Redrafting the 2021 NBA Draft: Rockets pick Evan Mobley at No. 2, Jalen Green slips to Magic at No. 5
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A year ago, the 2021 NBA Draft was held, but here's what it would look like with the benefit of hindsight
On this exact day one full trip around the sun ago – July 29, 2021 – the NBA got an influx of talent that could reshape the future of the league with a star-studded 2021 NBA Draft class officially getting drafted into the association. That's just enough time for us to start making some early assessments on the picks. So did the players go in the right order? Too high, too low? Should teams have gone different directions in the top 10, in the late lottery, into the 20s?
The answer to most of those questions are about what you'd expect when you've got 20/20 hindsight on your side. By my calculation, most of the top five – including No. 1 – went in the way I'd still pick things. Cade Cunningham went No. 1 to Detroit and still goes No. 1 in a redraft. Evan Mobley, Jalen Green and Scottie Barnes all still land in the top five as well.
But there are plenty of other notable changes in the top 10 – including Franz Wagner into the top four (!), Herbert Jones at No. 8 and Quentin Grimes at No. 9 – that I'd change now if we were redrafting today. And ditto for the remainder of the first round.
