NBA Draft 2019: 5 Biggest Winners

The NBA Draft used to be an occasion for the basement teams in the league to consolidate their resources and plan their rebuild up until last year. With the changed lottery odds for 2019, however, there were a couple of upheavals, and the #1 overall pick went to the New Orleans Pelicans, who had only the 8th best odds of getting it.

Also rising up the ranks were the Los Angeles Lakers, whose 11th place finish in the lottery sweepstakes were negated by them bagging the #4 overall pick. They used this asset to get verbal confirmation for the Anthony Davis trade. The Lakers, in turn, dealt him to Atlanta in exchange for cap space and assets this upcoming season.

Draft day upheavals aside, however, this was a memorable day for quite a few of the NBA brass and players. Lets take a look at the 5 biggest winners from the draft:

#1 Zion Williamson

First overall picks usually land in terrible situations as rookies. The organisations they join are dumpster fires at the moment and few have scope or the cap space to improve their team via free agency. Even Shaquille O'Neal, who was posterizing entire defenses and bringing backboards down left, right and center in addition to making the All Star game as a rookie, was unable to make the playoffs in his first go-around.

In that sense, Zion is blessed. He heads to an organisation that has completed the hard part of dealing their franchise star, cleared out the old regime and has an excellent VP of basketball operations in David Griffin. Sharing the court with him will be the most underrated player of the league in Jrue Holiday, a walking mismatch in Brandon Ingram and the enigmatic Lonzo Ball.

Griffin did not rest in peace with the 4th pick he acquired from the Lakers, flipping it to Atlanta for future assets. The Pelicans can clear up to 30 million in cap space by July 1, enough to land a solid big man and put them in playoff contention right off the bat. Whether or not they make the cut is a question for a different day.

#2 Atlanta Hawks

Travis Schlenk, the Hawks GM, seems to have learned his ropes quite well from his stint with the Warriors' FO. First, he traded up from No. 8 to No. 4 and got his guy, De'Andre Hunter of Virginia, who may be the best perimeter defender in this draft. Then at No. 8 Schlenk picked Duke's Cam Reddish, a player who certainly has question marks but whose upside may be higher than anyone not named Zion.

The Hawks got long and athletic on the perimeter, which was clearly a goal for them in this draft. Veteran Kent Bazemore, who came into the league undrafted but made a name for himself with the Warriors, will rub off on these youngsters in a manner you may not have expected Andrew Wiggins or a more well-regarded name in NBA circles.

Despite being dealt a rough hand in the lottery sweepstakes, the Hawks managed to salvage their draft and came away with some real top-end talent in a draft class that most people consider to be top-heavy.

#3 Memphis Grizzlies

After hitting a home run with their 4th pick overall in last year's draft, the Grizzlies were dealt the sort of hand that well-run organizations are eventually bound to luck in to, getting the 2nd overall pick in a top-heavy 2019 draft. Murray State sophomore Temetrius Jamiel 'Ja' Morant was lightly recruited by D1 programs and unranked by recruiting services in high school.

A promising rookie year saw him earn All-Rookie OVC honours, before he proceeded to light up the NCAA tournament. Ja became the first player in championship history to average 10 assists per game in tournament play, leading Murray State to the Final 32. His play drew admiration from the likes of Tracy McGrady.

Morant joins Jaren Jackson Jr as a perfect pick-and-roll partner. While his shooting form needs work, the rookie's athleticism and killer instinct to put his team on the back will take the duo and the Grizzlies on an exciting ride over the next couple of seasons.

#4 Cameron Johnson (and Coby White)

UNC stud Coby White was widely expected to be a high lottery pick. His teammate Cameron Johnson, on the other hand, was a mid-to-late first round projection. The Phoenix Suns traded down in the draft and picked up a player who fits the white swingman's stereotypes in terms of his impact on court, but is much more athletic than the JJ Redicks of the world.

With Josh Jackson in all sorts of immature adult trouble and TJ Warren shipped off to Indiana for cash, there is a lot of room for growth for the rookie in a rotation that is likely to once again rely for heavy minutes on inexperienced players.

Johnson is an intriguing fit alongside Booker, Bridges and Ayton, and the Suns will now be looking to the free agent market in order to land a star point guard. They should likely be in play for the Kemba Walker or D'Angelo Russell, who was Booker's teammate during their 2015 NCAA tournament run.

#5 Denver Nuggets

While Bol Bol's fall from McDonald's All American and top-5 high school recruit to being selected in the middle of the second round was somewhat shocking, there were rumours of his health concerns being too much for bottom-placed or contending teams to take chances on.

The Nuggets were one of the few teams with the room to take chances on a player with an injury history, having already done so in the 2018 draft with top-5 high school player Michael Porter Jr. Denver were a refreshing first-time appearance in the playoffs this go-around and will only get better with due passage of time.

In Bol Bol, they have a player who could (if he stays fit and adapts to the physical demands of an 82-game schedule) be a perfect floor spacer to field alongside Jokic. Bol Bol is already a fairly decent shooter. Though his shot mechanics leave a lot to be desired, his height may render those shortcomings moot anyway.

This is another low-risk, high-reward play by the Nuggets, and their fans will be pleased.