The 2013 NBA Draft class is widely regarded as one of the worst of all time, and if that isn't the case, it's certainly the worst from the last decade, as it is filled with busts and disappointments. In fact, Anthony Bennett – the number one overall pick – is considered by many to be the biggest draft bust of all time. On the other hand, Giannis Antetokounmpo came from this class, and as the 15th overall pick, he is one of the biggest draft day steals ever. Add this all up and it would make for an interesting draft do-over, so ClutchPoints decided to redraft the 2013 NBA Draft class. That redraft is below, and the overall poor quality of the draft makes for both a bunch of changes and some interesting names in the top 30.
30. Troy Daniels: Phoenix Suns
Actual pick: Undrafted
Original number 30 pick: Nemanja Nedovic
It goes to show you how poor the 2013 NBA Draft class was when Troy Daniels makes the cut as a first-rounder in a redraft. Daniels only averaged 6.6 points per game during his NBA career, but he makes it as one of the 30 best players from this class because he could shoot. Daniels shot 39.5 percent from deep during his career, as his role was always as a spot-up shooter. The sharpshooter was originally undrafted out of VCU, but his best years actually came with the Phoenix Suns, the team he ended up with in this redraft.
29. Ben McLemore: Oklahoma City Thunder
Actual pick: 7th
Original number 29 pick: Archie Goodwin
Ben McLemore was a bust, but this class was poor enough that he is still taken with a first-round pick in this redraft. McLemore was projected to be a dynamic scorer who could get buckets at an All-Star level, but he ended up only averaging double-digit points per game three times in his nine-year career. Scoring was still McLemore's calling card, as he didn't do much else at even an average level, so it's not surprising that he didn't pan out when you consider that he only averaged nine points per game during his time in the league. McLemore was one of many Sacramento Kings' draft busts, and he ended up spending five of his seasons with them.
28. James Ennis III: San Antonio Spurs
Actual pick: 50th
Original number 28 pick: Livio Jean-Charles
James Ennis III was always under the radar, but he did stick around in the league for a while. He was rarely a guy who you planned to be in your rotation, but he was a guy who would inevitably get minutes when key players missed time. Ennis played for ten different teams in his career, and his ability to adapt and play any role with whatever squad he found himself on was his best feature.
27. Trey Burke: Denver Nuggets
Actual pick: 9th
Original number 27 pick: Rudy Gobert
Coming off of winning the National College Player of the Year award and leading Michigan to the National Championship game, Trey Burke was arguably the most hyped-up player coming out of college in 2013. Still, his NBA future was uncertain due to his undersized frame and his suspect playmaking ability. The Utah Jazz thought he was worth the number nine pick, though, because of his advanced scoring ability.
Despite the fact he is just six-feet tall, Burke was able to score at an NBA level throughout his career, but he only started 19 total games after his second season in the league because of those aforementioned concerns. Burke was a solid spark plug scorer off the bench, though, and he averaged 9.6 points per game in his career. His scoring always came in an inefficient fashion, though, which was another product of being undersized. The original number 27 pick was Rudy Gobert, and that was one of the few selections that a team actually got right in this draft.
26. Dewayne Dedmon: Minnesota Timberwolves
Actual pick: Undrafted
Original number 26 pick: Andre Roberson
Dewayne Dedmon is yet another player from the 2013 NBA Draft class who stuck around in the league for a decent while but was never a focal point for an organization. Dedmon was a backup center all the way until last season in the league, and a ten-year career is not a bad thing for an NBA player. Dedmon came into the league with typical big-man traits; he could protect the rim, get rebounds, and score inside. He did develop throughout his career, too, as he added a three-point shot to his arsenal in his later seasons.
25. Daniel Theis: Los Angeles Clippers
Actual pick: Undrafted
Original number 25 pick: Reggie Bullock
Daniel Theis is one of the few players from the 2013 NBA Draft class who is still in a teams' rotation, and that lands him as the 25th pick in this redraft. Theis' career in the NBA didn't start right away, though, and that is why he isn't drafted higher in this redraft. After spending a handful of years overseas, Theis has averaged 7.5 points per game in the NBA. He is another player who originally went undrafted in 2013, which tells us that this was both a deep undrafted class, but also proves that the players selected were underwhelming in hindsight.
24. Alex Len: New York Knicks
Actual pick: 5th
Original number 24 pick: Tim Hardaway Jr.
Alex Len did not live up to the expectations that come with being the fifth overall pick in the draft, but he has managed to stick around in the league for a while now. He only has one season averaging double-digit scoring figures, and he has been an end of the bench player for most of his career since busting out with the Suns.
