As the 2022-23 NBA season is drawing to a close, four years have passed since the 2019 NBA Draft. At the time of writing, teams are preparing for the 2023 NBA Draft. The players taken four years ago will be hitting free agency or starting their rookie extensions when the league calendar changes over.
This draft has not aged particularly well, with lottery players washing out of the league while undrafted talents have blown up. In fact, two of this draft’s best players were a part of the Miami Heat’s run to the NBA Finals, and both were undrafted.
What does the 2019 Draft look like four years later?
In this redraft, we will use four years of hindsight to pick the first round over again. We’ll primarily just be ordering the players based on their careers and development rather than team needs, which are less clear four years later. We did a similar exercise a year ago, and the differences are interesting to look at.
Although this is a Cleveland Cavaliers website, this redraft is done with the entire league in mind. Cavs fans are NBA fans, after all.
The toughest decision for this draft will be with the first pick, as the best player may not be the best pick. From there it’s a complete shakeup as players move up and down the board. Who will make the greatest leap? Let’s dive in and find out.
Original Pick: Zion Williamson, Duke
Choosing the player to go first in this redraft was a legitimately difficult task, as three different players can make strong cases. That’s highly unusual for most drafts, as the top player tends to have distinguished themselves by this point.
In one sense that has happened, as Zion Williamson has reached the highest heights of any player from this draft, and has the best chance of becoming an all-time player. Yet he has also played just 114 games total in four seasons, less than half that of most of the players in this class. It’s hard to bet the first overall pick on such an injury risk.
Many teams may still choose Zion here, but Darius Garland is the pick in our redraft. There are no issues with his availability or character, on-or-off the court. He is a sharpshooter and high-level passer, and even improved as a defender this past season.
The Pelicans would be able to build a team similar to the one they have had to play with in Zion’s absences, but with Garland they wouldn’t have had to trade for CJ McCollum. A core of Darius Garland, Herb Jones and Brandon Ingram would be a great start with a lot of lineup versatility (as we will see later in our redraft).
Original Pick: Ja Morant, Murray State
Zion Williamson will not fall far, slipping a single spot to go No. 2 to the Memphis Grizzlies. His high-end outcomes are too overwhelming for him to go much further, although there is certainly a case for the Grizzlies selecting Ja Morant here as they did in real life.
When Williamson has been on the court, the Pelicans have been a very good team. His combination of speed, power and explosion with the ball breaks NBA defenses, and no one has found a solution for him yet. Whether he starts on the perimeter or seals his defender down low, there is almost no stopping him from getting to the rim at will.
The injuries are a real concern, and there is a very real outcome where Williamson plays partial seasons for the next few years before his body completely breaks down and he is forced to retire. That’s not likely, but it’s possible.
Jaren Jackson Jr. represents the perfect frontcourt partner for Zion, an elite rim protector who can shoot the 3-pointer comfortably. With Tyus Jones and Desmond Bane in the backcourt, the Grizzlies would likely be a playoff lock whenever Zion is healthy.
Original Pick: RJ Barrett, Duke
Ja Morant has been the second-best player in this draft class when you simply evaluate play on the basketball court. The reason he has dropped to third relates to his looming suspension with the NBA. Morant has demonstrated a destructive pattern of behavior, and if it doesn’t change he is likely to commit a crime or hurt himself in such a way that his NBA career cannot continue.
Hopefully, Morant will find the help and support he needs and be motivated to change the course of his life. If he does, he will have a long career as an All-Star guard.
Morant is incredible with the ball in his hands, one of the league’s fastest and most explosive guards attacking the rim. He is also one of its best passers, diming up teammates in the exact right places for them to shoot or make players. He has led the Grizzlies to the playoffs in three of his first four seasons in the league.
The path for the New York Knicks would have looked very different had they selected Ja Morant here. RJ Barrett has been fine (as you shall soon see) but Morant has been an All-NBA level of guard at times. He and Julius Randle would have been a formidable pairing, and how the team was shaped from there may have been very different.
Original Pick: De’Andre Hunter, Virginia
While the draft board starting at No. 5 will start to look radically different than the original 2019 Draft, our first four picks were all selected in the top 5 of the original draft. With that being said, there is a big step down from that elite first tier to something much lower, from superstars to players who have an outside chance at an All-Star Game in their careers.
