Dort Rises, Bazley Falls in Bleacher Report’s 2019 NBA Re-Draft
There won't be any revisionist history in the NBA, but a quick 'what if?' is always fun.
Bleacher Report recently looked back at the 2019 NBA Draft, and rounded out a re-draft based on the upcoming third-year's performances so far.
Pelicans forward Zion Williamson, Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and Knicks guard RJ Barrett all stayed in their respective spots in the re-draft, being drafted the first three overall picks.
Matisse Thybulle was next up making a huge leap from his original spot at No. 20 all the way to fourth overall.
Lakers forward Talen Horton-Tucker, who was originally picked 46th overall in the second round, also made a jump up to No. 8 in the re-draft.
Oklahoma City’s first played off the board was Luguentz Dort, who miraculously went undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft. In Bleacher Report’s re-draft, he rounded out the lottery at No. 14, going to the Boston Celtics.
Dort might have had some efficiency issues thus far, but his defense is enough to land himself among the top players in the draft.
With the No. 23 overall selection, Bleacher Report had OKC taking shooting guard Terence Davis. Davis was traded from Toronto in the 2020-21 season, and averaged 11.1 points on 37 percent shooting for Sacramento.
Surprisingly, 23rd overall pick Darius Bazley failed to make the first round of Bleacher Reports re-draft.
Defensively, Bazley has begun to hold his own in the NBA. While his shooting hasn’t come around yet, his length allows him to contribute in other ways for the Thunder.
While the 21-year-old has had a rough go in the league thus far, he’s certainly worthy of a late first round selection off potential alone.
Want to join the discussion? Click here to become a member of the message board community today!
Like SI Thunder on Facebook and follow us on Twitter to stay up to date on all the latest Thunder news. You can also meet the team behind the coverage.
