Like a corduroy pillow, the 2013 NBA Draft created more than its fair share of headlines. The first being the Cleveland Cavaliers shocking the world and taking Anthony Bennett with the first overall pick over the sexy pick of Nerlens Noel or the rumored riser Alex Len. An individual could scour the Internet for hours in search of someone who "called it" but he or she would be met with little, if any, luck. However, the one pick that everyone seemed to nail was Otto Porter as the third overall pick to the Washington Wizards.
If you forgot how the order went or if you are keeping track at home, two of the sixty picks have been mentioned and the least possible knowledge you could have up until this point is that Anthony Bennett went first overall and Otto Porter went third. This is how the other 58 picks played out:
1. Cleveland Cavaliers - PF Anthony Bennett, UNLV
2. Orlando Magic - SG Victor Oladipo, Indiana
3. Washington Wizards - SF Otto Porter, Georgetown
4. Charlotte Bobcats - PF Cody Zeller, Indiana
5. Phoenix Suns - C Alex Len, Maryland
6. New Orleans Pelicans - C Nerlens Noel, Kentucky [Traded to 76ers]
7. Sacramento Kings - SG Ben McLemore, Kansas
8. Detroit Pistons - SG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Georgia
9. Minnesota Timberwolves - PG Trey Burke, Michigan [Traded to Utah]
10. Portland Trail Blazers - PG C.J. McCollum, Lehigh
11. Philadelphia 76ers - PG Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse
12. Oklahoma City Thunder - C Steven Adams, Pittsburgh
13. Dallas Mavericks - C Kelly Olynyk, Gonzaga [Traded to Celtics]
14. Utah Jazz - SF Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA [Traded to Timberwolves]
15. Milwaukee Bucks - SF Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greece
16. Boston Celtics - C Lucas Nogueira, Brazil [Traded to Hawks]
17. Atlanta Hawks - PG Dennis Schroeder, Germany
18. Atlanta Hawks - PG Shane Larkin, Miami [Traded to Mavericks]
19. Cleveland Cavaliers - SF Sergey Karasev, Russia
20. Chicago Bulls - SF Tony Snell, New Mexico
21. Utah Jazz - C Gorgui Dieng, Louisville [Traded to Timberwolves]
22. Brooklyn Nets - C, Mason Plumlee, Duke
23. Indiana Pacers - SF Solomon Hill, Arizona
24. New York Knicks - SF Tim Hardaway Jr., Michigan
25. Los Angeles Clippers - SF Reggie Bullock, North Carolina
26. Minnesota Timberwolves - SF Andre Roberson, Colorado [Traded to Oklahoma City via Golden State and Houston]
27. Denver Nuggets - C Rudy Gobert, France [Traded to Utah]
28. San Antonio Spurs - F Livio Jean-Charles, France
29. Oklahoma City Thunder -PG Archie Goodwin, Kentucky [Traded to Phoenix via Golden State]
30. Phoenix Suns - G Nemanja Nedovic, Serbia [Traded to Golden State]
31. Cleveland Cavaliers - SG Allen Crabbe, Cal [Traded to Portland]
32. Oklahoma City Thunder - SG Alex Abrines, Spain
33. Cleveland Cavaliers - SG Caririck Felix, Arizona State
34. Houston Rockets - PG Isaiah Canaan, Murray State
35. Philadelphia 76ers - SF Glen Rice Jr., Rio Grande Valley Vipers [Traded to Wizards]
36. Sacramento Kings - PG Ray McCallum, Detroit
37. Detroit Pistons - PF Tony Mitchell, UNT
38. Washington Wizards - G Nate Wolters, South Dakota State [Traded to Bucks]
39. Portland Trail Blazers - C Jeff Withey, Kansas
40. Portland Trail Blazers - PF Grant Jarrett, Arizona
41. Memphis Grizzlies - SG Jamaal Franklin, San Diego State
42. Philadelphia 76ers - PG Pierre Jackson, Baylor [Traded to Pelicans]
43. Milwaukee Bucks - SG Ricky Ledo, Providence [Traded to Mavericks]
44. Dallas Mavericks - C Mike Muscala, Bucknell [Traded to Hawks]
45. Portland Trail Blazers - C Marko Todorovic, Spain
46. Utah Jazz - G Erick Green, Virginia Tech [Traded to Nuggets]
