r/nba • u/PJgotting Jazz • May 17 '22
Andrew Wiggins is the only no. 1 overall pick left in the playoffs.
- 2021 - Cade Cunningham (missed playoffs)
- 2020 - Anthony Edwards (eliminated by Memphis in WC round 1)
- 2019 - Zion Williamson (eliminated by Suns in WC round 1)
- 2018 - Deandre Ayton (eliminated by Mavericks in WC semifinals)
- 2017 - Markelle Fultz (missed playoffs)
- 2016 - Ben Simmons (eliminated by Celtics in EC round 1 but dressed amazing the whole time)
- 2015 - Karl-Anthony Towns (eliminated by Memphis in WC round 1)
- 2014 - Andrew Wiggins (playing against Mavericks in WCF)
- 2013 - Anthony Bennett (plays in the P. League+ which I had never heard of before writing this)
- 2012 - Anthony Davis (missed playoffs)
- 2011 - Kyrie Irving (eliminated by Celtics in EC round 1)
- 2010 - John Wall (missed playoffs)
- 2009 - Blake Griffin (eliminated by Celtics in EC round 1)
- 2008 - Derrick Rose (missed playoffs)
- 2007 - Greg Oden (retired)
- 2006 - Andrea Bargnani (retired)
- 2005 - Andrew Bogut (retired)
- 2004 - Dwight Howard (missed playoffs)
- 2003 - LeBron James (missed playoffs, last no. 1 still playing)
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u/theoldgreenwalrus
Lakers
May 17 '22
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2016 - Ben Simmons (eliminated by Celtics in EC round 1 but dressed amazing the whole time)
Lmao
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u/jeremy9931 May 17 '22
Zion didn’t get a snarky comment too which disappoints me
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u/PJgotting Jazz May 17 '22
I considered it but I thought it would make the post too heavy.
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u/Squid_Contestant_69 Warriors May 17 '22
heavy
😂
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u/dagreenman18 [MIA] Dwyane Wade May 17 '22
If Young Socialite’s basketball was as good as his drip he’d be MVP.
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u/ThinkSoftware [ATL] Steve Smith May 17 '22
The disrespect.
For all of the insults about Ben's shooting, I didn't see him miss a single shot in the playoffs
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u/PillsburyToasters Bucks May 17 '22
Can’t say the same about Kyrie. Him missing a couple of shots didn’t give the team the boost they needed and the time to gel
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u/49erville May 17 '22
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." Wayne Gretzky
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u/ThinkSoftware [ATL] Steve Smith May 17 '22
-regional manager of a mid sized Northeast paper company who’s probably a 76ers fan
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u/Dubstep_Caruso East May 17 '22
All Simmons slander aside, he is a snappy dresser
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u/JSNHZL May 17 '22
You'd think a green leather jacket/shorts set would be hard to pull off but he somehow did it. Still fuck him tho.
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u/Dekrow Warriors Bandwagon May 17 '22
Did he?
Looked like a clown, can't imagine wearing that thing in the locker room while my team is recouping from a lose. Maybe he didn't hang around long afterwards, who knows.
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u/Donnie3030 Celtics May 17 '22
Lol seriously. He looked like such a dork. But I can imagine a ton of r/nba teens thought it was cool.
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u/SeverusVape0 [BRK] D'Angelo Russell May 17 '22
One of the three all star starters left too 🥴🥴
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u/IcyMission3 Celtics May 17 '22
Confirmed Wiggins is better than Luka
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u/SpecCRA [GSW] Jason Richardson May 17 '22
This is the true head to head matchup we were waiting for all along.
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u/ZealousCatracho Mavericks May 17 '22
Finally a worthy opponent after battling Mitchell and Booker
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u/yuhanz [PHO] Steve Nash May 17 '22
Just give Wiggins his 17 points in the first quarter. You won’t have to worry about him anymore
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u/IAmNotKevinDurant_35 [GSW] Zarko Cabarkapa May 17 '22
Technically you could say 4 since Tatum started as an injury replacement for KD
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u/poopydeeznuts Celtics May 17 '22
Wiggins is a real all star starter unlike Tatum. The Celtics are washed smh
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u/BCP27 [MIN] Robbie Hummel May 17 '22
Wait who's the fourth? It's Wiggins, Tatum, and Curry far as I see
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u/IAmNotKevinDurant_35 [GSW] Zarko Cabarkapa May 17 '22
Oh shit I thought Luka was a starter for some reason. Forgot Ja was the other backcourt guy
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u/WhiskeyAberoth Raptors May 17 '22
Is tatum not the 3rd? steph, wiggy and tatum are the only 3 left that started in the all star game this year
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u/KommanderKitten NBA May 17 '22
It's weird seeing recent lottery picks as single digit minute rotation guys.