It’s not that RJ Barrett has been a bad player; he has been a positive starter on a good team. He just doesn’t have the on-ball creation ability to fully unlock his game and impact the game at a high level. He’s going to be a solid starter who might put together a season good enough to get All-Star buzz; more Andrew Wiggins than Khris Middleton.
Barrett has developed into a solid defender who can finish plays well and has a good-looking shot, for all that it’s gone in inconsistently from outside. He is a plus passer and seems to be a great teammate and competitor.
The Atlanta Hawks originally selected De’Andre Hunter at No. 4 after trading up with the New Orleans Pelicans, a mistake when you factor in how much further down the board Hunter will go. Barrett would have filled a similar spot in their lineup but with more offensive impact, and his secondary playmaking could have paired nicely with Trae Young.
Original Pick: Darius Garland, Vanderbilt
Full disclosure: I do not believe that the Miami Heat would have made their run to the 2023 NBA Finals if Tyler Herro was healthy and playing. A major part of their success has been the lack of poor defenders they have put on the floor, and Herro’s greatest flaw to this point in his career has been a complete lack of impact on that end of the court.
So how does he make it up to fifth in our redraft? In part that is because this class lacks true difference-makers after the first three picks. The other reality is that what Herro does well is extremely valuable in the NBA, and it’s why he got paid like a star by the Miami Heat.
Herro is a wizard with the ball in his hands, able to get separation for his smooth jumper or for a layup finish at the rim. He has shot 38.3 percent from 3-point range for his career, many of those difficult pull-up attempts. He is fast, he is smart, and whether he is starting or coming off of the bench his offensive impact has been critical for the Heat on that end.
The Cleveland Cavaliers originally chose a player with much of the same offensive impact as Tyler Herro, except for the fact that Darius Garland is an excellent passer and Herro is less developed in that area. Seeing Herro and Collin Sexton develop alongside one another would have been an interesting test case.
Original Pick: Jarrett Culver, Texas Tech
All five of the top 5 picks in the 2019 NBA Draft turned out to be NBA starters, even if RJ Barrett and De’Andre Hunter don’t look like stars. The draft took a sharp turn for the worst at pick No. 6, however, as the Minnesota Timberwolves traded up to take a player in Jarrett Culver who is no longer in the league just four years later.
Instead, the Timberwolves get a do-over and select Cameron Johnson, the player they “technically” drafted on draft night on behalf of the Phoenix Suns. Johnson became a starter on a winning team in Phoenix before he was traded in the Kevin Durant deal to the Brooklyn Nets.
Johnson has been one of the best shooters in this draft class, something that was expected as a college sniper but can never be known for certain. He came in as an old rookie and is already 27 years old, but he will be in his prime for his entire next contract, making that less of an issue for NBA teams given the level of his production. He is a shaky defender, but not a useless one, so he should be able to perform as a starter even on good teams.
The Minnesota Timberwolves would have had a lethal frontcourt pairing offensively between Johnson and Karl-Anthony Towns, although defense would have been an issue that likely kept Johnson coming off of the bench as he did for most of his Phoenix tenure. Interestingly, he’s a far better fit with current Wolves center Rudy Gobert.
Original Pick: Coby White, North Carolina
Any basketball fans who watched the Golden State Warriors in the playoffs this season will think this placement for Jordan Poole is insane, and they might be right. He bounced everywhere from No. 6 to No. 16 in earlier versions of this redraft before ultimately landing seventh. Let’s make the case.
The most valuable skill for a player to have in the NBA is on-ball creation for himself and others. For all that he seemed to forget how to dribble in the playoffs this season, Poole has the craft to gain separation and hit shots from all over the court. He has range well outside the 3-point range, placing him behind just a few players in pull-up shooting. And going back just one season, he averaged 17 points on highly-efficient shooting for a team that won the NBA Finals. How many players in this draft will ever be able to say something like that?
The defense is atrocious, the turnovers can be bad, and he needs to refine his confidence into a slightly better shot diet. Still, on a team that doesn’t have Stephen Curry, Poole’s shooting and creation would be highly valuable.
The Chicago Bulls spent much of the past four seasons wanting more from their highly-drafted point guard. In Jordan Poole they would get plenty of scoring and shooting, juicing their offense and giving them a high-level sixth man in a universe where Lonzo Ball stayed healthy.
Original Pick: Jaxson Hayes, Texas
The New Orleans Pelicans had three strong first-round picks in the 2019 NBA Draft, and while they got a generational superstar at No. 1 they did not do so well with the other two picks. Both would go much later in a redraft, and neither is a lock to remain in the first round.
