2009 NBA Draft: 3 moves teams wish they didn't make

Toronto Raptors v Golden State Warriors
Toronto Raptors v Golden State Warriors

#2: Memphis Grizzlies

Oklahoma City Thunder v Washington Wizards
Oklahoma City Thunder v Washington Wizards

2009 NBA Draft Pick 2: Hasheem Thabeet

2009 NBA Draft Pick 3: James Harden

One of the biggest busts in NBA Draft history, the decision to pick Hasheem Thabeet over James Harden will haunt Memphis Grizzlies fans forever.

Thabeet played for four teams across his seven seasons in the NBA, only starting a total of 20 games throughout his entire career, with 13 of them taking place in his rookie season. On the 25th of February 2010, Thabeet became the highest draft pick to ever be sent down to the G-league when the Memphis Grizzlies assigned him to the Dakota Wizards. They then traded him to the Houston Rockets after two lacklustre seasons in Memphis.

To contrast Thabeet's poor stint in Memphis, James Harden became one of the main pieces in the young OKC Thunder's potential dynasty, which led them to the NBA finals in 2012. Unfortunately for OKC, they could not keep the trio of Harden, Durant and Westbrook together for long enough to win an NBA title but all three of them have gone on to win the MVP award in their careers.

If Memphis had drafted Harden, they would have secured their franchise shooting guard for years to come and potentially had a future MVP on their hands.

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