Redrafting the 1998 NBA Draft

Give me your Sam Bowie and your Greg Oden and I will laugh at your definition of bust. Meet Michael Olowokandi. He had a mediocre horror film inspired nickname (The Kandi Man), but that was about the only thing inspired about him or his career. The Clippers, the perennial draft choke artists, took a gamble. And they bust. As usual. This time, just bigger. Look at a draft with five All-Stars and with two or three Hall of Famers and they took a guy who scored a career with 12.3 points per game while shooting a near career low from the field.

The thought of that draft pick, with Vince Carter and Dirk Nowitski (both TRADED on draft night) and Paul Pierce just sitting there, it makes me cringe. It is another vibrant note of what the Clippers might have been had they drafted well. A franchise could have been stabilized with Nowitski or Pierce at the helm.

It was also a weird year for trades, with the 4^th, 5^th, 6^th and 9^th picks swapped. It was like teams knew what they wanted, but really didn’t.

And then there was Orlando. While the draft helped turn around the Mavericks, Kings and Raptors and set into motion a return plan for Boston, it was Orlando who could have potentially struck gold. Instead, they turned their three top-15 picks into Michael Doleac, Keon Clark and Matt Harpring. Tragic. Just tragic. They managed to be a 3-seed in the playoffs after a lockout shortened 1998-99 season, but when Penny Hardaway’s support system as these three, there is not question why Allen Iverson took them to the wood shed in the playoff’s opening round.

Pick 1: Los Angeles Clippers

Who they took: Michael Olowokandi

Who they should have took: Dirk Nowitski (9^th pick)

Why: This was a class it was hard to choose who should be the first pick, but Nowitski gets the nod. He was looked at as raw, but long enough to play either forward spots, or even center, once his body reached his potential. He did so quickly in Dallas (good job Milwaukee, trading him is almost like Charlotte trading Kobe). By far the best German born NBA player ever, maybe the best German basketball player ever and easily one of the best jump shooting 7-footers ever. He would have been a homerun for the Clippers instead of the debilitating strike out they went with instead.

Pick 2: Vancouver Grizzlies

Who they took: Mike Bibby

Who they should have took: Paul Pierce (10^th pick)

Why: After his ex-Kansas teammate bombed in the draft the year before, there was probably some concern about Pierce. After all, Kansas was producing quality college players who were mediocre at best pros (see ‘Blue Devils, Duke’ for more reference on that). Pierce broke that mold. At a time where one player, one identity was what Memphis yearned for, Pierce could have been that like he became for the Celtics. Especially after a move to Memphis, Pierce could have been a Grizzlies lifer, forever altering their franchise and sadly the Celtics too, just not in a good way. And while Bibby was a good pick for Vancouver, they didn’t get his best years while Pierce would have proved to be the most valuable piece in franchise history and their first Hall of Famer.

Pick 3: Denver Nuggets

Who they took: Raef LaFrentz

Who they should have took: Vince Carter (5^th pick)

Why: Even though he has fattened with age, Carter still is a terrific player as seen by his highlight reel buzzer beater in this year’s playoffs. But take that away and in 1998 you still have an explosive get-to-the-basket scorer who could glide through the air with ease. The next ‘Next Jordan’ was probably the closest thing to the original because of how he soared and the awe in which people were in when the man shortly dubbed ‘Air Canada’ took flight. NBA dunk contest win with some of the best dunks ever? Check. Leaping OVER a defender for Team USA to dunk? Check. And turning around the Raptors franchise? Check. They could have used any one of those rubs in Denver, where the Nuggets were continuing a pace of downright pathetic.

Pick 4: Toronto Raptors

Who they took: Antwan Jamison (traded to Warriors)

Who they should have took: Mike Bibby (2^nd pick)

Why: Bibby put up a hectic pace on the court, really picking up where he left off at Arizona and was a catalyst in the early years for the other Canadian club. Unlike most guys, especially of this era, I think that Bibby was right coming out after his sophomore year as the NBA was better development for his game than college would have been. While Carter, the eventual Raptor from this draft, was the perfect pick up, he realistically possibly wouldn’t be available here so Bibby would have been a pretty great pickup to team with Tracy McGrady in a drive and dish team.

