Jayson TatumJeyhoun Allebaugh/NBAE via Getty Images
The 2016 and 2017 drafts combined to give us one of the strangest and most impactful back-to-back classes in NBA history.
Two years in a row, the Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics had the top three picks, in that order (though some trades made it that way in 2017). And two years in a row, Philadelphia and L.A. missed (or at least didn’t quite hit) with those top two picks.
It took a little longer to realize this with the 2016 class, but Ben Simmons is now on the verge of being out of the league. Brandon Ingram has made an All-Star team, but his offensive impact is similar to Brown’s, and it doesn’t look like he’ll ever develop into the perimeter defender Brown is.
The 2017 draft has to be even more painful for those teams. Markelle Fultz had negative wins over replacement player with the Sixers before being traded to the Orlando Magic in 2019. Lonzo Ball had a chance to be great, but injuries have derailed his career. Meanwhile, Tatum has scored more playoff points before turning 27 than any other player in league history.
The versatile, two-way wings Boston took with back-to-back No. 3 picks just helped the Celtics win their 18th championship. None of Simmons, Ingram, Fultz and Ball are on the teams that picked them.
Drafting involves a fair bit of luck. There may be alternate timelines on which the Sixers’ and Lakers’ picks don’t look as bad, but having this happen two years in a row means they deserve at least some of the blame for Boston’s success (especially with the Celtics trading down for Tatum in 2017).
