Redrafting the 2010 NBA Draft

This week, Basketball Insiders has been redrafting recent NBA drafts. We’ve been jumping in our time machines, taking a look at some older drafts re-ranking that class of players after several seasons. We’ve already done 2012 and 2011. Today, we’ll redraft the 2010 class.

The 2010 draft ended up being pretty top heavy, as it got mediocre in a hurry. This draft sure gave the NBA a bunch of bench players as well as a bunch of busts who are already out of the NBA.

#1- Washington Wizards: Paul George

While John Wall obviously isn’t a bust, George is the clear cut best player from this draft in my eyes. He is the only one to have already been a serious MVP candidate. He has taken the Pacers to the Eastern Conference Finals; if not for a certain player named LeBron James, he probably would have gotten further (and maybe even won a championship by now). George will continue his dominance now that he has recovered from his broken leg.

#2- Philadelphia 76ers: DeMarcus Cousins

DeMarcus Cousins is a dominant player. There isn’t too much of a difference between the 76ers and the Kings over the last several years, with the only exception being the Kings drafted Cousins after Philly passed on him at second overall in 2010. The 76ers probably regret that. There is a really good chance Cousins (at only age 25) could already be the best center in the NBA next season. Their pick, Evan Turner, was a disappointment and is much further down the list in this redraft.

#3- Brooklyn (then New Jersey) Nets: John Wall

There is no disputing it: John Wall is a stud. He is so fast, blazing up and down the court with the ball, slicing into the lane, finishing at the rim with no fear, while also dishing out a bunch of assists to get his teammates involved. The Nets drafted Derrick Favors here and eventually shipped him to Utah for Deron Williams. Who knows what would have happened had Wall been a Net instead?

This top three is its own tier. They are all close together, but there is a clear delineation.

#4- Minnesota Timberwolves: Derrick Favors

The Wolves had Kevin Love breaking out and had recently gotten Ricky Rubio from overseas. At the time, the decision to draft a small forward (Wes Johnson) was understandable given their roster. However, Johnson hasn’t lived up to his draft slot while Favors has developed into a very talented player. Putting Favors at center next to Love would have been interesting, and he’s clearly one of the better players in this class.

#5- Sacramento Kings: Greg Monroe

The Kings are happy they got DeMarcus Cousins with the No. 5 pick, as it’s looking like DMC is probably the second-best player in this draft. In this redraft, Cousins doesn’t fall to them and they instead get Greg Monroe, who signed with the Milwaukee Bucks this summer. Imagine how his development could have been different if he had been the focal point in Sacramento and able to play center (as he has wanted to) instead of moving to the four like he did in Detroit.

#6- Golden State Warriors: Eric Bledsoe

In this redraft, the Warriors probably wouldn’t have the “Splash Brothers” they have now as they wouldn’t have wasted their sixth overall pick on Ekpe Udoh and instead would have picked “mini-LeBron” instead. Eric Bledsoe would have been insurance since at the time Stephen Curry’s ankles were suspect, but the two guards would have been able to complement each other quite well. Probably not as well as Steph and Klay Thompson currently do, but Bledsoe certainly goes higher in this redraft than he did back in 2010 (18th overall).

#7- Detroit Pistons: Gordon Hayward

Instead of getting Greg Monroe at seven, the Pistons get Hayward, who is a better fit with their 2012 pick Andre Drummond. While not elite, Hayward has the size, skill and shot to have a long career in the NBA. He’s the leader of the youthful Jazz and is very talented. But one wonders what could have been if Detroit (now with Stan Van Gundy at the helm) had Drummond and Hayward as building blocks. They sure would be further along in their rebuild.

#8-Los Angeles Clippers: Lance Stephenson

The Clippers land Lance Stephenson in this redraft, just as they did via trade this offseason. In this redraft, they would have drafted him at number eight instead of Al-Farouq Aminu. Stephenson might have flourished because he would have grown with Blake Griffin and been mentored by Chris Paul when he got to L.A. a few years later. His role this year will be intriguing for sure.

