1984 Lottery Re-Draft

[Craig]

Doing a re-draft of the 1984 lottery with these rookie contracts coming to an end. Obviously there is still time in the future for things to change, but thought this was a decent point in time to look back.

1. Hakeem Olajuwon (Actually Picked: 1 / Actual Pick at 1: Hakeem Olajuwon)
Just like at the time of the original draft, a pretty tough choice between Hakeem and MJ at #1. Ultimately decided that being a perennial DPOY candidate to go with the very good offensive output gave Hakeem the slight edge for #1 in this re-draft; however, if he doesn’t get back to the 45%+ shooting that he had early in his career, he may move down with MJ nipping at his heels. Other than that, though, Hakeem brings everything you’d want from a franchise player.

2. Michael Jordan (Actually Picked: 2 / Actual Pick at 2: Michael Jordan)
As noted, just barely misses out on #1 again. If MJ shows growth in shooting efficiency and Hakeem does not, then he could claim the #1 spot easily. He looks to join a select few others around the league as a deadly 3pt shooter, as he looks to have greatly improved that aspect of his game. He’s also among the league leaders in steals each year and takes reasonably good care of the ball, so there’s really nothing not to love here.

3. Charles Barkley (Actually Picked: 3 / Actual Pick at 3: Charles Barkley)
Charles has established himself to be widely considered the best natural PF in the league at age 24. He’s only at #3 here because of how crazy good #1 and #2 are. He’s one of the best rebounders in the game and brings dynamic playmaking at the defensive end with a career 3.6 stocks per game. Scoring efficiency has been his only real “weakness” to this point, but he may be showing strides there as well.

4. Melvin Turpin (Actually Picked: 8 / Actual Pick at 4: John Stockton)
Tough decisions at 4-7 here, as each player has their own strengths they bring. Ultimately went with Turpin and his defensive/rebounding prowess, where he seems to have taken a big leap. He’s also not a negative on the offensive end, which is nice as well. One could definitely argue Bowie here for the scoring but I personally value the rim protection over the extra few points.

5. Sam Bowie (Actually Picked: 7 / Actual Pick at 5: Sam Perkins)
Splitting hairs with Turpin here, but Bowie’s lack of rim protection bumps him down one slot for me. He’s a phenomenal rebounder and a very solid scorer in the post as well, putting up 17/10 for his career on decent enough shooting. Seems to still have room to grow so we shall see if he improves any more than he already has.

6. John Stockton (Actually Picked: 4 / Actual Pick at 6: Kevin Willis)
Stockton has established himself as one of the league’s top PG’s, earning All League 3rd Team the last 2 seasons. He’s a very good passer and a ball-hawk on defense at 2.8spg for his career. He leaves quite a bit to be desired in guarding his man, but the roster around him should be able to handle it pretty well. He looks to have improved his outside shot, so offensive production could also see an uptick this year.

7. Leon Wood (Actually Picked: 9 / Actual Pick at 7: Sam Bowie)
Wood has also established himself as one of the better playmakers in the league, and has recently become more of a scoring threat, shooting over 38% from three on 4+ attempts per game last season. He’s about average for his position in limiting turnovers, which becomes easier to handle when adding the scoring/playmaking, and he is not a liability on the defensive end, making him an upper tier starting PG.

8. Otis Thorpe (Actually Picked: 11 / Actual Pick at 8: Melvin Turpin)
Bit of a projection pick here, as Thorpe hasn’t played a ton of minutes the last few years, but he looks to have earned a starting spot in LA this season. He should show very good shot blocking ability and be a plus rebounder while displaying enough scoring instincts to not be a liability on that end.

9. Ben Coleman (Actually Picked: 29 / Actual Pick at 9: Leon Wood)
Coleman was a late pick due to being a one-way player, but he plays that one end (defense) very well. He’s a very good rebounder, great shot blocker, and while he bring little to no scoring ability, he doesn’t take shots away from others and does not turn the ball over.

10. Danny Young (Actually Picked: 30 / Actual Pick at 10: Alvin Robertson)
Young makes a big jump as a 2nd rounder due to his shooting ability and defense. He has been the starting PG on a very good Knicks team for a few years and offers scoring from outside where not a ton of other players do so. He does not offer much in the way of playmaking, and his rebounding is a liability even at PG, but the Knicks have a roster around him that makes up for these things, making him a solid fit.

