Keep in mind that this article was written on July 17th, not August 5th.
The 2008 NBA Draft was an intriguing one. It had its share of automatic stars and some guys that had to grind to get to stardom. Today, I’m going to redraft the top 3 picks of this class to different teams and give you guys some “what if” questions to think about. Without further ado, let’s jump into this!
With the 1st pick in the 2008 NBA Redraft, the Chicago Bulls select… Russell Westbrook, UCLA! Westbrook is similar to their original selection, the hometown man Derrick Rose, in that they drive to the basket with a tenacity that’s unmatched for their position. Over the course of his career so far, Westbrook has averaged 23.2 PPG, 7.1 RPG and 8.3. He’s also won an MVP, 2 All-Star Game MVPs, is a 2x scoring champion, is an 8x All-NBA and 9x All-Star. If you go over to Rose, you can see where the production starts to dip a little bit. So far in his career, he’s averaged 18.8 PPG, 3.4 RPG and 5.6 APG. Additionally, he’s won an MVP, a Rookie of the Year and is a 3x All-Star. Westbrook could’ve probably given the Bulls more consistency, as Rose was bound to be a star until his ACL injury which kept him out of the 2012-13 season. Now, if he was on the Bulls, what impact would the pick-and-roll duo of Westbrook and Joakim Noah had on the league? What if Westbrook made Noah a better player? In the playoffs, would Westbrook have been the piece that the Bulls needed to make a few big playoff pushes, maybe even a couple championships? Could Westbrook have won a championship sooner with the Bulls than the Thunder?
With the 2nd pick in the 2008 NBA Redraft, the Miami Heat select… Kevin Love, UCLA! Let’s face it, Kevin Love would’ve been a much more successful pick for the Heat than Michael Beasley. Statistics-wise, Love has averaged 18.2 PPG, 11.1 RPG, and 2.4 APG throughout his career thus far. He’s split his time in the NBA, with 6 seasons in Minnesota and 6 in Cleveland. Now, over to Beasley. He’s averaged 12.4 PPG, 4.7 RPG and 1.3 APG. After being released by the Lakers, Beasley will be making a comeback this season and sign with the Brooklyn Nets. If he was on the Heat, could have won just as many championships as Chris Bosh did with Dwyane Wade and LeBron James during the three-peat years? Could Love have been just as productive as Bosh during those seasons?
Finally, with the 3rd pick in the 2008 NBA Redraft, the Minnesota Timberwolves select… Brook Lopez, STAN! Lopez has always been a decent rotation player throughout his career. If you take a look at his 22-30 year old seasons, he’s averaged 17.7 PPG, 6 RPG, and 1.5 APG. Earlier on in his career, he was always doing the dirty work in the paint. Now, he expanded his shooting ability and has been a hidden weapon from beyond the arc. Case in point, when he started taking and make his threes, his three-point percentage was just under 34%. That number stacks up against top guards in the NBA, including Bradley Beal and Kyle Lowry. This brings up the question, what if Lopez was that one piece for the TImberwolves to get into the playoffs a few more times? Also, could Lopez and Karl-Anthony Towns have been the Twin Towers like Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson, but from 3? What if Anthony -Towns didn’t get drafted by Minnesota because of Lopez being there?
Source: basketball-reference.com