23. Gorgui Dieng: Indiana Pacers
Actual pick: 21st
Original number 23 pick: Solomon Hill
There is a certain type of player that the 2013 NBA Draft class was full of, and that is below-average centers. Like Dedmon, Theis, and Len, Gorgui Dieng was a backup center that would sometimes find his way into a rotation and sometimes wouldn't. Dieng had some solid years with the Minnesota Timberwolves, but he was never much more than a solid rebounder. Despite playing the center position for the majority of his career, his best season actually came at the power forward position when he played in all 82 games in the 2016-17 campaign alongside Karl-Anthony Towns.
22. Andre Roberson: Brooklyn Nets
Actual pick: 26th
Original number 22 pick: Mason Plumlee
Andre Roberson was a center in college for the Colorado Buffaloes, but he played on the wing in the pros. This worked perfectly for the Oklahoma City Thunder, as he was surrounded by a bunch of scorers, so his defense was highly valuable. Roberson was one of the best wing defenders in the league for a short while, but his offensive game never came close to matching his defense. Injuries sapped his athleticism and weakened his defense, and Roberson didn't play much after the 2017-18 season, although he did start 269 games in his first five seasons.
21. Matthew Dellavedova: Utah Jazz
Actual pick: Undrafted
Original number 21 pick: Gorgui Dieng
Matthew Dellavedova was the ultimate pest on defense, and it helped the Cleveland Cavaliers win a championship. Delly was not the most talented player, but he worked hard and got under his opponents' skin, making him the perfect player to deploy against Stephen Curry. Dellavedova was never anything more than an irritant, as he never averaged more than 7.6 points per game in a season. He is redrafted higher than a number of his 2013 NBA Draft peers, though, because he was an important piece on the Cleveland Cavaliers 2016 championship team.
20. Allen Crabbe: Chicago Bulls
Actual pick: 31st
Original number 20 pick: Tony Snell
Allen Crabbe was averaging over 13 points per game by his age 25 season, and he seemed destined to become one of the best players from the 2013 NBA Draft class. His fall-off was rapid, though, and Crabbe was out of the league just two years after his career year in 2017-18. His peak and his desirable archetype still lands him in the top 20 of the 2013 NBA redraft.
19. Tony Snell: Cleveland Cavaliers
Actual pick: 20th
Original number 19 pick: Sergey Karasev
Tony Snell is notorious for being the player who didn't register a single statistic in an entire game, but he actually was a decent role player during his career. While putting up zero points, assists, rebounds, blocks, and steals is a terrible game, Snell's role was never to stuff the stat sheet. Instead, he was a low-usage player who played solid defense and hit open shots out of catch-and-shoot opportunities. He did just that, and his shooting touch was demonstrated by the fact that he didn't miss a single free throw for the three straight seasons to end his career.
18. Mike Muscala: Atlanta Hawks
Actual pick: 44th
Original number 18 pick: Shane Larkin
Mike Muscala may not be a great player, but he has had a long NBA career because he fits the mold of a modern NBA big man. Muscala can shoot threes at a high rate, and that is a desirable trait to have in this day and age for a center. Muscala spent a good chunk of his career with the Atlanta Hawks, but the team originally got him with the 44th overall pick. This time around, Atlanta has to go into the first round to secure him in the 2013 NBA redraft. In real life, Muscala was just traded from the Washington Wizards to the Detroit Pistons.
17. Michael Carter-Williams: Atlanta Hawks
Actual pick: 11th
Original number 17 pick: Dennis Schroder
The 2013 NBA Draft class looked just as bad after its first year as it does over a decade later. Michael Carter-Williams got off to a hot start and won the Rookie of the Year Award, but it was considered one of the worst Rookie of the Year seasons ever. Carter-Williams put up empty stats on a bad Philadelphia 76ers team that won only 19 games. The 76ers realized that despite winning the award, the point guard out of Syracuse was never going to be a star, and they traded him in only his second season.
While he didn't do much after his rookie season, his first year in the league was memorable. Carter-Williams had 22 points, 12 assists, seven rebounds, and nine steals in his NBA debut. Unfortunately, the near quadruple double in his first game ended up being the best game of his career. Still, Carter-Williams' name will forever be in elite company thanks to the fact that he is a Rookie of the Year winner
16. Nerlens Noel: Boston Celtics
Actual pick: 6th
Original number 16 pick: Lucas Nogueira
Nerlens Noel was a contender to go first overall in the 2013 NBA Draft before he tore his ACL in college, but he was still enough of an athletic specimen that the Philadelphia 76ers took him sixth overall. Noel's blocking ability has kept him in the league, but his career was doomed from the start considering the way that the Sixers handled their “trust the process” rebuild. Noel was one of multiple centers that the team drafted high, and it created a log jam at the position that he wasn't able to overcome.
