NBA 2004 Redraft: Picking between high school and college champions

#8 Pick: Shaun Livingston (Originally: Rafael Araujo)

Back to the drawing board for the Raptors who had three rookie centers on the roster in the 2004-2005 season and they may have taken the worst one at eight. Rafael Araujo would only play two seasons with the Raptors and three seasons in the NBA overall.

So instead of giving a big man to a team that already had Chris Bosh in place, let’s pair him with a point guard who at the time of this draft had unlimited potential. He was coming along slowly for the Clippers before a catastrophic knee injury at 21 that truly changed the trajectory of his career.

Going from a perceived lock to be a future All-Star to having to learn to walk again all before turning 22 would be enough to shake most players.

The perseverance Livingston showed to come back and become an essential piece for three championship teams in Golden State cements him as the kind of player who, with or without the injury, is completely deserving of being selected this high in the lottery. Doing right by Chris Bosh in year two in Toronto was honestly this easy.

With the ninth pick in the 2004 NBA Redraft, the Philadelphia 76ers select…