Redrafting the 2014 NBA Draft

January 21, 2021 Daily FAMILY & MONEY Comments Off on Redrafting the 2014 NBA Draft

The 2014 NBA Draft is a memorable one because it featured two superstar centers, one of which (Nikola Jokic) wasn’t drafted until the middle of the second round. The rest of the first round consisted of a number of high-level role players along with some players with loads of potential, but inconsistent production. There were also a couple of huge busts like Dante Exum and Nik Stauskas, so this draft a had a bit of everything.

Let’s see how things would shake out if we redrafted things today.

Cleveland Cavaliers - Nikola Jokic (41)

© Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Original Pick: Andrew Wiggins

This may come off as a surprise given Joel Embiid‘s otherworldly talent, but Nikola Jokic is simply a better, more reliable NBA player. Yes, Embiid is, by far, a more impactful defender. He can also dominate opponents in the post in ways only the likes of Shaquille O’Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon and other Hall of Fame big men could.

However, Jokic can dominate basketball games too – look no further than his career playoff averages (24.7 ppg., 11.7 rpg., 6.8 apg. with 51-42-84 shooting splits in 33 career playoff games) – it just involves less brute force, and more skill. In fact, the Joker is arguably the best passing big man ever (7.1 apg. over the past two season).

And the final separator for the no. 1 redraft choice: reliability is the best ability. Jokic, unlike Embiid, never misses games. He’s played an average of 76.2 games per season during his five year career (he spent 2014-15 overseas) whereas Embiid has only played 52.3 games per season during his four year career (and that doesn’t even take into account the two FULL seasons Embiid missed with injuries to start his career).