The 2003 NBA Re-Draft: The Re-Distribution of Wealth

The 2003 NBA Draft is most likely the most top-heavy of my lifetime. The players in the top four are MVPs, Finals MVPs, All-Stars and sports icons. And they’ll all end up on different teams.

In kind of a fun twist, the draft drops off pretty dramatically after the fourth spot. Unless you consider David West or Kyle Korver to be Carmelo Anthony’s equal. Which, yeah.

A grand total of zero of these guys ended up on their original teams, which is sure to send shockwaves through the league.

2003 is the year it all turned around in Cleveland. The Cavs, who were favored to win the lottery, actually did so. They drafted Akron native LeBron James and the rest is history. Well, that’s not happening a second time.

Instead, the lottery pole-sitters are the Miami Heat, another eventual LBJ employer. And it’s probably not worth even teasing that they’re not going to pick him.

Cleveland didn’t completely miss out, however. The real-life lottery catapulted the Grizzlies into the second slot of the draft (although their pick was owned by the Pistons). In this world, that is the Cavs!

The rest of the lottery plays out as scripted, with the Nuggets and Pistons getting a chance at a franchise talent and Raptors, Grizzlies, Warriors and Nets getting a chance at a just-good player.

The only real trade to note is that the Celtics sent their two first-rounders to Memphis for their two first-rounders, which in real life meant Kendrick Perkins and Marcus Banks went to Boston for Troy Bell and Dahntay Jones.

Oh, and in case you didn’t assume this, NO THE HEAT DID NOT CONSIDER TAKING PEJA STOJAKOVIC INSTEAD OF LEBRON JAMES.

Re-Draft Results:

TEAM: New Pick (Original Pick)

Round 1

1. Miami Heat: SF LeBron James, high school (SG Dwyane Wade, Marquette)
2. Cleveland Cavaliers: Dwyane Wade (LeBron James)
3. Denver Nuggets: PF Chris Bosh, Georgia Tech (SF Carmelo Anthony, Syracuse)
4. Detroit Pistons: Carmelo Anthony (PF Darko Milicic, Serbia)
5. Toronto Raptors: PF David West, Xavier (Chris Bosh)
6. Memphis Grizzlies: SG Kyle Korver, Creighton (PG Marcus Banks, UNLV)
7. Golden State Warriors: PG Kirk Hinrich, Kansas (SF Mickael Pietrus, France)
8. New Jersey Nets: C Zaza Pachulia, Georgia (SG Zoran Planinic, Croatia)
9. Los Angeles Clippers: PF Nick Collison, Kansas (C Chris Kaman, Central Michigan)
10. Seattle SuperSonics: PG Mo Williams, Alabama (Nick Collison)
11. Los Angeles Lakers: SF Matt Bonner, Florida (PF Brian Cook, Illinois)
12. Washington Wizards: SF Josh Howard, Wake Forest (SF Jarvis Hayes, Georgia)
13. New York Knicks: PG Leandro Barbosa, Brazil (PF Michael Sweetney, Georgetown)
14. Phoenix Suns: PG Luke Ridnour, Oregon (SF Zarko Cabarkapa, Serbia)
15. Chicago Bulls: PG Steve Blake, Maryland (Kirk Hinrich)
16. Seattle SuperSonics: PG Jose Calderon, Spain (Luke Ridnour)
17. Utah Jazz: C Kendrick Perkins, high school (SG Sasha Pavolvic, Serbia)
18. Milwaukee Bucks: SF James Jones, Miami (PG T.J. Ford, Texas)
19. Atlanta Hawks: Chris Kaman (PF Boris Diaw, France)
20. San Antonio Spurs: SG Carlos Delfino, Argentina (Leandro Barbosa)
21. Detroit Pistons: SG Marquis Daniels, Auburn (Carlos Delfino)
22. Portland Trail Blazers: SG Keith Bogans, Kentucky (SF Travis Outlaw, high school)
23. Boston Celtics: Mickael Pietrus (PG Troy Bell, Boston College)
24. Boston Celtics: T.J. Ford (SG Dahntay Jones, Duke)
25. New Orleans Hornets: SG Matt Carroll, Notre Dame (David West)
26. Orlando Magic: SG Quinton Ross, SMU (SF Reece Gaines, Louisville)
27. Minnesota Timberwolves: C Earl Barron, Memphis (PF Ndudi Ebi, high school)
28. Dallas Mavericks: SF James Singleton, Murray State (Josh Howard)
29. Memphis Grizzlies: Travis Outlaw (Kendrick Perkins)