#9- Utah Jazz: Avery Bradley

Instead of getting Gordon Hayward, the Jazz would have to settle for Bradley, who is just more of a specialty role player than Hayward and shouldn’t really be the focal point of a team. However, Bradley is better than many of the players Utah has brought in to fill the role Bradley seems to have excelled at in Boston.

#10- Indiana Pacers: Al-Farouq Aminu

Instead of getting easily the steal of the draft (Paul George at No. 10), the Pacers instead get Al-Farouq Aminu, who has certainly bounced around the league in his short career so far. Aminu started with the Clippers, went to the Pelicans for a few years, was with the Mavericks in 2014-15 and now is the highest-paid player on the Blazers at $8 million this year (until Damian Lillard’s contract jumps from $4 million to nearly $21 million next year). Still, it seems like Aminu will have a long NBA career, even if he did start as a journeyman. The Pacers likely would not have had those few very successful years if they got stuck with Aminu over George back in 2010.

#11- New Orleans Pelicans: Hassan Whiteside

Whiteside burst onto the NBA scene recently with the Miami HEAT, and really jumped up the draft board in this redraft from a second-rounder to just outside the top 10. While he is a bit reckless with his emotions on the court at times and is still refining his skill-set, he is a good, young talent. He was out of the league as recently as last year, but just turned in an excellent season with the Miami HEAT. Imagine him at the center position alongside Anthony Davis in New Orleans. That’s a pretty good, complementary tandem in the frontcourt for sure. If he can prove last season wasn’t a fluke, he likely climbs even higher.

#12- Memphis Grizzlies: Ed Davis

Davis was apparently valued correctly back in 2010. Instead of being drafted 13th overall by Toronto, he gets selected 12th by Memphis. Instead of being the starting power forward for the Raptors, he’d have been the third big man for the Grizzlies (as he eventually was anyway), certainly improving their team more than their actual pick of Xavier Henry. Now, Davis is in Portland as the second-highest-paid player (which says more about Portland this coming year and the apparent exodus than anything else).

#13- Toronto Raptors: Jeremy Lin

Linsanity in Canada! Lin was an undrafted free agent in 2010, but he climbs into the lottery in this redraft. It’s hard to say if Toronto would be in a better position right now if they had drafted Lin instead of their actual pick of Ed Davis. Since his amazing time in New York, Lin hasn’t quite found the right place to thrive long-term. Maybe it’s in Charlotte, where he signed this offseason.

#14- Houston Rockets: Greivis Vasquez

Since actually getting drafted 28th overall by Memphis, Vasquez has sure been a journeyman in the league. In five years, he’s been on five teams now that he landed in Milwaukee this offseason. Vasquez is a quality backup guard and can really run an offense and get his teammates involved. It seems Vasquez would have been a better selection than Patrick Patterson, who Houston actually drafted.

#15- Milwaukee Bucks: Evan Turner

Evan Turner is a decent NBA player, but some still consider him a bust. He was selected second overall in the draft and hasn’t lived up to that billing. He’s been on three teams already. He started out with Philadelphia, played a year in Indiana and now is with Boston. He is basically a high-volume, low-efficiency shooter. While those are plentiful around the NBA, that’s not what the 76ers were signing up for at the second overall pick. But Turner definitely would have been a better pick here at 15 than their actual pick… Larry Sanders.

#16- Minnesota Timberwolves: Alexey Shved

Shved actually signed as an undrafted free agent with Minnesota when he came into the league. He’s since moved on to a few other teams, but would have been a great addition to the Timberwolves’ “Euro” team they seemed to be constructing for a few years. He is definitely better than the Wolves’ actual pick of Luke Babbitt.