15. Seth Curry: Milwaukee Bucks
Actual pick: Undrafted
Original number 15 pick: Giannis Antetokounmpo
The Milwaukee Bucks had one of the greatest draft selections ever when they took Giannis Antetokounmpo outside of the lottery in 2013, but they don't end up getting as lucky in this redraft. Stephen Curry is one of the greatest basketball players ever, and while his brother Seth never reached that level, he has still had a good career in the NBA. The younger brother did get the Curry shooting gene, as he is a 43.3 percent shooter from deep. Curry doesn't offer much besides shooting, though, and his lack of defense and playmaking have meant he isn't always a guy in NBA rotations.
14. Reggie Bullock: Utah Jazz
Actual pick: 25th
Original number 14 pick: Shabazz Muhammed
Shabazz Muhammed was taken one pick before Antetokounmpo in the 2013 NBA Draft, but in this redraft, we take Reggie Bullock with the last selection in the lottery. Bullock is a nice three-and-D player, with more of an emphasis on the defensive side. He was an important piece to put around Luka Doncic, and now he was one of many offseason acquisitions for the Houston Rockets last year.
13. Cody Zeller: Dallas Mavericks
Actual pick: 4th
Original number 13 pick: Kelly Olynyk
In a draft class filled with defensive-minded backup centers, Cody Zeller is one center who has had more of an offensive focus during his career, and he has also spent a decent amount of that time as a starter and not as a backup. Zeller has averaged 8.1 points per game during his career, and he has good footwork in the post. He has played well enough to be redrafted in the lottery, but he could still be labeled as a bust as he did not play as good as a fourth-overall pick is expected to.
12. Robert Covington: Oklahoma City Thunder
Actual pick: Undrafted
Original number 12 pick: Steven Adams
In this 2013 NBA redraft, six players who were originally undrafted find their way into the first round, with Robert Covington being the best of the bunch. While he has regressed in recent seasons, Covington was once a great defensive stopper with the length and athleticism to guard opposing teams' best players.
11. Kelly Olynyk: Philadelphia 76ers
Actual pick: 13th
Original number 11 pick: Michael Carter-Williams
If you thought the 2013 NBA Draft class was done when it came to backup centers, you would be wrong. The Philadelphia 76ers don't get the Rookie of the Year like they originally did in 2013, but they actually do get a better player. Kelly Olynyk has averaged 10.2 points per game for his career by being one of the best shooting big men in the NBA, and he is still going strong, as he currently plays for the Utah Jazz.
10. Mason Plumlee: Portland Trail Blazers
Actual pick: 22nd
Original number 10 pick: CJ McCollum
Mason Plumlee is just an average NBA center, but his highlight reel would make you think he is much more than that. Plumlee's highlights consist of impressive passes, rare dribbling skills, and some thunderous reverse dunks. The problem is he's never done these things consistently enough for a franchise to make him their long-term center. Still, he has started more games than he hasn't, and he provides a unique look to deploy against opposing centers.
9. Otto Porter Jr.: Minnesota Timberwolves
Actual pick: 3rd
Original number 9 pick: Trey Burke
Otto Porter Jr. is a role player, and you definitely want more than that from someone who was drafted in the top three. On the other hand, he is also a player that any team in the league would have loved to have had on their roster during his prime. Porter has good positional size and can guard wings, but most importantly, he is a good three-point shooter.
8. Tim Hardaway Jr.: Detroit Pistons
Actual pick: 24th
Original number 8 pick: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
Tim Hardaway Jr. has outplayed his draft slot. He was originally taken 24th overall, but he has provided tons of scoring since entering the league, as he can hit threes and also create his own shot off the dribble. He has scored 14.2 points per game over the course of his career, and he is still going strong, as he is currently scoring 18.1 points per game this season, which is tied for the highest average of any season during his time in the NBA.
7. Dennis Schroder: Sacramento Kings
Actual pick: 17th
Original number 7 pick: Ben McLemore
Dennis Schroder has always been underrated. Teams have been hesitant to hand him the keys as their lead guard, but the former number 17 overall pick has always produced. Schroder is a 14 point per game scorer over the course of his career, and he is still a starting-caliber player with the Toronto Raptors.