This time around, they get to add a proven player at the league’s most valuable position. Keldon Johnson has become a solid two-way combo forward for the San Antonio Spurs, settling in as their best player at this point in their rebuild. He can score reasonably well, has developed as a passer and has shot decently well from outside.
Johnson doesn’t get higher on this list because his upside seems capped. He doesn’t have enough ball-handling juice or athleticism to gain true separation, and he isn’t an elite shooter. Defensively he can survive but isn’t making impact plays very often. He looks like a fourth or fifth starter on a good team, and as valuable as those players are, Johnson isn’t likely to make an All-Star Game in his career.
Even so, the Pelicans would have loved to come away with Johnson over Jaxson Hayes. In our newly-formed redraft roster he could start alongside Brandon Ingram at forward, settling into the perfect offensive role as Ingram and Darius Garland create offense.
Original Pick: Rui Hachimura, Gonzaga
For the first time in our redraft, a player will leap up from outside of the first round, although not by much; Nic Claxton originally went 31st in the 2019 draft as the first pick of the second round. In a redraft, he seems like a lottery lock, and we slot him in all the way at ninth.
Claxton has become one of the best defensive players in the NBA, full stop. He missed making All-Defense by a hair this season and should be in the mix for many years to come. He is an excellent rim protector despite his slim frame, but he also can switch onto the perimeter and stay in front of ball handlers. He has quick hands for steals and is growing constantly in his anticipation and positioning.
On offense, he is purely a play finisher, but that’s fine for a player who can make the defensive impact that Claxton can. If he can improve as a rebounder to routinely pull down double-digit boards, his value to teams will only go up.
The Washington Wizards originally chose Japanese forward Rui Hachimura with the No. 9 pick. Hachimura will slide down this redraft a bit, as he has been an inefficient scorer who struggled to transition into an off-ball role with the Wizards, although he seems to have found a home in Los Angeles. Claxton would be a better version of what Daniel Gafford has been for Washington, giving them a true defensive anchor as they assembled the rest of their rotation in front of him.
Original Pick: Cam Reddish, Duke
We come to another tier break in our redraft, and the next collection of players can (1) be taken in nearly any order, and (2) fit in as solid role players for contending teams. In fact, most of them have been exactly that already, and project to continue in that role for years to come.
Grant Williams heads the list because of his combination of size, defense and shooting. He has been a 37.9 percent 3-point shooter for his career, and when you combine that with his defensive versatility it makes for a highly valuable player. Williams has the strength to defend opposing centers and the mobility to check forwards. The Boston Celtics routinely use him on everyone from Joel Embiid to Giannis Antetokounmpo to Jimmy Butler.
The Atlanta Hawks originally chose Cam Reddish with this pick, sent over from the Dallas Mavericks as the last part of the Trae Young / Luka Doncic deal. In this redraft, they don’t waste the pick on Reddish, but instead get an impact two-way forward. Pairing Williams and RJ Barrett (their pick at 4) would give them a modern and solid combo at those two positions.
Original Pick: Cameron Johnson, North Carolina
Lugentz Dort becomes our first undrafted player to break into the first round of the redraft, climbing as high as No. 11. He is one of the league’s toughest perimeter defenders, able to use his length, strength and confidence to knock fast guards off of their game and harry large forwards out of rhythm.
The Phoenix Suns are the first true “losers” of the redraft, getting a worse player than the one they originally drafted, but it’s certainly a solid consolation prize to get one of the best young defenders in the league. Dort would have been an excellent rotation player for the Suns, and the defensive combination of Dort and Mikal Bridges would have been terrifying.
Original Pick: P.J. Washington, Kentucky
The second undrafted player of the redraft is not far behind, as Max Strus rose the most of any player over the past few months to make it into the lottery. This past season’s playoff run with the Miami Heat cemented the two-way value of Max Strus, and the contract he earns in free agency this summer will harden that cement even further.
Strus is a solid defender and solid shooter, and that kind of player is immensely valuable. He has the potential to pop off for monstrous shooting games, and that upside is ideal for a team looking to win playoff games. The Charlotte Hornets haven’t had that kind of role player, with Strus a more reliable and less shot-dependent version of what Kelly Oubre Jr. has provided over the past few seasons.