#17- Chicago Bulls: Wesley Johnson

Wesley Johnson sure hasn’t lived up to his draft hype at all. In actuality, he went fourth overall that year, but in a redraft he goes 17th in what seems like a weak draft five years later. He is athletic and can defend, but he’s certainly not someone who was worthy of a top pick. He’s currently with the Clippers on a minimum deal. He’ll have a role in the league for several years to come, but some may consider him a bust.

#18- Oklahoma City Thunder: Jeremy Evans

Evans is primarily known for his amazing dunks in games and in the dunk contest, but he is still growing as a player and has outplayed his 55th overall draft selection. That is not to say he is better than who OKC actually got at this pick in 2010, since they landed Eric Bledsoe. That’s good value – too bad they had traded that pick to the Los Angeles Clippers.

#19- Boston Celtics: Quincy Pondexter

Pondexter is no Avery Bradley, which is who the Celtics actually selected, but he is a decent rotation player. He has certainly out played his 26^th actual draft selection slot, but not by too much. He’s now in New Orleans after a few years in Memphis.

#20- San Antonio Spurs: Patrick Patterson

The Spurs usually draft and stash, so their pick would probably still have been someone else, but this is where Patrick Patterson slots in, talent-wise. He is an okay, backup big man with limited upside, but he is steady. He scores a bit, rebounds, sets screens. He does what you need him to do. He is a complementary player around stars.

#21- Oklahoma City Thunder: Trevor Booker

Booker is a banger down low. Booker would have been an upgrade in some senses over OKC mainstay Nick Collison as the backup power forward over the last several years, so it would have been intriguing if the Thunder had picked Booker.

#22- Portland Trail Blazers: Kevin Seraphin

Seraphin is an average NBA player. He’d get some time with this new-look Trail Blazers team, and would have been decent and provided some frontcourt depth the last few years.

#23-Minnesota Timberwolves: Landry Fields

Fields had two good years in New York, but has been buried on the bench of Toronto. He would have been a good bench guy for the Timberwolves with this late first-round pick back in 2010. Considering his flashes with the Knicks, he has outperformed his second round draft selection as 39th overall. In most redrafts, he may not have gone first round, but this class is weak.

#24- Atlanta Hawks: Luke Babbitt

Babbitt is on his second NBA team, the Pelicans. He’s not a great player, but size and the ability to shoot keeps you in the league for awhile. He could be a significant bench contributor for New Orleans this season.

#25- Memphis Grizzlies: Xavier Henry

Henry is a reasonably talented player, but he just keeps getting sidelined by injuries. If he can stay healthy for a while, he could be a rotation player. It’s unlikely he’ll live up to his hype as the 12th overall pick, but he’d be a solid pick-up here.

#26- Oklahoma City Thunder: Ish Smith

Ish Smith is a great backup point guard. He is really fast and can distribute the ball, although he is small and can’t shoot from deep very well. He would have been a great backup to Russell Westbrook the last few years.

#27- Brooklyn Nets: Donald Sloan

Sloan has been bouncing around the league for a while (playing for Atlanta, New Orleans, Cleveland and Indiana) after entering the league as an undrafted free agent following the 2010 draft. But in this redraft, he’d make the first round.

#28- Brooklyn Nets: Elijah Millsap

The younger brother of Hawks big man Paul Millsap, Elijah was eligible for the 2010 draft, but he wasn’t selected. He played 47 games for the Jazz last season. The Nets could have used a young player like him the last several years with all their veterans.

#29- Orlando Magic: Jerome Jordan

The penultimate pick in the 2010 redraft is Jerome Jordan. Playing 44 games for the rebuilding Nets last season, he is just barely hanging on the NBA roster bubble.

#30- Washington Wizards: Jordan Crawford

Crawford is a volume scorer and who had some success early in his NBA career, but spent last season overseas. That’s how bad this redraft got. It got to the point where all of the remaining players were mediocre at best and there aren’t even enough legit NBA players still in the league from that year to fill 30 first round slots.

In the comments, feel free to let us know what you think of this redraft.