6. Steven Adams: New Orleans Pelicans
Actual pick: 12th
Original number 6 pick: Nerlens Noel
Steven Adams will forever be an Oklahoma City Thunder legend, but he ended up with the New Orleans Pelicans – the team he played the 2020-21 season with – in this redraft. Adams is somewhat limited as a player, but he is massive and is one of the best rebounders in the league. Adams sets mean screens, and although he is a friendly giant, he is not the type of player you want to mess with.
5. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope: Phoenix Suns
Actual pick: 8th
Original number 5 pick: Alex Len
Kentavious Caldewll-Pope is a solid player that every team in the NBA would love to have. He just helped the Denver Nuggets – and the Los Angeles Lakers earlier in his career – win a championship as a three-and-D, high-end role player. However, Caldwell-Pope is just that: a role player. Therefore, it is somewhat baffling to see him drafted in the top-five of the 2013 NBA redraft, as top five picks in this exercise are usually reserved for perennial All-Stars.
KCP may not be a star, but he is a starter everywhere he goes, and any team would love to have that. Caldwell-Pope also hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, so it is very possible he can surpass the fourth player taken in this redraft if we were to redo this exercise in the near future.
4. Victor Oladipo: Charlotte Bobcats
Actual pick: 2nd
Original number 4 pick: Cody Zeller
Victor Oladipo was originally drafted second overall, and in the 2013 NBA redraft, he still goes in the top five. This may come as a surprise to some, considering how much injuries have slowed down his career. Oladipo was a stud when he was healthy, though, and he produced plenty of productive seasons before injuries caught up to him. Oladipo made two All-Star games and was one of the best defenders in the NBA in his prime, thanks to his freakish athleticism, and he even averaged 23.1 points per game in the 2017-18 season with the Indiana Pacers. Injuries got the best of him in his second All-Star season, and the guard hasn't done much since then, but his peak was one of the best in this draft class.
3. CJ McCollum: Washington Wizards
Actual pick: 10th
Original number 3 pick: Otto Porter Jr.
There is a big step up from the top three players from the 2013 NBA Draft and the rest of the players from that class. C.J. McCollum has been a legitimate co-star during the majority of his career, with most of his success being when he was Damian Lillard's right-hand man with the Portland Trail Blazers. He went 10th overall, but he would have been solid as the third overall pick. McCollum has averaged 19.4 points per game for his career, and he has a great mid-range shot.
Even so, it can be considered a disappointment that someone of McCollum's pedigree would go third overall in a redraft. McCollum has had a good career, but he has never been named to an All-Star team, with his best accolade being the Most Improved Player Award he won in 2016. Even though he was never honored as an All-Star, McCollum is one of the best players in NBA history to not have that award on his resume. The Washington Wizards drafted John Wall and Bradley Beal in 2010 and 2012, respectively, and adding McCollum to that backcourt would have produced a very dangerous trio.
2. Rudy Gobert: Orlando Magic
Actual pick: 27th
Original number 2 pick: Victor Oladipo
While the 2013 NBA Draft didn't provide much, it did provide a couple of elite defensive players, as Rudy Gobert and Antetokounmpo are still two of the best defenders in the NBA. While Gobert isn't the overall player that Antetokounmpo is, he has been the better defender. In fact, he is already one of the best defensive players ever, thanks in part to his elite shot-blocking. Gobert is a three-time Defensive Player of the Year winner, and he has been an All-Defensive First Team player six times.
You'd like to get more offensively from a guy who is going second overall in a redraft, but Gobert truly is one of the best shot blockers and overall players on the less glamorous side of the ball in NBA history. Therefore, the second overall pick is more than a warranted spot for Gobert to go in the 2013 NBA redraft.
1. Giannis Antetokounmpo: Cleveland Cavaliers
Actual pick: 15th
Original number 1 pick: Anthony Bennett
In every redraft of every NBA Draft this century, there may be no change that is more significant than the one from the 2013 class. The Cleveland Cavaliers originally selected Anthony Bennett, and the UNLV product went down as arguably the greatest bust in the history of the sport. Bennett was so bad that he didn't even make the first round of this redraft. Despite being a number one overall pick, Bennett only started four total games in his career. None of these games came with Cleveland, and Bennett only averaged 4.4 points over the length of his four-year career.
Antetokounmpo, on the other hand, would be an easy choice to make in a draft do-over. Antetokounmpo came into the league skinny and raw, but he turned into something special, as the two-time MVP has a legitimate case as the best player in the NBA. He is a seven-time All-Star, a Finals MVP, and a Defensive Player of the Year winner. At nearly 7-feet tall, Antetokounmpo's blend of size and athleticism has never been matched in the NBA, and he is primed to be the face of the league for years to come.
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