Exploring Jeff Peterson's Draft History

Charlotte's new lead front office decision maker Jeff Peterson is only 35 years old, but he already has a eight years of experience working on the draft under his belt. Since being appointed Director of Scouting in 2016 by the Atlanta Hawks, Peterson has led on his team's draft preperation, with it being one of his major selling points as an executive. The final decision might not have been his up to this point in his career, but he had a significant influence.

Below is Atlanta's and Brooklyn's draft history during the time Peterson was in senior draft related roles at both organisations.

Overall, the draft history appears mixed, with both hits and misses. There was no crystal clear stand out theme such as a track record for analytics friendly prospects, younger/older prospects or exceedingly high basketball IQ. However, I was still able to drill down into the detail and find five important takeaways

1. Hits In The Top 5

The only times Peterson has drafted in the top six were 2019 (4th De'Andre Hunter) and 2018 (5th Trae Young). Both times he has hit on prospects, selecting an all-star and a starting level defensive wing stopper.

Further down the board you can point to missing on Cam Reddish in 2019 at 10th. However, at least Atlanta moved on early from Reddish while he had trade value during his rookie contract for a protected first and second round pick.

Although Young has turned into a franchise star, criticism can be levied at Atlanta for passing on the chance to add Luka Doncic. Instead, they traded down to select Young and picked up another 1st round pick which became Cam Reddish.

2. More Misses Than Hits

It is still too early to judge for some, but of the 21 players listed there are only four starters, with nine never making their team's rotation. It's fair to point to less than favorable drafting positions in both Atlanta and Brooklyn as important context. Arguably, Kupchak's history in the 2nd round looks more impressive at first glance. Although Peterson's track record in the late first looks strong with the selections of Cam Thomas and John Collins.

3. Lack of International Talent

Peterson's teams have never drafted an international player in the first round. That could be a total coincidence, or it could show a preference for the domestic talent pipeline. Out of his 10 second round selections, none have been spent on overseas players since Alpha Kaba in 2017.

4. Youth in Round One, Experience in Round Two

The last four first round picks in Brooklyn have all been freshman, with both Clowney and Whitehead two of the youngest in their class. In fact, Peterson's teams have only selected freshman or sophomores in the first round apart from DeAndre' Bembry in 2016 which was Peterson's first year as Director of Scouting.

Peterson's team have never selected a freshman in the second round, opting for multi-year College players instead.

5. Unafraid of Injury Risks

Both Dariq Whitehead and De'Andre Hunter carried major questions around their long term health entering the draft. Peterson's franchises appeared undeterred and selected both with mixed results. Hunter has been effective, but has struggled to stay healthy over his career whereas Whitehead missed his rookie season with the same foot injury that impacted his freshman year at Duke.