The 2019 NBA Draft took place nearly one month ago. Media outlets around the world are grading what happened despite the fact that none of the players have played a minute of NBA action. It seems silly. We, at Hoop Obsession, have made a habit of grading NBA Drafts FIVE YEARS after they happen. So let's review the 2014 NBA Draft...
The best player in the 2014 draft is still up for debate. Would you rather have Nikola Jokic or Joel Embiid? By total career production, Jokic, the 41st pick, is the leader. Embiid, of course, missed two and a half seasons (plus) but if the 2014 Draft were held today, Embiid seems likely to be the first choice. In 2014, Embiid was chosen third.
Only two of the 60 players drafted have become NBA All-Stars (Embiid, and Jokic), and seven of the 60 drafted have never played a minute in the NBA. Furthermore, there were 31 undrafted players that have played in at least one-game in the NBA.
Nikola Jokic was the 41st player taken in the 2014 NBA Draft.
To find a rough estimate of total production, we multiplied each player's (drafted and undrafted from 2014) efficiency per minute by the total number of minutes they have played. Some of the results were surprising.
Here are the top 14 in Total Production, and where they were selected. (There are 14 picks in the NBA lottery).
Player EFR x Mins. Nikola Jokic (41st) 7429 Andrew Wiggins (1st) 5927 Julius Randle (7th) 5792 Clint Capela (25th) 5464 Elfrid Payton (10th) 5070 Aaron Gordon (4th) 4878 Jusuf Nurkic (16th) 4850 Jordan Clarkson (46th) 4727 Joel Embiid (3rd) 4299 Zach Lavine (13th) 4044 Marcus Smart (6th) 3814 Jerami Grant (39th) 3809 Jabari Parker (2nd) 3780 Gary Harris (19th) 3557 Total production only tells part of the story however in a re-draft. Some players from the 2014 Draft are actually still ascending while others who were once productive, have leveled off or fallen off.
So without further ado... Here is our highly subjective Hoop Obsession reboot of the 2014 NBA Draft.
1. Joel Embiid - The "Process" played out over five years exactly as the Philadelphia 76'ers wanted it to. Embiid is the most efficient Center (per-minute) in the NBA. He is in the top half-dozen defensively as well. What seemed like a gamble in June 2014 when the Sixers nabbed Embiid with the third pick, is now a testament to modern medicine and a pioneering approach to preparing a player for the rigors of the NBA grind. Embiid sat out all of 2014-15, all of 2015-16, and he only played 31 games in 2016-17. Today, Embiid has two NBA All-Star games under his belt, and he was twice honored as Second Team All-NBA. ...The first pick in 2014 was Andrew Wiggins.
2. Nikola Jokic - One of the best draft selections from a value standpoint in ages, Jokic was taken 41st by the Denver Nuggets. Jokic was an NBA All-Star in 2018-19, and more importantly, he was named to the First Team All-NBA squad. ...Jabari Parker was pick two in 2014.
3. Jusuf Nurkic - This is where a reboot of the 2014 NBA Draft gets very difficult. We are going with Nurkic, the rugged yet skilled BIG man that presently plays for Portland. Nurkic went 16th in 2014. Nurkic, assuming he recovers fully from a broken tibia and fibula suffered in March of 2019, can be an anchor in the middle in the NBA for years to come. Nurkic started his career in the NBA with the Denver Nuggets.
4. Julius Randle - Randle appears to still be on a upward path. He improved his body and the results on the court have improved concurrently. Randle left Kentucky after his freshman season. He was the seventh selection by the Los Angeles Lakers but most recently, he was playing for the New Orleans Pelicans. He is still just 24 years old. He recently agreed to be the main man in New York for the Knicks. We expect a huge season from Randle in 2019-20. Perhaps he breaks through as the third All-Star from the 2014 Draft class. ...In 2014 the fourth pick was Aaron Gordon.
5. Aaron Gordon - Gordon, still just 23 years-old, has been a solid pro for the Orlando Magic. He has moments where he looks like a potential All-Star. Perimeter shooting is his bugaboo but Gordon raised his three-point percentage to 34% in 2018-19, the best of his five season career. ...In 2014, the fifth pick was Dante Exum who was compared to Kobe Bryant on the nationally televised Draft broadcast. YIKERS!
