promised, it will be a two-round mock.
Here is how I could see the first 30 picks of Thursday's 2009 MLS Draft shaking out:
2009 MLS Draft
Round 1
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1. Seattle- Steve Zakuani
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2. Toronto FC- Stefan Frei
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3. Los Angeles Galaxy- Sam Cronin
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4. Toronto FC- Omar Gonzalez
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5. FC Dallas- Kevin Alston
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6. D.C. United- Jeremy Hall
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7. D.C. United- Peri Marosevic
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8. Kansas City- Chris Pontius
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9. Chivas USA- Rodney Wallace
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10. New England- Michael Lahoud
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11. New York- Babajide Ogunbiyi
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12. Real Salt Lake- Kyle Patterson
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13. Toronto FC- O'Brien White
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14. FC Dallas- Brad Ring
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15. New England- Matt Besler
Round Two
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16. Seattle Sounders- Lyle Adams
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17. San Jose- George John
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18. New York- Evan Brown
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19. Chivas USA- Baggio Husidic
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20. Colorado- Daniel Cruz
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21. D.C. United- Darrius Barnes
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22. Kansas City- Josh Boateng
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23. Kansas City- Graham Zusi
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24. New England- Jordan Seabrook
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25. New England- Yohance Marshall
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26. D.C. United- Calum Angus
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27. FC Dallas- A.J. De La Garza
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28. Chicago- Quincy Amarikwa
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29. New York- David Hertel
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30. Columbus- Kwame Abdjeman-Pamboe
For more insight into the first-round picks, check out my ESPN.com story. Also, If you don't know who these players are, feel free to check out Buzz Carrick's player rankings on 3rd Degree. I will be doing player rankings later on tonight.
What do you think of the mock draft? What players would you like to see your team take? Which players do you see going much earlier than I project? Who do you see going much later?
Share your thoughts below.