Come on Lucky 13!

One thing to keep in mind is that each GM that was drafting at 13 came to their decision using different processes of elimination.

Kobe Bryant and Sebastian Telfair were both fresh out of high school. Some GMs would see this as a no-win proposition, since they may only enter their prime for the next GM, when the rest of the team’s roster was geared towards competing in the present.

Derek Anderson had either issues with his knee, or had sat out a significant portion of the season with a knee injury. I vaguely remember that he was in street clothes during the 1996 Kentucky Wildcats title run. The Raptors doctor’s err slightly towards conservatism when it comes to clearing players that are draft eligible. Supposedly, this was what caused them to pass twice on Granger. And I believe that the doctor’s aren’t going to “out out on a limb” as it were for a higher upside player. For them the only attention they could ever receive is negative, from signing off on a player who later turns into a chronic injury risk.

Keon Clark was awfully skinny when he was with the Raptors, which means he must’ve been rather slight when he was drafted out of UNLV. Some teams would refuse to consider a bigman who didn’t have the potential to add at least some bulk.

The gameplan that the GM has going into the draft can have some impact on the risk involved, and thus past picks by different GMs at the same spot don’t tell us all that much. Past picks by a GM who is consistently drafting in the same range would be telling, but even then I would think that the relative strength of the draft class would play a much larger role.

Were I BC, drafting at 13 is when I decide that a significant amount of risk is unavoidable. I decide upon one or two dealbreakers, ie lack of hustle or redflags related to making very poor off-the-court decisions (think Zach Randolph). After that I go for the player who would, if everything went according to a conservative optimistic view, has the best chance to address a team need at a position that is hard to stock in free agency. I will clarify that betting on a project to hit his complete upside is wishful thinking that I’d rather avoid. Non of those late to basketball types please. A young pg may be a risk worth taking, especially if they have a chance at handling the scoring load at some point. We may have to pass on the tried and true senior who is hit his ceiling as a rotation worthy roleplayer. We need to give our fans a chance at a bright future, and that means using the draft to get players that could potentially be difference makers.