47. Atlanta Hawks - G Raul Neto, Brazil
48. Los Angeles Lakers - F Ryan Kelly, Duke
49. Chicago Bulls - PF Erik Murphy, Florida
50. Atlanta Hawks - F James Ennis, [Traded to Heat]
51. Orlando Magic - PF Romero Osby, Oklahoma
52. Minnesota Timberwolves - PG Lorenzo Brown, NC State
53. Indiana Pacers - C Colton Iverson, Colorado State [Traded to Boston]
54. Washington Wizards - PF Arsalan Kazemi, Oregon
55. Memphis Grizzlies - PF Joffrey Lauvergne, France
56. Detroit Pistons - PG Peyton Siva, Louisville
57. Phoenix Suns - F Alex Oriakhi, Missouri
58. San Antonio Spurs - SF Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State
59. Minnesota Timberwolves - PF Bojan Dubljevic, Serbia
60. Memphis Grizzlies - SF Janis Timma, Latvia
Now that the stage has been set, the real fun can begin. Let's put on our hindsight goggles and dive in.
This Was A Big Year For Being Big:
It isn't very often that arguably the two best players in a draft are the 15th and 27th picks. It also isn't very often that a 6'11" small forward who can play all five positions on the court and also happens to have a 7'3" wingspan and baseball mitts for hands. It's almost crazy to think how anyone could pass on a physical specimen like that, but fourteen teams did! Perhaps teams wanted to give David Stern some extra time to practice pronouncing "Giannis Antetokounmpo."
Twelve picks later, a fellow who is now known as "The Stifle Tower" was selected. Standing at 7'2" with a 7'9" wingspan, Rudy Gobert was practically born to block shots. Local myth in Utah even has it that Gobert once blocked a shot so hard that it went from the United States all the way to his home country of France. We'll let you figure out which one that was.
Giannis Antetokounmpo has a few highlights of his own but none are more memorable than his euro step from behind the three-point line. Talk about a Greek Freak!
Fast forward a year later to the 2014 NBA Draft and witness the Toronto Raptors taking a player who is famously dubbed "the Brazilian Kevin Durant" and labeled "two years away from being two years away." That player is Bruno Caboclo. The success of the two aforementioned players (not Bennett and Porter) set the stage for this "reach." If nothing else, Raptors fans can smile as Caboclo is now only one year away from being two years away.
Fast forward another year and witness the Bucks and Jazz reap the benefits of selecting physical specimen from foreign countries. Gobert was so good that former third overall pick Enes Kanter was sent packing and, come on, can you ever get enough footage of Antetokounmpo making plays that no one thought were possible?
Life Comes At You Fast: The Tale Of Shane Larkin
Shane Larkin came into the draft compared to D.J. Augustin and Jordan Farmar. While those aren't horrible players to be compared to, that isn't setting the bar incredibly high. When Draft Night rolled around, Larkin found himself being drafted by the Hawks and shipped to the Dallas Mavericks - a team that boasted a point guard rotation of Jose Calderon, Devin Harris and, a personal favorite, Gal Mekel. While that trio was pretty good, Larkin was in a decent position to work his way into some minutes. Well, as luck would have it, Larkin would break his ankle in a summer workout and end up sidelined until mid-November. Larkin still appeared in 48 games, but with only 10.2 minutes per game, he didn't get a chance to showcase his talent.
On the day before the 2014 NBA Draft, Larkin, along with Jose Calderon, Samuel Dalembert, Wayne Ellington and the draft picks that became Thanasis Antetokounmpo and Cleanthony Early, was traded to the New York Knicks for Tyson Chandler and Raymond Felton.