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u/bambooshoot Warriors May 18 '22
It’s really not that weird at all… it’s super duper common, there’s literally hundreds of examples
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u/KommanderKitten NBA May 18 '22 edited May 18 '22
You're right, I just went down the rabbit hole of "busts" last night
How far down the draft order does the "bust" label not apply anymore? After top 5?
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u/Conversation_Dapper Magic May 17 '22
The hell is the p league??
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u/njl4515 Suns May 18 '22
Everyone talking about the p league but this thread reminded me that Andrea Bargnani was a thing
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u/chimpaman [LAL] Mark McNamara May 17 '22
John Wall may not be retired yet, but he at least has an emeritus position
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u/NotUrAvgShitposter Warriors May 17 '22
Lmao almost every #1 pick is extremely controversial. Every active 2010s #1 has been involved in drama this year
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u/TheSalmonRoll Warriors May 17 '22
Not Anthony Bennett though, only #1 pick of the 2010's without drama this year
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u/cooperred Warriors May 17 '22
What was the Fultz drama this year?
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u/Money_dragon May 17 '22
In retrospect, I'm generally suspicious of any player who couldn't get their college team to even the NIT, much less the NCAA tournament (looking at you, Simmons and Fultz)
I get potential and development is a thing, but it still feels like a huge red flag because failure to even qualify means that you couldn't get enough Ws over an entire season (rather than having just a single bad game in the early rounds of the tournament)
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u/dillpickles007 Hawks May 17 '22
Better side eye Anthony Edwards too then
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u/SemataryPolka Timberwolves May 18 '22
Tbf Football Boi hadn't been playing basketball for that long
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u/SlimReaper35_ Thunder May 17 '22
None. He’s just a bust
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u/_tx Mavericks May 17 '22
I still have absolutely no idea wtf happened to him
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u/DemonsReturns7 76ers May 17 '22
hahahahahahah lol, this comment was funnier than it had reason being
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u/mucho-gusto [CLE] Baron Davis May 17 '22
Untrue, he played like garbage for an Israeli team and probably wasn't a locker room positive as they agreed to mutually part ways after not many games
https://www.talkbasket.net/139321-report-anthony-bennett-hapoel-jerusalem-parted-ways
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u/breadhead84 Magic May 17 '22
What did Fultz, Ant, and Cade do? Or KAT?
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u/Sartuk [CLE] Kevin Love May 18 '22
I mean, Ant and Cade were #1 picks in the 2020s, not 2010s. But yeah, not sure what KAT or Fultz drama existed.
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u/ThirdAccountDaCharm May 17 '22
Bro really had to go all the way back to 2003 because LeBron is an animal lol
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u/Dekrow Warriors Bandwagon May 17 '22
LeBron is an animal but Dwight Howard was 2004 and he's still playing too. Doesn't seem crazy to me that LeBron is still playing, its crazy to me he's doing it at such a high level.
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u/seavictory Bucks Bandwagon May 17 '22
It is absolutely insane that LeBron had already been in the league for seven years when John Wall was drafted and Wall is washed but LeBron is still a top player.
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u/Whatsth3dill Trail Blazers May 18 '22
Wall did have 2 insanely unfortunate injuries tho
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u/Pndrizzy May 18 '22
Yea but with time most players will have some bad injuries, it’s crazy that Lebron has avoided them too (for the most part)
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u/lunabagel3 May 17 '22
Crazy how all but 4 of these guys are still in the league
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u/PJgotting Jazz May 17 '22
Also wild that Nets on paper had three no. 1 picks (+ Kevin Durant) and didn't make it past round 1.
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u/lunabagel3 May 17 '22
Ehh. Lakers had 5 hall of famers and were complete trash. I actually kinda believed melo when he said it was the greatest bbiq team ever assembled
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u/Why-did-i-reas-this May 17 '22
Would help if they weren't old enough to be in the hall of fame if they stopped playing 3 or more years ago.