11. Tim McCormick (Actually Picked: 28 / Actual Pick at 11: Otis Thorpe)
McCormick is a very solid big who is sort of a jack of all trades, master of none. Solid scorer, solid rebounder, solid defender. Looks to have found a role as a 3rd big with Detroit this season and may even be in consideration for 6th Man of the Year.

12. Michael Cage (Actually Picked: 13 / Actual Pick at 12: Greg Wiltjer)
Cage is a similar player to McCormick, but plays better interior defense while being slightly less dynamic on offense. He can definitely be a solid 4th/5th starter or 6th man on a good team.

13. Sam Perkins (Actually Picked: 5 / Actual Pick at 13: Michael Cage)
Perkins flashes a good amount of skill but has yet to show the production to match. He’s solid on both ends of the floor and may still have some room to grow.

Just missed the cut: Kevin Willis, Jerome Kersey

[lukeyrid13]

So insane that Barkley was and still is the 3rd best player in the draft. 84 was clearly the best draft class to date in 2.0

Also, I should have taken Leon Wood at 6 in hindsight. He would be filthy next to MJ.

[the goat]

Stockton's got the brand name but Leon has really outshined him so far

Good stuff

[offtheheezy]

Stockton is the most confusing player, his ratings are basically average but his output and awards are quite high. In an honest redraft, not sure if I'd take him over Wood quite honestly. I'd probably take Wood potentially over Bowie too, but agree with the Turpin bump up.

[dd10snoop28]

Ya, really good draft. I would put both Young and Perkins higher on the list.

[Craig]

Stockton is the most confusing player, his ratings are basically average but his output and awards are quite high. In an honest redraft, not sure if I'd take him over Wood quite honestly. I'd probably take Wood potentially over Bowie too, but agree with the Turpin bump up.

I moved 4-7 around a lot before finalizing so I wouldn't argue with them being in any order. Ultimately decided that the high assist numbers for Wood/Stockton are nice, but what else are they really doing at a high level? If they up their scoring this year then maybe it changes.

[offtheheezy]

Stockton is the most confusing player, his ratings are basically average but his output and awards are quite high. In an honest redraft, not sure if I'd take him over Wood quite honestly. I'd probably take Wood potentially over Bowie too, but agree with the Turpin bump up.

I moved 4-7 around a lot before finalizing so I wouldn't argue with them being in any order. Ultimately decided that the high assist numbers for Wood/Stockton are nice, but what else are they really doing at a high level? If they up their scoring this year then maybe it changes.

Ah yeah, I meant like my order would be Turpin, Bowie/Wood, Stockton .

But for trade value sake, Stockton -> Hakeem -> Jordan -> Barkley

[Craig]

Ya, really good draft. I would put both Young and Perkins higher on the list.

Yeah I moved Perk/Cage/McCormick around a lot, so Perkins could be higher.

I think Young is pretty overrated, TBH. He's not bad by any means, but has the entire game plan going for him (Fast, Outside, #1 option) and still barely cracks 15ppg while not bringing a ton else.

[lukeyrid13]

Ya, really good draft. I would put both Young and Perkins higher on the list.

Yeah I moved Perk/Cage/McCormick around a lot, so Perkins could be higher.

I think Young is pretty overrated, TBH. He's not bad by any means, but has the entire game plan going for him (Fast, Outside, #1 option) and still barely cracks 15ppg while not bringing a ton else.

I was high on Young (not quite Roberto high) but he hasn't really improved since his rookie year. I was expecting him to be essentially Leon Wood light, 20 ppg with deadly 3 point shooting. He is still a unique piece and on a great contract but may see a drop in my top 50 trade value chart later this season

[vincent1469]

Damn I remember Blazers offering pick 6 for Alex English that year. Could have got Bowie or Wood

[Craig]

Damn I remember Blazers offering pick 6 for Alex English that year. Could have got Bowie or Wood

That sucks lol English fell off a cliff.

[lukeyrid13]

Yeah I think I offered 6 for almost all of the All stars at the time but no one was interested

[DrBradBuss]

Wiltjer? WTF!

[Oregon Ownage]

More votes!!!!

[Craig]

Man lol

Whenever this is finalized:

Kenny Smith
1) Handling
2) 3pt Shot
3) Quickness