In the 2014-2015 season, Larkin remained almost perfectly healthy and only missed six games and found himself starting in 22 of his 76 games played. His minutes increased to 24.2 per game but the production still wasn't there. Larkin averaged 6.2 points, 3.0 assists, and 1.2 steals while shooting 43 percent from the field and 30 percent from deep. Needless to say, that was Larkin's only season in New York.
Well, technically it wasn't as Larkin looks to join Thomas Robinson on his career revival tour as members of the Brooklyn Nets.
Notable Movers From The Draft (not including Draft Day trades):
Last offseason saw Anthony Bennett, who needs no introduction, shipped to Minnesota in the infamous Andrew Wiggins for Kevin Love swap. Lucas Nogueira became a Toronto Raptor in a deal with Lou Williams where Nogueira met his Instagram partner in crime Bruno Caboclo (side note: if you're reading this, you should be following both of them).
This past season, two more first rounders ended up in new real estate via one of the craziest trade deadlines in NBA history. The Rookie of the Year for this class Michael Carter-Williams was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in a deal that sent Brandon Knight to Phoenix and a first-round pick in the direction of He Who Owns All Picks Sam Hinkie, GM of the Philadelphia 76ers. Reggie Bullock became a Sun in a deal that reunited a father and son duo, Austin and Doc Rivers.
Draft Night 2015 saw itself some trades as well. Mason Plumlee was traded for the pick that became Rondae Hollis-Jefferson from the Portland Trail Blazers and Tim Hardaway Jr. became as happy as a hawk after being traded to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team deal involving rookies Jerian Grant (Knicks) and Kelly Oubre (Wizards).
The only other notable mover is Ray McCallum who became a Spur for almost nothing in return. McCallum had a good rookie and sophomore season but because it's the Spurs, everyone expects Ray to become the next nobody-turned-somebody in the Spurs system. If nothing else, San Antonio is a better place to be than Sacramento management-wise.
Second-Round Picks Who Look Like Contributors:
Ryan Kelly (48th overall pick) has been on the receiving end of consistent playing time in Los Angeles. Kelly hasn't shot great from the field, especially not last season with only 33 percent of his field goals finding the bottom of the net but 34 percent shooting from deep for a 6'11" guy shows some promise. Look for Kelly to make a jump in shooting percentage or see hims out of the league next offseason. This is his make-or-break year.
The previously mentioned Ray McCallum could be in for a big year in San Antonio. Losing Cory Joseph to the Raptors wasn't ideal but McCallum can come in and do some of the same things while not being a net negative bench player.
Joffrey Lauvergne (55th overall pick) has a chance to be special on the Denver International Players. The Nuggets are in a weird rebuilding mode with Emmanuel Mudiay running the show and Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari both in tow after signing big contract extensions. Lauvergne will have to compete with J.J. Hickson and Darrell Arthur, as well as rookie Nikola Jokic, for minutes backing up Jusuf Nurkic. It could be a wild ride but the competition is wide open for someone to step up.
The Portland Trail Blazers are rebuilding and basically have no ultra-talented players outside of Damian Lillard so Allen Crabbe (31st overall pick) could see plenty of minutes under Terry Stotts. A breakout year doesn't seem likely but an inflation in numbers because somebody has to score is probably in store.
Isaiah Canaan (34th overall pick) and Mike Muscala (44th overall pick) both deserve a mention but for very different reason. Isaiah Canaan is competing against a crop of D-League point guards so he could get a bunch of playing time. Muscala is nearly the opposite. His claim to fame, as of right now, is being the guy who hit some big shots out of nowhere in the playoffs. He probably won't wow anyone but he has the potential to stick as an end of the bench guy.
Notable Undrafted Players:
Robert Covington is looking like a future starter for the Sixers. He can shoot the lights out and there will be minutes aplenty in Philly. Look for another year of inflated stats from Covington.
