New Orleans Pelicans 2009 Lottery Re-Draft: Where does Holiday Go Now?
The 2009 NBA Lottery had some all-time greats and all-time busts. We re-drafted that famous group to see where Holiday of the New Orleans Pelicans would go now.
The NBA Draft is a complete crapshoot, ask the New Orleans Pelicans, who had just a six percent chance to land the number one pick last year, but bucked the odds and got rewarded with Zion Williamson.
The 2009 NBA Lottery was one for the ages, as it had some of today’s best players, but also some historically bad picks that were destined to be busts.
Related Story. Who the Pelicans should have taken in every draft since 2003. light
Things would go much differently if this draft was done again today, especially for the New Orleans Pelicans’ Jrue Holiday, who has evolved into the one of the best two-way players in the league.
Holiday was the fifth point guard taken in the 2009 Draft, falling to the Philadelphia 76ers with the 17th pick. The 76ers were apparently better at drafting before “The Process” as Holiday was a savvy pick for the Sixers.
Unfortunately for them they traded Holiday away for Nerlens Noel in a move that is as head-scratching today as it was back then.
Holiday has only gotten better for the New Orleans Pelicans and is the current face of the team, though Zion and Lonzo Ball are evolving into that role as well.
When you see names like Jonny Flynn, Ricky Rubio and Brandon Jennings on the list, you know Holiday is not the fifth-best point guard.
Related Story. Jrue Holiday needs to move to the bench. light
No offense to those guys but two of them are no longer in the league and the other still can’t hit a 15-foot jump shot.
With the benefit of hindsight it is easy to see how things would go differently if this draft were done again.
Let’s re-draft the 2009 NBA Lottery to see where the fates may have taken us.