Leading up to the 2019 NBA Draft, the thought has been that this is a weak draft, with a pretty good drop-off after the top 3-5 picks. Because of that, little should have surprised many, because there simply isn’t as much separation after those first picks as usual.
Even so, some picks still have to qualify as surprises by just about any stretch of the imagination. For example, who saw North Carolina forward Cameron Johnson going 11th overall? (Certainly not teammate Coby White, apparently.) Johnson was the only senior drafted in the lottery this year and one of just three in the entire first round. Who thought Tyler Herro, a solid prospect but probably a distant third from his own Kentucky team on many draft boards when the season ended, would end up in the lottery? How about Auburn forward Chuma Okeke, rehabbing a torn ACL in one of the saddest stories of the NCAA Tournament, going 16th (and being the only Tiger drafted)? Matisse Thybulle going 20th overall is probably not something many saw coming, either, or even Dylan Windler – the other senior along with Johnson and Thybulle to go in the first round – going 26th to Cleveland. All of these players figured to be drafted, but perhaps not this high – but as noted, there was not as much separation after the first few picks as there often is, either.
But two players carried a lot of the conversation in this respect during the first round and beyond in this respect.
During the college basketball season, plenty of people wondered about the fact that Nassir Little did not start for North Carolina. Roy Williams was questioned about it, with some thinking he was holding Little back, and it’s not a given that many bought his explanation. But after Little stayed on the board until the 25th pick when Portland grabbed him, here is a thought: maybe Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams knows what he is doing. He does have 871 wins and three national championships, after all.
Another much-talked about player was the most polarizing one in this draft: Oregon big man Bol Bol. The son of the late Manute Bol, he is very long and has tantalizing potential with that and his skill level. His frame, his foot injury that kept him out of all but nine games this season, and a questionable motor all combined to knock him down to the 43rd pick overall. He and Tacko Fall from UCF, who went undrafted, were discussed a bit, but the question with such players even if healthy is how the speed of the game is for them – especially Fall. Someone will take a chance on Fall in their summer league at least.
When it was all said and done, the ACC had six players selected in the lottery, which ties a record. Maybe the most telling stat of the night as to how wide open this draft was after the top picks: the Ohio Valley Conference had as many first round selections as the Big Ten and Pac-12. It caps off a tremendous year for the conference, which saw an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament, saw both teams in the Big Dance win a game, and also saw just the second player in conference history to be selected first team All-OVC for all four years (Nick Mayo of Eastern Kentucky).
At the end of the day, there are always some noteworthy players who left school early and did not see a good result. With 98 college early entrants remaining before the draft began, that was a guarantee. The ones who take the cake in that category this year are Tyus Battle (Syracuse), Amir Coffey (Minnesota), Luguentz Dort (Arizona State), Jared Harper (Auburn), Louis King (Oregon), Dedric Lawson (Kansas), Jalen Lecque (Brewster Academy, was headed to NC State), Naz Reid (LSU), Simisola Shittu (Vanderbilt), Nick Ward (Michigan State) and Kris Wilkes (UCLA). All of them were quite highly-regarded prospects at one time.
The night began with Zion Williamson not taking his being the number one overall pick for granted. IT was a pretty amazing scene – a young man who has been built up so much in the public, but who all along has come forth with gratitude and appreciation for what it took to get here and understanding that this is not something everyone can experience. This kind of humility is refreshing; while there are far more humble athletes than a lot of public discourse suggests, all too often we build up ones who show just the opposite of what Zion showed on Thursday night. It’s one more reason he’s a young man you can get behind no matter your allegiance.
With the draft in the books and the free agent frenzy just around the corner (with lots of talk about what might happen already starting), now we begin wondering: in about five years, will we look back on this draft class as a pleasant surprise?
The final class breakdown in the first round, for those wondering: 11 freshmen, eight sophomores, four juniors, three seniors, three international players and one not fitting any of those descriptions (Darius Bazley, who was supposed to go to Syracuse but opted to skip college and did not play organized basketball this year).
Side Dishes
Away from the NBA Draft, Thursday night brought some other news. UMKC announced it will return to the Summit League in the 2020-21 academic year after being in the WAC since 2013. While it will hurt the WAC as it tries to survive, the conference can absorb this despite the upcoming departure of CSU Bakersfield as well, as Dixie State will join the conference as a new Division I member in 2020-21.
Houskeeping Items
- Be sure to check out another book review – Kings on the Bluff by David Finoli – from Ray Floriani
- Also, be on the lookout for more conference post-mortems, starting with the CAA post-mortem later today.