DeWayne Dedmon had himself a year this past season on the Orlando Magic and could be in for a big jump this season as the starting power forward. Dedmon is everything the Magic need next to Nikola Vucevic: he blocks shots, rebounds, works his tail off, and also went to USC. This is definitely a player to watch because he could get a lot of minutes to work with in Orlando and a few lobs could end up being thrown down on your favorite team.
Phil Pressey comes into Portland as the backup point guard to Damian Lillard (unless Terry Stotts fancies Tim Frazier). Lillard will probably play a ton of minutes but he can't play all of them so Pressey serves as a good Mighty Mouse off the bench who can keep the offensive flow going and put up his fair share of points.
Matthew Dellavedova needs no introduction. Everyone saw what he was capable of in the NBA Finals. He shouldn't be playing starter minutes but with a healthy Kyrie Irving and Mo Williams now in town, Delly gets relegated back to the role where he can be best utilized as a pest off the bench.
Seth Curry might be the most intriguing undrafted player from this class. In Sacramento, Curry could get the green light to fire away and get the inevitable comparisons to his brother. No, seriously, prepare for them all season long, Kings fans. In Summer League, Curry showed a new dimension of driving to his game that should ultimately lead to him sticking in the league. As much of a disorganization as the Kings organization is, this is a great place for Curry to make a name for himself that's more than just "Steph Curry's brother."
The Good, The Bad, And The Conclusion
This next segment will be a "breakdown" of the lottery picks and a few other worthy players who haven't been talked about yet (i.e. Tony Snell, Gorgui Dieng, Dennis Schroder)
So Anthony Bennett had a horrible rookie season. Gary Payton bashed him a little here and there and he was shipped out of town to bring in Kevin Love. His second season was certainly better but, rumor has it, the former number one overall pick is on the trade block. While most have considered him a bust, there's still a chance that he could be a decent player one day. However, not being able to palm a basketball definitely has, and will continue to hurt his game. Not a great pick, but some luck and getting Kevin Love has absolved Dan Gilbert of his Draft Day sins.
Outside of the freakishly large players mentioned earlier, Victor Oladipo is arguably the best player in this draft class. Him being drafted started the trend of the Magic taking gritty defenders with high-character personalities. Oladipo was in the running for Rookie of the Year his entire rookie season but was beaten out by Michael Carter-Williams. His sophomore season was met with some injury - notably a fractured face to start the season - but post-All-Star break Oladipo was quite a sight as his shooting numbers improved and his overall scoring looked more complete than it ever has. A big showing in the USA Basketball Showcase, where defense is an afterthought, has paved the way for a breakout year for Oladipo.
Injuries and inconsistency were synonymous with Otto Porter in his rookie season. Many people were ready to label him a bust before they were ready to give him a real chance. His sophomore season was all he needed to shut up his critics as he looks like a real fixture in Washington. An increase in playing time led to an uptick in his numbers in every statistical category but the jump in his shooting percentage might be the most impressive. Porter went from an atrocious 36 percent shooter to a respectable 45 percent and from 19 percent from downtown to 34 percent in his sophomore year. There's still plenty of room to grow and Porter is another player who we could see breaking out this year. The departure of Paul Pierce also opens up plenty of room for the young gun to showcase his skills. Let's not forget how important he was to the Wizards making a boom in the playoffs.
Cody Zeller is a curious case. Michael Jordan seems to love drafting power forwards. In 2011, he took Bismack Biyombo and then from 2013-15, he took Cody Zeller, Noah Vonleh and Frank Kaminsky. Biyombo and Vonleh are no longer Hornets, but the additions of Spencer Hawes and Tyler Hansbrough make minutes hard to come by for Zeller. A pretty average career doesn't look like it will take a big swing for the better this season with that Caucasian log jam but someone has to get the starter minutes, so why not Cody Zeller? Why not now?
