2013 NBA Draft Recap: Top 5 Biggest Losers

2013 NBA Draft Recap: Top 5 Biggest Losers: The 2013 NBA Draft has come and gone, and while there is something about the draft that gives every team a sense of hope, the harsh truth is that not every team upgrades it rosters during the draft. In fact, some teams actually get worse or at least miss a golden opportunity to improve dramatically. It goes without saying that there can’t be winners in a draft without losers, and here is a closer look at the teams that just didn’t get the job done during the 2013 NBA Draft.

1.      Charlotte Bobcats

There are few certainties in life, but death, taxes and Michael Jordan making a bad first-round draft selection are all on the list. Charlotte owned the fourth pick in the draft and promptly reached for Cody Zeller. While he is definitely a very athletic big man, the pick was a reach, especially with the likes of Nerlens Noel, Ben McLemore and Alex Len still on the board. Zeller does have a solid offensive game, but he is a finesse player that doesn’t use his size to dominate the game on either end. For a team like Charlotte that is awful at everything, taking a player that has a chance to be a quality stretch-forward instead of players that have a chance to develop into All-Stars just doesn’t make sense. Of course, there is a reason the Bobcats are always battling for the worst record in the NBA.

2.      Indiana Pacers

Indiana fell one game short of reaching the NBA Finals last year so it would stand to reason that they would use their first-round pick to try to find the missing piece to the puzzle, ideally some added perimeter firepower or another defensive-minded big man to spell starting center Roy Hibbert. Instead, the Pacers opted for Solomon Hill. At Arizona, Hill was an undersized power forward, but a decent jump shot will allow him to possibly play small forward in the NBA. That being said, Hill has average athleticism, and he really isn’t the defensive specialist that fits Indiana’s style or the offensive savant that the team needs. Instead of finding a piece to put them over the edge, the Pacers seemed to pick up a piece that just doesn’t fit.

3.      Los Angeles Lakers

To be fair, the Lakers only had second-round pick to work with, but their selection of Ryan Kelly was still a curious one. On one hand, he is an excellent 3-point shooter for his size, and I guess there is always a chance he ends up being another Ryan Anderson. On the flip side, he isn’t overly fast or athletic and is a below average defender. I’m not sure the Lakers needed to get any slower or worse on defense, especially with Dwight Howard likely jumping ship during the offseason.

4.      Chicago Bulls

The Bulls used the 20th pick to select New Mexico swingman Tony Snell, and while his length and defensive skills fit Chicago’s mentality, he is extremely limited offensively. For a team that already has Jimmy Butler and Luol Deng that can rotate between shooting guard and small forward and is losing a lot of bench scoring with Nate Robinson’s departure, Snell doesn’t really seem to address any pressing needs. Chicago went on to add stretch-forward Erik Murphy in the second round, and although he will stretch the floor with his 3-point prowess, it is hard to see Bulls’ coach Tom Thibodeau giving him many minutes unless his defensive intensity improves dramatically. Add it all up, and Chicago really didn’t improve it situation at all during the draft.

5.      Denver Nuggets

Denver basically used the draft the save a little cap room, trading away their first-round selection for Virginia Tech’s Erick Green. Granted, Green did lead the country in scoring last year and can definitely shoot, but it’s not like the high-scoring Nuggets are hurting for guys that can shoot the ball. He will likely carve out a role as a reliable scorer off the bench, but Denver didn’t get any closer to being a legitimate title contender by adding another player that is a high-volume scorer that provides little help in other areas.

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