Original Pick: Tyler Herro, Kentucky
The Miami Heat originally went with the offensive force of Tyler Herro, a player with inconsistent defensive impact but plenty of offensive verve. In this redraft he is already gone, and in his place the Heat take a wildly different player in Gonzaga’s Brandon Clarke.
Clarke is a hyper-efficient finisher and do-it-all big-man defender. He would make an interesting pairing with Bam Adebayo to form the Heat’s big rotation. In Memphis, he has thrived as a bench big and could do the same in Miami.
Original Pick: Romeo Langford, Indiana
The Boston Celtics whiffed big time on their original pick in 2019, taking a highly-touted high school prospect who had a bad freshman season. It didn’t work out, and Langford looks like a minimum-type player coming out of his rookie deal.
Daniel Gafford, on the other hand, has been nothing but impactful as a traditional center. He is a good rim protector and efficient finisher, and his teams just tend to play better when he is on the court. The Celtics would either have a lethal combination with Robert Williams III alongside Gafford, or been able to flip one for talent elsewhere on the roster.
Original Pick: Sekou Doumbouya, France
De’Andre Hunter’s fall ends at 15, as his defensive ability as a wing stopper finally counter-balances his injury history and latent offensive game. Seeing as how Detroit originally selected Sekou Doumbouya, who is well out of the league, they are excited to get a reliable defensive forward into the mix.
Original Pick: Chuma Okeke, Auburn
Another original pick who won’t shot up in the first round of our redraft, Chuma Okeke looks like a solid wing but hasn’t been able to put things together enough and likely won’t be in the rotation for the Orlando Magic this season. Instead, they get the third undrafted player of our draft, Caleb Martin, who has proven himself as a starter for the Miami Heat and had some mammoth games in the playoffs. He can shoot, defend and even create offense for himself, and if that carries over into next season he’ll rise even higher on the redraft board.
Original Pick: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Virginia Tech
Nickeil Alexander-Walker is one of those players who still looks like a future star, even if that ship has almost certainly sailed. He looks smooth and confident handling the ball, has a great-looking jumper, has size on defense…it just hasn’t come together yet.
In his stead, the Pelicans add a center in Naz Reid who completes their 2019 Redraft makeover. He has developed steadily each season into a stretch-5 who can hit from outside, unexpectedly get separation to finish inside, and plays reasonable defense. Reid is the fourth undrafted player to make our redraft; there will be a whopping seven players altogether.
Original Pick: Goga Bitadze, Georgia
The hard work the Indiana Pacers have put into replacing Myles Turner is tremendous, especially considering that he is still on the team. From Domantas Sabonis to Isaiah Jackson to Goga Bitadze, they have invested a lot of assets into the position. In our redraft they pivot off of the disappointing big to instead take a semi-disappointing point guard in Coby White. The former No. 7 pick has struggled to make a consistent impact, but a strong end to his fourth season might finally bring his potential to the forefront. It’s the right time to make that bet.
Original Pick: Luka Samanic, Croatia
The San Antonio Spurs have found great success drafting international players, but Luka Samanic was not a part of that success and is out of the NBA. Instead, the Spurs will take P.J. Washington here, a player many would have higher in this redraft. He is a good enough player as a small-ball 5 or big 4, but he doesn’t do anything at a very high level. Still, solid is worth a look at this point in the draft.
Original Pick: Matisse Thybulle, Washington
If either could develop a reliable 3-pointer, both the original pick of the Philadelphia 76ers and their new pick here would both go much higher. Rui Hachimura appears to be a floor-raising volume scorer, except he showed on the Lakers that perhaps he can thrive as a role player on the right team. The Sixers will hope they can provide that system here, developing Hachimura as a bench player behind Joel Embiid and Tobias Harris.
Original Pick: Brandon Clarke, Gonzaga
The Memphis Grizzlies love their original pick of Brandon Clarke here, but in our redraft he is long gone. In his stead the Grizzlies slide up the positional spectrum to take one of this draft’s best backcourt defenders in Terance Mann. If his shot steadies out at league average or better he could be a reasonable starter; as it is he is a crucial rotation piece on a contender.
Original Pick: Grant Williams, Tennessee
The Boston Celtics whiffed on their first pick in the 2019 draft but nailed their second, and they will be quite foolish if they let Grant Williams walk in free agency this summer. This time around, with a big man already in tow, they go after a high-upside wing in Talen Horton-Tucker. The potential is still more than the production with Tucker, but he is young and has shown flashes of becoming a defensive wing with an insane wingspan who can create offense on the other end. It’s more likely than not that ideal picture never comes together, but the possibility keeps him in the first round since the floor is still useful.