Alex Len missed a good chunk of his rookie season because of an ankle injury and struggled with consistency - a lot like Otto Porter. Also like the former third overall pick, Len had a significantly improved sophomore year. However, unlike Porter, Len's respective team brought in a veteran to take over the starters minutes. Tyson Chandler could really teach Len a lot about being a force down low defensively and the added competition for minutes should be really good for young Len to grow as a person as well as a player. While it might not be ideal, Len is still in a great position to be really good.
The first big slide of the Draft was Nerlens Noel. Many predicted that Noel would be the first overall pick but an ACL tear suffered at Kentucky caused him to fall to the then-New Orleans Hornets. Sam Hinkie began his tear down by trading Jrue Holiday for Nerlens Noel and the pick that became Elfrid Payton (which was traded for the pick that became Dario Saric). After missing his technical rookie season, Noel burst onto the scene this past season and showed why he was regarded so highly coming in and out of college. Alongside Jahlil Okafor (and potentially one day Joel Embiid), it should be really good for Noel's career as he doesn't have to score as much and he can focus on being a shot blocker. Expect another big season of big blocks from Noel in his sophomore year.
Ben McLemore has one of the prettiest shots in basketball. He just hasn't been able to find any consistency. Last year, Vivek Ranadive drafted another shooting guard - a slap in the face to McLemore - and this year, he brought in a proven shooter in Marco Belinelli. It might be time for McLemore to find a niche as a bench scorer because it doesn't seem like Vivek or whoever is running the Kings this week has much faith in the guard from Kansas.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, for sure, has the best name in this Draft class; sorry, Giannis. He has also quietly come along nicely under Stan Van Gundy. He'll probably never get to the level of breakout of a Jimmy Butler but he's a good shooter and scorer and that's really what SVG likes to put around his dominant big man. Expect another good, not spectacular, year out of KCP with a decent amount of growth.
Two years ago, when this Draft was a big thing, the debate between Trey Burke and Victor Oladipo for best player in this class was a real thing. Burke even hit a game winner against Oladipo's respective team the Orlando Magic. Outside of that, Burke hasn't been able to do a lot. Similarly to McLemore, another player of the same position was drafted a year after he was, so by the end of the season, Burke was relegated to bench duties. An injury to Dante Exum has freed up the starting position for Burke so he'll get, at least, one more chance to prove himself as a legit NBA player. Size has been a problem for him and he hasn't been the most consistent either, but he's a good pick-and-roll guard and having two talented young big men in Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert will definitely make his life easier.
C.J. McCollum - the motor that drove Lehigh University's Cinderella run - was yet another player whose rookie year was derailed by injury. He didn't make a big leap from Year 1 to Year 2, but with the clearing of the roster this offseason, it should give McCollum the chance to start at shooting guard and really make a jump statistically in Year 3. He did score 33 in a playoff game, so the potential is definitely there.
It isn't very often that the 11th pick is the Rookie of the Year, but 2013-2014 just happened to be the year for Michael Carter-Williams. Having virtually no talent around him let MCW do anything and everything he wanted on a basketball court. That drove his numbers through the roof and brought a ROY Trophy to his shelf. MCW's crazy career continued with the trade deadline deal mentioned earlier and a new opportunity to shine with a better team in Milwaukee. The trade also showed how willing Sam Hinkie is to tear it down if he doesn't like what he has. Under Jason Kidd, who many have compared the 6'6" guard to, Carter-Williams has the chance to shine and become a really good player in the league. His numbers probably won't look like they did in his rookie season but that's what happens when players get surrounded by other talented players. The Bucks also have long limbs at every position and are a really scary team to have to score on, as the Chicago Bulls learned in this year's playoffs.
The amount of weird situations among this class might be the most surprising thing in this article. There are a lot of players in log jam situations without a lot of room for error. One player who might have it worse than anyone is Steven Adams. Adams has had a really good career so far, but he's also had his fair share of injuries. His most memorable moment might be when he grew out a thick mustache just for Media Day pictures last year. Nonetheless, Adams has to compete with the maxed-out Enes Kanter for the starting spot and should he miss out on that opportunity, he'll be competing with Mitch McGary and Nick Collison for bench minutes as well as the "small-ball" frontline of Kevin Durant at four and Serge Ibaka at five. This will certainly be a complicated year for Adams but he's one Thunder injury away from seeing big minutes.