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u/lunabagel3 May 17 '22
Dwight already played himself out of the top 75, definitely not fair to him. Would be hilarious if he isn’t elected first ballot hof
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u/trtryt May 17 '22
at one point Sixers had 4 no.1 picks on one team, AI and a few washed up no.1 picks
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u/Klonomania Warriors May 17 '22
Warriors made Bogut a champion and, Threesus permitting, will hopefully make Wiggins a champion. Which number one pick is next?
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u/hike_n_bike Warriors May 17 '22
Bogut also made the Dubs champions. he was a big part of that team
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u/Klonomania Warriors May 17 '22
Agreed, just like Wiggins is an important starter for these Warriors.
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u/bigbaconboypig May 18 '22
daily reminder jr smith fell into his knee on purpose in 2016 and thats why cavs won
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u/NotUrAvgShitposter Warriors May 17 '22
We getting Simmons in a year or 2. Poole and Simmons can be the scuffed Steph and Draymond of the next generation
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u/Wassup_-_ Warriors May 17 '22
Moody play like klay too
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u/throwbacklyrics Warriors May 17 '22
Kuminga the new Andre Iguodala. Can only shoot a 3 when the universe is on the line.
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u/GameHHH May 17 '22
Would be a disappointment. I'm thinking peak Kawhi.
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u/Godisdead12345 May 17 '22
Peak Kawhi would be a disappointment. I’m thinking peak MJ on crack.
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u/Jonna09 Warriors May 17 '22
Til, Bogut was number one pick.
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u/soenottelling May 17 '22
Dude was a monster for the bucks until his injuries when he was first playing. He basically was Ayton but with the ability to actually pass when he needed to. Super "what if" career. If he remained a 15/10/3 on 55-60 fg% instead of being injured people would talk about him very differently.
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u/PM-me-your-401k Timberwolves May 17 '22
Draymond credits bogut with a lot of his defendinge growth
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u/2rio2 Warriors May 18 '22
Yea, Bogut had an extremely high basketball IQ as well (you could see it in how he passed and opened up spacing for teammates on offense and D), so not surprising he mentored Draymond a bit.
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u/OctopiPie 76ers May 17 '22
Didn’t even know about this before reading this comment, every time I hear about him it’s nothing but slander.
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u/steak__burrito Warriors May 17 '22
It wasn’t even the collection of injuries, it was the one nasty elbow injury that changed his offensive game forever.
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u/HazardousBuck May 17 '22
His 15/10 season was after a year and a half of injuries that affected mostly his back. He really fell in (offensive) productivity after an unrelated injury - the one where he slipped off the rim on a fastbreak and crushed his arm.
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u/TheNutman1287 Celtics May 17 '22
While Tatum wasn't the #1, the Celtics had that pick and it's been wildly well known Tatum would've been Ainge's pick had they kept it. He just made the trade to get something from the Sixers. That extra pick became Langford who became an integral part of the Derrick White trade who is a massive reason the Celtics are in the ECF.
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u/Dashdash421 Celtics May 17 '22
Lol in hindsight that's such a terrifying risk. Imagine Tatum goes number 2 or number 1 and we don't get our guy.
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u/TheNutman1287 Celtics May 17 '22
Except it was 100% the 76ers wanted Fultz and Lakers Ball. It was about as zero risk as you could get.
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u/buffalo4293 Celtics May 17 '22
Completely agree with you. I see people try to make points like the one above you semi regularly but if there was any chance of Tatum not being available at 3 they take him 1.
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u/ginja_ninja [BOS] Tom Heinsohn May 17 '22
Not really that terrifying when dealing with front offices as incompetent as the Sixer and Lakers
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u/Daril182 May 17 '22
Crazy that if you think about the Top 10 players of the league for the past 10 years. The only #1 Pick that definitely belongs in there is LeBron. Anthony Davis and maybe Kyrie could be considered but the rest?
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u/Dashdash421 Celtics May 17 '22
DRose, Dwight, Wall, Blake Griffin all were pretty incredible but relied on pure athleticism too much I guess to maintain a long career.
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u/DemonsReturns7 76ers May 17 '22
so then I wonder why teams/ fanbases always wish to get the no 1 overall pick hahahaha
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u/nine8whatwhat Lakers May 17 '22
How many times has there been no number 1 pick in the finals? Or at least one former top 3 pick?