Pick 5: Golden State Warriors

Who they took: Vince Carter (traded to Raptors)

Who they should have took: Antwan Jamison (4^th pick)

Why: They got him anyway. So it was the right pick all along. He was supposed to be Carter’s equal in the ever expanding line of freak UNC athletes (see ‘Stackhouse, Jerry’) and he never panned out in that manner but was still helpful every single place he landed from 1998 through this past season. He mustered together All-Star seasons in Dallas and Washington after he built up a reputation as a dangerous scorer in Golden State where he twice scored 51 points in a game. The Warriors made the right choice here, though I would like to re-free agency for them so they could try to hold onto the career 18.5 ppg scorer into his All-Star years.

Pick 6: Dallas Mavericks

Who they took: Robert Traylor (traded to Milwaukee)

Who they should have took: Brad Miller (undrafted)

Why: Dallas clearly needed to go big and they made the wrong choice to do that with before trading the same night for the way right choice. But with Nowitski off the board and Robert Traylor being a laughable choice today, Miller would have a perfect fit. The reality is, he wasn’t going to turn around the franchise like Nowitski did, but he was a guy who steadily improved each and every year, culminating with back-to-back All-Star appearances (yes, as an undrafted player) for two different teams. He only averaged 6.3 ppg and 3.1 rpg as a rookie (though still an undrafted one) in Charlotte, but never put up lower numbers except for in his final season once his body was pretty well done over his career low 15 games in 2011-2012.

Pick 7: Sacramento Kings

Who they took: Jason Williams

Who they should have took: Rashard Lewis (32^nd pick)

Why: In a draft with a lot of talent, it’s hard to drop down the draft for back-to-back picks but Lewis earned his spot higher in the draft with how quickly he exploded. He wasn’t ready to come straight out of high school in 1998, but unlike most that are not ready early, he quickly figured it out, going from scoring 2.4 ppg and putting down 1.3 rpg as a rookie to 14.8 and 6.9 numbers in his third year. All-Star appearances and 22.4 ppg in his final year in Seattle netted him a big paycheck from Orlando and while he was never as valuable again, he still is a critical role player in the league. Considering is longevity wanting to stay in Seattle, he probably would have long hauled it in Sacramento to and became a great additional inside threat with Vlade Divac and Chris Webber as they were starting their big run.

Pick 8: Philadelphia 76ers

Who they took: Larry Hughes

Who they should have took: Ricky Davis (21^st pick)

Why: Ricky Davis and Allen Iverson would have either been the biggest clash of teammates in NBA history or been nasty together. Like late-80’s Detroit kind of nasty. The pick of the best player right here would be Jason Williams, but with a flashy, tough as nails point guard (Iverson) already in the fold, it wouldn’t make much sense. Davis ultimately proved too selfish for the league, but showed signs of actual brilliance before LeBron James stole his thunder in Cleveland. The year before James entered the league, Davis scored 20.6 ppg to lead the Cavaliers. And while all he led them to was the first pick in the draft, he showed he could play. Sadly, he now knew he could score in bunches, so giving up his touches to LeBron was not in his personal game plan. He never played the same again. However, if he could have found that rhythm without being “the guy,” like in Philly, he may have never lost his scoring swagger.

Pick 9: Milwaukee Bucks

Who they took: Dirk Nowitski (traded to Dallas)

Who they should have took: Jason Williams (7^th pick)

Why: The Milwaukee Bucks don’t even want to think about this draft. Not even a little bit, not even at all. This was Charlotte Hornets bad. They actually drafted Nowitski (who admittedly, isn’t Kobe) and traded him for ROBERT “TRACTOR” TRAYLOR (who still isn’t Vlade Divac good). Never pick a guy named after a semi. Always pick a guy who is nicknamed White Chocolate. Williams helped turn around the Kings, though he had more help. Milwaukee needed some flare and he had that by the buckets full.

