NBA Draft: LaMelo Ball goes first in 2020 NBA Redraft

The common saying tells us that “hindsight is 20/20” and while it’s wrong, the sentiment is sound. Time and distance do not give us perfect eyesight, but we do learn things that could have helped us make the original decision. When evaluating the 2020 NBA Draft, our eyesight is improved, even one year later.

We have a season of data on most of these rookies, information that was not available before the draft. We can see how certain skills have translated to the next level, which players were ready to step in immediately, and who was boosted by the pre-draft process but just doesn’t have the juice.

Every NBA Draft looks very different in hindsight, and the 2020 Draft is no different. LaMelo Ball leads the way in the 2020 NBA redraft.

There are still plenty of unknowns. Did the rookies who played well prove themselves better than we thought, or was it just a fast start? Did the disappointments reveal their true, inadequate colors, or was it just a slow start? Were the good shooters just hot and the bad shooters just cold?

Here is our evaluation of how the 2020 NBA Draft would go now, a season later. Which players fly up the draft board? Who plummets down?

A few notes on the method. First, this redraft focuses more heavily on team fit since it took place less than a year ago and we can still understand that context well; as time goes on our eyesight grows sharper on who the players become but fuzzier on the specific team context.

Secondly, first-year production is weighted more than one might expect. Yes, players drafted highly can have a poor rookie season and then grow into All-Stars, but it doesn’t happen as often as you think; generally, it’s the right call to change your opinion on a player who plays very poorly in year one.

Finally, the draft picks were assigned according to who walked away with a pick in that slot on draft night. Therefore draft night trades are assumed to happen exactly the same as they did in November, even if the players are different.

Let’s jump right in with the Minnesota Timberwolves, who apply their 20/20 eyesight to 2020 and make a different selection with the first overall pick.