3 2020 NBA lottery teams who could’ve benefitted by drafting Tyrese Haliburton

If there was any doubt regarding Tyrese Haliburton’s generational talent, the Indiana Pacers guard seems to have answered all questions so far this season. The Pacers (12-8) are fifth in the East and lost in the In-Season Tournament final (123-109) to the LeBron James-led LA Lakers. Haliburton averages 26.9 points, 12.1 assists and 4.2 rebounds on the season.

Tyrese Haliburton was selected 12th by the Sacramento Kings in the 2020 draft. He was traded to the Pacers in February 2022 in a deal that saw Domantas Sabonis move to Sacramento. Both teams have benefitted from the trade and are now among the best teams in their conferences.

After seeing Tyrese Haliburton this season, valid questions have been raised as to why he fell to the 12th pick. As per most 2020 mock drafts, the then-Iowa State standout was predicted to go sixth to the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks had Trae Young and decided to go with Onyeka Okongwu instead.

What about the other teams? Let’s look at three teams who could’ve benefitted by drafting Tyrese Haliburton.

3 2020 NBA lottery teams who could’ve benefitted by drafting Tyrese Haliburton

3. Chicago Bulls

The Chicago Bulls had the fourth draft pick in 2020, which they used on Patrick Williams. Chicago hasn’t exactly been competitive in nearly a decade. It hasn’t made the conference finals since 2010-11, the season that saw the Bulls’ Derrick Rose become the youngest NBA MVP.

Since the 2020 draft, the Bulls have finished 11th (2020-21), sixth (2021-22, lost in the first round) and 10th (2022-23, lost in the play-in tournament).

With the team currently reeling in the 12th position with a 9-14 record, it could have used Haliburton alongside Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. What’s worse is that Haliburton wanted to be a Bull. Here’s what he said before the draft, via CBS Sports:

"I think I fit well in Chicago. Obviously, with two guards in Coby [White] and Zach [LaVine] who can score at a high level, I think I can come in right away and be somebody who can take the burden off them and facilitate.”

2. Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards have struggled to impress for almost as long as anyone can remember. On that fateful night in 2020, when the Kings drafted Haliburton 12th, the Wizards had the ninth pick. Washington decided to go with Deni Avdija instead. In three complete seasons so far, Avdija hasn’t averaged more than 9.2 ppg or shot more than 43.7%.

Avdija’s 2023-24 points average is up to 12.2, while shooting 52.6% from the floor. There has been significant improvement, but the numbers seem pale in comparison to Tyrese Haliburton.

1. Golden State Warriors

This might seem a bit controversial as the Warriors are just a season and a half removed from a title. However, knowing the Warriors and their recent track record in drafts, they definitely got it wrong in 2020. The 2019-20 Warriors finished with a league worst 15-50 record.

This was mostly because Kevin Durant had left the previous offseason and Klay Thomspon was out with an ACL tear. Things only got worse when Steph Curry broke his hand and was restricted to just five games. While all hell seemed to have broken loose, the Warriors were presented with the second pick in the 2020 NBA Draft, which they used on James Wiseman.

Golden State felt the need to pair Curry with a big man and passed on prospects such as LaMelo Ball and Tyrese Haliburton. There’s no denying that the Warriors addressed the need of the hour, but this will be one of the biggest could have beens in the team’s history.

Curry has an effective field-goal percentage of 61.2% for the season, while Haliburton is shooting 63.5%. It’s only fair to say that the two together would have broken the league.