Original Pick: Darius Bazley
The Oklahoma City Thunder love their long athletes and took a shot on Darius Bazley that hasn’t born much fruit. Instead they go for a true wild card in Kevin Porter Jr. He is insanely talented and can score in bunches (he ranks eighth in scoring average in this draft class), but he has also racked up numerous off-court issues and his shot selection and defense are all over the place. Could a better infrastructure in OKC help unlock his best? It’s possible, and it’s why he goes here in our redraft.
Original Pick: Ty Jerome, Virginia
Ty Jerome was coming off of a national championship and looked like a solid backup point guard; he might still be that, but he’s barely clinging to the league. Instead, the Phoenix Suns add another wing in Jalen McDaniels to try and develop along the Mikal Bridges plan. McDaniels has been a good defender, but it’s a question of whether he can become more than a so-so shooter to stay on the court.
Original Pick: Nassir Little, North Carolina
The Cleveland Cavaliers originally made three first-round picks in 2019, the most of any team, and they have three players land in the first round of our redraft – but not the same three. Instead, the undrafted Dean Wade makes his appearance. He is an underrated defender and decent shooter who would fit into any rotation. The Portland Trail Blazers swap him in for Nassir Little, who is honestly a similar player and would likely go in the early second this time around.
Original Pick: Dylan Windler, Belmont
Dylan Windler has seen his career ravaged by injuries and hopes to finally get healthy and get onto the court next season. In his place, however, the Cavaliers take a player in Nickeil Alexander-Walker who looks to be settling into a role as an impact wing defensively, phasing out his on-ball scoring reps. The Cavs would love such a player to allow them to move on from Isaac Okoro.
Original Pick: Mfiondu Kabengele, Florida St
The LA Clippers absolutely blew this pick, which isn’t super damaging late in the first but for a team as expensive as they are, finding inexpensive talent would have been nice. Instead, they take a swing on Matisse Thybulle, who is a truly special defensive talent and a cripplingly bad offensive player. Can the Clippers find a way to unlock that balance?
Original Pick: Jordan Poole, Michigan
For all of the split opinions on Jordan Poole, there is no question that he will be well gone in a redraft. Instead, the Warriors get to take a swing at Bol Bol, one of the most unique players in the league as something of a wing with a center’s height. He had a great season with the Orlando Magic, but even after his fourth year is still somewhat raw.
Original Pick: Keldon Johnson, Kentucky
John Konchar has settled in as a solid rotation wing for the Memphis Grizzlies, a capable shooter and defender with very little offensive juice. That’s just fine at this point in the draft, and the San Antonio Spurs take him here in place of Keldon Johnson, who leaped up into the Top 10.
Original Pick: Kevin Porter Jr., USC
After taking Tyler Herro and Nickeil Alexander-Walker in this redraft, the Cleveland Cavaliers take one more perimeter player in Terence Davis. He is a solid 3-and-D option that the current Cavaliers would love to have. NAW and Davis would give them real defensive options to build around Herro and Collin Sexton with. Davis saw big minutes in the playoffs for the Sacramento Kings and will be a potential value free agent this summer.
Just Missed the List
The players who just missed out on the first round of our 2019 Redraft primarily fall into two distinct groups. The first one are those players who still have enough potential that, if things break right, they could become reliable NBA players (or even more). The other group of players have proven themselves in a minor role; they aren’t future stars, but they are worth having on a roster.
From the first group, Jaxson Hayes has plenty of size and athleticism but wasn’t able to break through into a starting role with the New Orleans Pelicans. Cam Reddish is wildly inconsistent, but if he can just turn those flashes into something consistent he could be a longtime starter. Darius Bazley needs a consistent shot, Goga Bitadze has to become a better rim protector, Chuma Okeke needs a better path to an offensive role and Dylan Windler needs to stay healthy.
In the other group, Nassir Little has settled in as a backup forward for Portland. Garrison Mathews was undrafted but has a role in the league as a 3-and-D shooting guard. Cody Martin has carved out a role as a lesser version of his brother, while Oshae Brissett is a high-energy backup 4. Bruno Fernando survives as a third center, while Jaylen Nowell and Ty Jerome should get roster spots this season.