Pick 10: Boston Celtics

Who they took: Paul Pierce

Who they should have took: Al Harrington (25^th pick)

Why: The Celtics are like the Mavericks. Thank god there really is no such thing as going back in time and re-drafting. With the exception of Larry Bird, no pick in the history of their franchise has been as important as this one was for Boston (could that change this year?). And Al Harrington would have been downright disappointing in comparison, but not all together disappointing. Like a lot of the later drafted high school kids, his adjustment time was too long (in comparison to Pierce), but he still developed into a dynamic player for a while. He was long and physical and the Celtics were just throwing up draft picks at this point. Harrington wouldn’t stick like Pierce did, but he still would have provided a solid option for an ailing team. The downside? Without Pierce, no matter who this pick was, they may still be ailing (as opposed to ailing again).

Pick 11: Detroit Pistons

Who they took: Bonzi Wells

Who they should have took: Cuttino Mobley (41^st pick)

Why: Mobley is one of those guys that you know his name, but you don’t give him much second thought unless you are a Cuttino Mobley or Rhode Island fan. Detroit was seeing an end to the somewhat disappointing (and injury filled) Grant Hill era and was trying to make things click with a bevy of veterans to add some spice to whatever Grant could provide that particular year. Adding Mobley may have not paid initial dividends, but had he stayed in Detroit as long as he did in Houston (where he was drafted and still averaged almost 10 ppg as a rookie), then he would have been highly valuable in the thick of the Pistons’ championship run. He put up a career best 21.7 ppg and 1.5 spg in 2002 and then still put up 15.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.2 apg and 1.3 spg in the Pistons championship season, which would have made them even more unbeatable as another option.

Pick 12: Orlando Magic

Who they took: Michael Doleac

Who they should have took: Larry Hughes (8^th pick)

Why: Orlando needed a lot and although the pickings are slimmer at this point, they sure aren’t Doleac-Clark-Harpring slim. Hughes was a hot shot freshman coming from Saint Louis, with a game very reminiscent of Penny Hardaway himself. It would have been like a younger, still a little raw version of Penny working side by side with him in Orlando, which could have been pretty fun to watch.

Pick 13: Orlando Magic

Who they took: Keon Clark

Who they should have took: Bonzi Wells (11^th pick)

Why: Not a lot of career Muncie, Indiana guys finding success in the NBA, but Wells surely did. He would have played a lot as a rookie in Orlando (not sure why he didn’t in Portland, where he was traded to before he ever played a game) and therefore jumped up his scoring average quicker than he was allowed to do in 7 games as a rookie. In between his first and last years in Portland, he never played less than 66 games, never shot worse than 44 percent from the field and like Mobley was consistent in chipping in scoring, defense and rebounding.

Pick 14: Houston Rockets

Who they took: Michael Dickerson

Who they should have took: Raef Lafrentz (3^rd pick)

Why: He wasn’t really a bust per say, but Lafrentz also wasn’t third pick material (Denver may have passed on Pierce, Nowitski, Carter, Jamison, Williams, etc.). Houston would have been a place for him to develop inside without pressure where Denver expected him to just take over after his success with Pierce at Kansas. And while he finished his college career only behind Kansas legend Danny Manning in scoring and rebounding, he sure wasn’t Danny Manning in the pros. With Clyde Drexler’s retirement and before the Yao Ming era began, Lafrentz could have helped make the Houston interior solid as he never averaged under 12 points or 7 rebounds in his first four seasons, all in Denver.

Pick 15: Orlando Magic

Who they took: Matt Harpring

Who they should have took: Sarunas Jasikevicius (undrafted)

Why: First of all, Orlando needed everything. Second of all, Jasikevicius was before his time. Before the basketball world required gun slinger point guards, Jasikevicius was doing it. His style never really fit at Maryland as a Lithuanian import and thus pro teams didn’t latch on to him. By the time an NBA team did (the Indiana Pacers in 2005), it was too late. And although he was still efficient, he had lost a step and couldn’t keep up with the new age, young gun slinger guards in the league. But had someone taken a chance on him at all in 1998, he himself could have been someone that revolutionized the league from a flashy point guard perspective, much how Jason Williams, of the same draft class, helped do. His leadership and ability have made him one of the best Lithuanian born players ever and a shot in Orlando would have been a perfect setting for him to get the chance before it was too late.