The 2023 NBA Draft Was Pure Chaos
June 22 marked the 2023 NBA Draft, with 58 of the best college players in the nation chosen by the league’s 30 teams. For the first few picks, everything seemed to be going normally. Victor Wembanyama went first overall as expected, with Twitter getting really thirsty for his pro baller sister, Eve.
The Hornets choose Brandon Miller at two, contrary to Shams Charania’s “sources”, setting up the Blazers to grab Scoot Henderson at three. After that, the Thompson twins went four and five, becoming the first brothers to be drafted in the top five since the ABA/NBA merger.
However, the tail end of the lottery picks is where things began to get weird. Leave it to the Wizards, who dealt Bradley Beal, Kristaps Porziņģis, and Chris Paul before the draft began, to continue having the weirdest offseason in the NBA.
Related: Brian Windhorst gives wild take about LeBron and Victor Wembanyama
Wizards Trigger Draft Weirdness
With the seventh overall pick, the Pacers took Wembanyama’s Mets 92 teammate Bilal Coulilbaly. One pick later, the Wizards took Houston’s Jarace Walker and immediately traded him to the Pacers for Coulilbaly. Two picks later, the Mavericks drafted Kentucky’s Carson Wallace and immediately traded him to the Thunder for the 12th overall pick, Duke’s Dereck Lively II.
Meanwhile, it was a longer wait than expected for Villanova’s Cam Whitmore. Expected to go in the top 10, Whitmore fell to the Rockets at #20. Reportedly, teams were scared off by some worrying medical reports about Whitmore. However, beyond that, the draft proceeded as most pundits expected.
Elsewhere, fans were having a lot of fun with Gradey Dick, drafted by the Raptors at #13. Turns out that Dick is something of a TikTok connoisseur and a number of his videos went viral during the draft. When asked about them, Dick said he would be making some Tiktoks with new teammate Scottie Barnes very soon.
Related: Dwyane Wade tells NBA rookies to get a financial manager
More Offseason Chaos To Come?
However, just because the trade is over doesn’t mean the offseason is. We can likely expect a few more blockbuster moves in the coming weeks. For example, teams are reportedly lining up with bids for Damian Lillard after the Blazers opted to draft Scoot Henderson. Lillard has been very vocal about not wanting to be part of a “youth movement” in Portland.
Elsewhere, the Atlanta Hawks are reportedly in hot pursuit of the Raptors’ Pascal Siakam. However, it is believed that talks have stalled as of late due to Toronto’s high demands for the fan-favorite player. The Hawks have had “several creative trade packages” rejected according to recent reports.
Furthermore, Cleveland has been fielding some offers for all-star big man Jarrett Allen. Despite this, a move might be unlikely now that the draft has passed. Cleveland held just one pick in the draft, taking Eastern Michigan’s Emoni Bates with the 49th pick. However, it’s still early days in the NBA offseason and anything could happen.
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