Welcome to the predicament of Kelly Olynyk. Another big man, another log jam. The Boston Celtics have overhauled their big man rotation in a big way this offseason with the signing of Amir Johnson and the trade for David Lee, two players who will almost definitely see more minutes than Olynyk. Jared Sullinger and Tyler Zeller are also both on the roster so that makes legit big men that Kelly will have to compete with. That certainly cannot be ideal for the big man but don't expect Danny Ainge to stand pat because with all those assets, the Celtics are prepared to make a play for the next disgruntled star to step into the ring. That could lead to more minutes for Olynyk or a new home entirely. This year could be met with another exciting trade deadline led by Ainge and his fast trigger.
One of last year's breakout players looked like Shabazz Muhammad. After spending a lot of time in the D-League in his rookie season, Muhammad was really contributing to the young Timberwolves team. Then he went down with injury and missed the rest of the season, and the T-Wolves ended up getting the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. Expect Muhammed to bounce back and prove that he's more than the next college scoring star to falter in the NBA.
Since entering the NBA, Dennis Schroder was regarded as the German Rajon Rondo (note: that was back when Rondo was really, really good). The German has proven to be a more-than-capable backup in this league as he powered the Hawks bench en route to 60 wins. At pick number 17, this is one of the more solid valued picks.
Tom Thibodeau was notorious for not playing rookies. That's why when Jimmy Butler burst into the scene, everyone was surprised. Tony Snell is a similar story on the same team. Snell was the 20th pick and another value pick, in hindsight. Mike Dunleavy Jr. won't be around forever (or will he? We were unable to confirm or deny that one of his kids is name Mike Dunleavy III), so Tony Snell will be able to step up into the three-point sniper role with the Bulls one day. He just needs to learn all of Dunleavy Jr.'s dirty tricks that he always seems to get away with.
The Timberwolves' big man situation is weird. They wouldn't even have Gorgui Dieng if they decided to keep their pick but Utah really wanted Trey Burke so the deal was made. Dieng has shown steady improvement, and if the T-Wolves ever ship off Nikola Pekovic, Dieng will be sitting pretty as a backup to Kevin Garnett and Karl-Anthony Towns. There was even a time when Gorgui exploded for a 22-point, 21-rebound game at the end of his rookie season.
To finish the player analysis, there are three very solid wing players who rounded out the end of the first round. They are Solomon Hill (23rd pick, Pacers), Andre Roberson (26th pick, Thunder), and Archie Goodwin (29th pick, Suns). In Paul George's absence, Solomon Hill started in 78 of the 82 games last season and he had a breakout season of his own that no one talked about. Alongside George, the Hill could be scary good (not to mention there are two other players with the last name of Hill on the roster: George and Jordan). Andre Roberson could be the starter for the Thunder on opening night and fill the role that was once held by Thabo Sefolosha. Roberson has the potential to be a DeMarre Carroll-type player. Archie Goodwin hasn't had much of a chance to play a ton of minutes in the past. Missing 71 games in his two-year career might be a big reason why. With the recent drafting of sharpshooter Devin Booker, who also went to Kentucky and the Eric Bledsoe-Brandon Knight backcourt experiment in full effect, Goodwin is really going to have to fight for consistent minutes. However, if anything can be taken from Summer League, Goodwin could have a really solid season coming off the bench.
That's about all there is to talk about from that draft class. We weren't able to mention everyone, but this was proof that this class wasn't as weak as everyone thought. It also came with a little surprise at the end.
David Stern's Last Pick as a Commissioner
After Nemanja Nedovic from Serbia became the last player selected in the first round of the 2013 NBA Draft, David Stern shared a special moment with Hakeem Olajuwon, who was the first player who heard his name called by Stern in 1983.