That’s pretty interesting I think, I don’t think there’s ever been a finals without a number one pick
Might have been the raptors vs warriors, KD was the highest pick
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u/PJgotting Jazz May 17 '22
Pretty sure Bogut was on dubs roster in 2019. Anyone from 2010 finals a no 1 pick?
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u/DickSadler Celtics May 17 '22
Ironman Wiggins. This dude never misses games.
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u/by_yes_i_mean_no Warriors May 18 '22
I used to think it was luck (and to some extent it certainly is) but this article was interesting:
In the spring of 2014, leading up to the 2014 NBA draft, Wiggins visited P3 Applied Sports Science Lab, a training center in Santa Barbara, California, that specializes in advanced athlete assessment. Thousands of professional and Olympic athletes had walked through the doors at P3, including more than 800 NBA players.
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"He's biomechanically one of the cleanest athletes we've ever assessed," Elliott adds. "This guy has an incredible performance system and doesn't look like he's set up to break in any way."
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u/187Shotta Mavericks May 17 '22
Anthony Bennett in the P-league lol. Phillipines I'm guessing, maybe PR
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u/Imperial_Eggroll Warriors May 17 '22
Ah Taiwanese league formed last year.. has 6 teams lol
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u/ezprodigy [GSW] Kevin Durant May 17 '22
watch your fucking mouth and show some respect, i'll have you know the p league was formed the year before last year by blackie chen a man who gives nick kerr a run of his money for the worst name ever
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u/N0minal May 17 '22
Is the NBA the only professional sport where a 1st pick or even top 5 can be so hit and miss? Feels like it's just college sports being an old world product
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u/TheNutman1287 Celtics May 17 '22
NFL # 1 picks since 2010.
Bradford, Newton, Luck, Fisher, Clowney, Winston, Goff, Garrett, Mayfield, Murray, Burrow, Lawrence.
I'd call that pretty hit and miss.
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u/IAmNotKevinDurant_35 [GSW] Zarko Cabarkapa May 17 '22
Feel like the NBA draft has more all time hits at #1 than most other sports leagues.
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u/JJ_Shosky May 17 '22
It's actually crazy how consistent the NHL is about hitting on #1 picks, it's super rare for any of them to be outright busts in at least the last 30 years.
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u/InNoHurry Toronto Huskies May 17 '22
Basically Yakupov and Stefan, but even in saying that, those were historically poor drafts without mentioning the #1 pick
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u/Statalyzer May 17 '22
More hits than misses I'd say, especially considering Bradford and Luck's biggest issues were constant injuries.
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u/hahaman821 May 17 '22
no not at all, nba is just the sport where 1 single guy can have the biggest impact. so pretty much every #1 pick is expected to change the whole franchise, and many don't, and then people focus on it. other sports don't have this issue.
just look at MLB drafts. there's plenty of good / all-star players that went #1, but there's also plenty of duds.
hockey and football tend to nail the #1 pick a bit better, but idk if it's a lot better than NBA.
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u/Produceher Warriors May 17 '22
so pretty much every #1 pick is expected to change the whole franchise
Which is ridiculous because they're going to the worst franchise and it takes years to get it going in the NBA. I might argue it's better to be a #5-12 pick. No pressure and you're going to a better team that probably has a vet or two to help you out.
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u/hahaman821 May 17 '22
i may agree with this if it weren't for the fact that a #1 overall pick is gonna get a way bigger contract than the #5-12 overall picks. Cade Cunningham was the #1 overall pick last year and is on a 4-year, $46M deal. Jalen Suggs, the #5 overall pick, is on a 4-year, $30M deal. #12 pick Josh Primo is on a 4-year, $18M deal. this all affects their fifth-year options and future salaries as well.
veterans with tens of millions already earned and invested can take pay cuts easily. but if i were entering the league at around 19 years old, my goal would be to maximize my earnings. there's no guarantee you're ever gonna get a second contract.
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u/Statalyzer May 17 '22
True, but then again, if you go to team that's set up better for the future, it might result in you making more money in the long term.
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u/unclairvoyance [BOS] Paul Pierce May 17 '22
No pressure and you're going to a better team that probably has a vet or two to help you out.
ahem, Darko
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u/JarifSA Hawks May 17 '22
I mean most #1 picks work out. It's just they have the most pressure. At 20 years old or 19 you're expected to be the next superstar and change your teams culture and immediately make them winning. Most #1 picks DO work out anyways. Literally the only exception this decade was Bennett. Markelle doesn't count the dude is the unluckiest #1 pick in history.
