Despite humble comments made recently by Anthony Davis that his spot as the number one overall pick in the draft isn’t “set in stone,” it is a unanimous presumption that on June 28 his name will be the first announced by David Stern. If everyone besides Anthony is right, how might that stack up for him?
Since the beginning of the lottery system in 1985 only three players have been both the number one pick and a world champion. The New Orleans Hornets past drafts look even worse, with Chris Paul being the only stand-out first round pick in almost 15 years. (Not to mention that whole debacle of trading Kobe. Talk about hindsight.) Draft position doesn’t always equate with success in the NBA. Then again, not everyone is Anthony Davis.
Too many times we are quick to label a young star the “next” Michael Jordan or Shaquille O’Neal without giving them a chance to just be who they are as a player. Davis holds the ability to break this cycle, at least the NBA’s director of scouting, Ryan Blake, believes so, saying,
“His numbers are off our charts. And you just don’t risk that. If he is a Tim Duncan or turns into a Tim Duncan/Dwight Howard … Who does he remind me of? He doesn’t remind me of anybody. That’s the thing. He has the potential to be his own player and be something different, although albeit special, he’s going to be different.”
Anthony Davis is definitely a game changer, and it may be in more ways than one.
