NBA Draft: Re-drafting the historic 2009 NBA Draft

Man, this was not a banner draft for the Memphis Grizzlies. Not only did they whiff on the second overall pick, they also gave up on DeMarre Carroll far too soon. They are fortunate that Mike Conley and Marc Gasol developed into stars. Otherwise, commentators would hammer them a lot more than the Minnesota Timberwolves.

This augmented draft has been a lot kinder to them thanks primarily to James Harden, but they still had this pick at their disposal as a result of a three-team trade with the Houston Rockets and the Orlando Magic. But with Carroll off the table, Memphis would have to take the best player available in swingman Wesley Matthews.

Had I written this re-draft in 2015, Matthews’ name would’ve shown up earlier on this list. By that point, Matthews was coming off consecutive seasons where he averaged at least 15 points for the Portland Trail Blazers, while shooting no worse than 38.9 percent from 3-point range.

As a 3-and-D player who could sporadically takes defenders off the dribble, Matthews looked like one of the few undrafted players who fashioned a borderline NBA All-Star career for himself.

Then, he tore his Achilles. Since then, Matthews has spent time with the Dallas Mavericks, the New York Knicks and the Indiana Pacers, compiling a disappointing .062 WS/48 during that time. Now 32 years old, Matthews’ run as a high-end floor spacer (which, to be fair, he still kinda is) and defender are likely over.