Round 2

1. MIA: PF Luke Walton, Arizona (PF Jerome Beasley, North Dakota)
2. NYK: SG Willie Green (PF Maciej Lampe, Poland)
3. MIL: SF Jason Kapono, UCLA (PF Szymon Szewczyk, Poland)
4. LAL: Jarvis Hayes (Luke Walton)
5. HOU: Brian Cook (PF Malick Badiane, Senegal)
6. CLE: PF Josh Powell, NC State (Jason Kapono)
7. GSW: Dahntay Jones (PG Derrick Zimmerman, Mississippi State)
8. NJN: Mike Sweetney (Kyle Korver)
9. LAC: Darko Milicic (C Sofoklis Schortsanitis, Greece)
10. MIL: Sasha Pavlovic (Keith Bogans)
11. TOR: Marcus Banks (C Remon van de Hare, Netherlands)
12. WAS: Zoran Planinic (Steve Blake)
13. CHI: Zarko Cabarkapa (PF Mario Austin, Mississippi State)
14. CHI: PF Brandon Hunter, Ohio (Matt Bonner)
15. NYK: SG Travis Hansen, BYU (C Slavko Vranes, Serbia)
16. SEA: Ndudi Ebi (Willie Green)
17. UTA: C James Lang, high school (Mo Williams)
18. ATL: Jerome Beasley (Travis Hansen)
19. IND: Slavko Vranes (James Jones)
20. DET: Derrick Zimmerman (C Andrea Glyniadakis, Greece)
21. CHI: Troy Bell (PF Tommy Smith, Arizona State)
22. POR: Maciej Lampe (C Nedzad Sinanovic, Bosnia)
23. DEN: Andrea Glyniadakis (SG Sani Becirovic, Serbia)
24. PHI: Reece Gaines (PG Paccelis Morlende, France)
25. NOH: No pick (James Lang)
26. ORL: No pick (Zaza Pachulia)
27. MIN: No pick (PF Rick Rickert, Minnesota)
28. DAL: No pick (C Xue Yuyang, China)
29. BOS: No pick (Brandon Hunter)

Biggest winner: Miami Heat

I really hesitate at giving this to Miami. Dwyane Wade carried them to a championship. But replacing him with LeBron is, in most years to come, an upgrade. And after about 2012, the gap will really grow. Replacing Jerome Beasley with the useful Luke Walton is icing on the cake.

Honorable mention to the Pistons, who turn Darko into Melo and Carlos Delfino into Marquis Daniels (a lateral move). The Nets getting Zaza Pachulia instead of Zoran Planinic could also loom large.

Biggest loser: Philadelphia 76ers

 

It was so, so tempting to put the Cavs here, and they’re still in the discussion. There will be a period of time where there is little or no impact in going to D-Wade from LBJ, but the impact will be felt. Losing Jason Kapono and replacing him with Josh Powell is a loss, although not as big a one as it feels.

There are lots of teams who got players nowhere near as good as their original picks. I nearly put the Hornets here, since they lost David West and ended up with Matt Carroll. The Raptors landed West, at the cost of Chris Bosh. Or how about the Jazz, who no longer end up with Mo Williams in round 2, instead drafting James Lang? (They did upgrade from Sasha Pavlovic to Kendrick Perkins in round 1).

But ultimately I chose the Sixers, who didn’t even have an impactful real-life pick in this draft. Instead, they traded for second-rounder Kyle Korver, who had been chosen by the Nets. In the re-draft, that same pick grabbed Mike Sweetney, who will not be a major piece of a winning team like Korver was.