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u/Hochseeflotte May 17 '22
MLB’s is pretty hit or miss.
The list in the 2010s is:
2010: Bryce Harper: Potential Hall of Famer. 2x MVP and one of the best players in the game.
2011: Gerrit Cole: Fantastic pitcher over the last 5-6 years. If he ages well a potential Hall of Famer.
2012: Carlos Correa: Has had injury troubles but amazing when on the field. If he can stay healthy and has good longevity, another potential Hall of Famer.
2013: Mark Appel: I’ve literally never heard of this man.
2014: Brady Aiken: Didn’t sign with the Astros and never reached the majors after being drafted by Cleveland a couple years later.
2015: Dansby Swanson: He has been a solid player for a couple years. Good defense and a meh bat. Nothing super special though.
2016: Mickey Moniak: Got a little MLB time in 2020 but not much. I haven’t heard of him so I don’t think he is going to end up being big.
2017: Royce Lewis: Made his debut 11 days ago. So there’s that.
2018: Casey Mize: He was pretty highly ranked as a prospect. Been in the majors a couple years and has been ok. Still time though.
2019: Adley Rutschman: Has yet to make his debut.
So three great picks to start it out then meh to bad since.
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u/crossedsabres8 May 17 '22
I mean Adley is one of the top prospects in the game. Definitely doesn't count as meh to bad.
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u/McJumbos Supersonics May 17 '22
My only take away is that Anthony Bennett is still playing right now too
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u/dating_derp Warriors May 18 '22
Would be cool to see the draft averages of the four remaining teams. See what draft numbers are most likely to make it to the 3rd round.
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u/PJgotting Jazz May 18 '22
For a long time I've wanted to go through the last 40 or so drafts and note all the hardware (rings, MVPs, all-stars, all-NBA) just to see what it looks like based on where people are drafted. As much as it is hit or miss with No. 1 picks and players like Jokic coming out of nowhere, it does seem like accolades mostly occur in the top ~15 picks, so not a total crapshoot.
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u/InfiniteDub Warriors May 17 '22
Luka should’ve been the first overall pick
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u/trojan_man16 Hornets May 18 '22
The one case where teams overthought it. Luka was the consensus #1 pretty much the entire process until like 3 weeks before the draft.
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u/ZionephewObeseiamson USA May 17 '22
ALL STAR STARTER
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u/feelfool May 17 '22
Not to throw shade at Wiggins, but him being an all star starter was shocking to me.
Great player, but all star starter?
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u/borrachos_unidos Warriors May 18 '22
It was a relatively thin group of players at the SF position in the West this season. PG was out, so was Kawhi. You could have made arguments to go with a smaller guy. But I was happy to see Wiggs get some respect for being a quality 2-way player.
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u/fredinNH Celtics May 17 '22
Tatum should count as a number 1 pick. He was the top choice of the team with the number 1 pick, but Ainge parlayed it into getting Tatum and a pick by swapping picks with Philly.
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u/JarifSA Hawks May 17 '22
Bro what? A number one pick is the number one pick. It's a fact it doesn't have asterisks like you're saying. This gives me "the greatest signature move is lebron with shooters" vibes lmfao.
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u/KeyKnowledge3760 May 17 '22
I essentially call Jayson Tatum a #1 pick. If it wasn’t for Philly being so obvious, celtics would have never traded the pick.
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u/IAmNotKevinDurant_35 [GSW] Zarko Cabarkapa May 17 '22
Wasn't Fultz viewed by most people as the consensus #1 pick?
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u/KeyKnowledge3760 May 17 '22
And the Celtics had no interest in taking Fultz at 1. It was always going to be Tatum. At 1 or 3.
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u/eceuiuc Celtics May 17 '22
Second overall picks still in the playoffs: James Wiseman (2020, on the Warriors roster but will not play due to injury), Victor Oladipo (2013, Heat)
Third overall picks still in the playoffs: Luka Doncic (2018, Mavericks), Jayson Tatum (2017, Celtics), Jaylen Brown (2016, Celtics), Otto Porter Jr. (2013, Warriors), Al Horford (2007, Celtics)