Aaron Gordon is still getting better as a player.
6. Zach LaVine - LaVine was derailed for eleven months (February 2017 through January 2018) with a torn ACL that required surgery. He too, appears to still be ascending as a player. LaVine was strong in February and March of 2019, scoring 42 points in a win over the Boston Celtics, and a career-high 47 against Philadelphia in a four-overtime game. ...Marcus Smart was the sixth selection in 2014.
7. Clint Capela - Capela went 25th to the Houston Rockets in the 2014 NBA Draft. In hindsight, he would be our seventh choice. Capela is a success story for player development. We watched him play at the, (then titled), D-League Showcase in Santa Cruz in January 2015. By 2017-18, Capela was runner up in voting for NBA Most Improved Player with an expanded role as a full time starter with Rockets. Capela is now among the top dozen or so Centers in the NBA.
8. Andrew Wiggins - Wiggins was the first pick in 2014 and he went on to become the Rookie of the Year. While he sits second among the class in total production, his numbers somehow seem a bit hollow. By no means are we writing off Wiggins. He is as gifted an offensive player as you can find. But we are still waiting for him to live up to his potential. ...The eighth pick in 2014 was Nik Stauskas.
9. Elfrid Payton - Admittedly, we are higher on Payton than most seem to be. Payton too is still improving. Long known as a poor free throw shooter, Payton connected on 74% FT in 2018-19, while dishing a career best 7.6 assists per game. Payton had a string of five consecutive triple-doubles this season in New Orleans. he was the tenth pick in 2014. Payton will have plenty of opportunities to shine going forward after signing with the Knicks. ...Noah Vonleh was the ninth pick in 2014.
10. Marcus Smart - Smart remains as one of the scrappiest, toughest competitors in the NBA. He was named First Team All NBA Defense in 2018-19. He signed a four-year, $52 million contract to remain with the Boston Celtics in July 2018.
11. Gary Harris - Harris battled through a tough, injury-riddled season in 2018-19. Battling hip and hamstring injuries, Harris saw a reduction in minutes played. He is a dependable guard on a top-tier team. He was originally selected 19th in 2014. ...The eleventh pick in 2014 was Doug McDermott.
12. T.J. Warren - Warren is a certified NBA scorer. He can get buckets in almost every way imaginable. In 2014, Warren was taken 14th, the last of the lottery picks. He is now property of the Indiana Pacers. ...Dario Saric was the 12th pick in 2014.
13. Dwight Powell - Powell is clearly among the group of players that is reaching new heights. Selected 45th (by Charlotte, then traded to Cleveland, and later Boston), an argument can be made that the Powell pick was one of the best of the Draft. Powell established career bests with Dallas in points per game, minutes per game, and games started in 2018-19.
14. Kyle Anderson - Anderson was selected 30th in 2014. He may be in the group that has peaked or leveled off already. Anderson suffered through a right shoulder injury that limited his season to just 40 games with Memphis in 2018-19.
15. Jordan Clarkson - Clarkson was taken with the 46th pick overall in 2014. Clearly his selection was a good value. Clarkson was First Team All-Rookie in 2014-15. Clarkson scored a career-high 42 points last season for Cleveland in a triple overtime loss to Brooklyn (Feb. 13, 2019). ...Adreian Payne was the 15th pick in 2014.
Selections beyond the top-15 in our reboot would be: 16 - Noah Vonleh, 17 - Bogdan Bogdanovic (27th in 2014), 18. Dario Saric, 19. Jerami Grant (39th in 2014), 20. Rodney Hood (23rd in 2014), 21. Spencer Dinwiddie (38th in 2014), 22. Jabari Parker, 23. Joe Harris (33rd in 2014), 24. Shabazz Napier (24th in 2014), 25. Maxi Kleber (undrafted), 26. Tim Frazier (undrafted), 27. Tyler Johnson (undrafted), 28. Bruno Caboclo (20th in 2014), 29. Torrey Craig (undrafted), 30. Jordan McRae (58th in 2014).
In case you are wondering, we would call the Adreian Payne pick at number 15, the worst pick in the 2014 Draft.
