Redrafting the 2011 NBA Draft

January 21, 2021 Daily FAMILY & MONEY Comments Off on Redrafting the 2011 NBA Draft

The 2011 NBA Draft class will go down as one of the greatest in NBA history. As many as five players will make the Hall of Fame. A number of other players made All-Star teams and/or major contributions to championship teams. Above all else, with one unfortunate exception (Isaiah Thomas), most of this class got PAID.

Ironically, this draft class also had some spectacular busts in the top-10 and some impactful late-round sleepers. Here’s how this fascinating draft class should have panned out.

Cleveland Cavaliers - Kawhi Leonard (15)

Stephen Lew/Icon Sportswire

Original Pick: Kyrie Irving

As great as this draft class is, the first pick is an absolute no-brainer: Kawhi Leonard. The two-time Finals MVP is the obvious pick here because he’s the one true superstar whose presence alone guarantees that your team will be a contender as he has the best winning percentage in NBA history for players who have appeared in at least 150 games.

This re-draft presents the Cavs with a fascinating “what if” as well: What if they’d drafted Kawhi Leonard and Kyrie Irving with pick nos. 1 and 4 instead of Kyrie and Tristan Thompson?