This is the second half of the redrafting; you can find part one here.
16. Caleb Swanigan, F, Timberwolves – He does fit the same role, roughly, that Karl-Anthony Towns does. However, here is the spot to draft the best available player. He is a great big man with hustle who can get to the line and hit his free throws, pass the ball around and clean up the glass. He would be a valuable piece not only on the Wolves second unit, but also to play alongside Towns.
17. Frank Ntilikina, G, Bucks – Even in positionless basketball, a solid ball handler helps an offense and Ntilikina can help move the ball for Milwaukee. Surrounding Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker with offensive talent will also help spread the floor for the entire team.
18. DJ Wilson, F, Pacers – The Pacers have gone young very quickly this offseason, with Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis coming in the Paul George trade. With another young forward coming in via Wilson in the draft, this team starts to look like a basketball team that can grow into something, instead of a shell that lost a superstar.
19. Jarrett Allen, C, Hawks – The departure of Dwight Howard was for the best for both teams, freeing up cap space and giving this team the chance to rebuild with their youth. But just because Howard is leaving does not mean that the team does not need what he offers — namely, a glass-first center. The team operates really well around this type of center who can clean up the glass and helped the Hawks to a fourth-ranked defensive rating in the league. Allen is a great fit for the role, as a young player who excels at crashing the glass for boards and put backs along with posting up to make his own shot.
20. Justin Patton, C, Kings – After putting together the backcourt in the start of the draft, the back half should go towards getting a reliable front court piece. Patton is a five who can play like a four because of his speed and quickness for a big man. He also has higher offensive upside than Willie Cauley-Stein, who’s had trouble with his jump shot. Patton can come in and upgrade the position as a shooter right away.
21. Terrance Ferguson, G, Thunder – Oklahoma City definitely stands pat on this pick after switching out Oladipo for Paul George in the frontcourt. The Thunder need a shooting guard who is great on the catch and shoot and is a solid defender. Having a young player to mold into the shooting guard this team needs is crucial to the starting five.
22. Tony Bradley, C, Nets – The upside for Bradley in a system like the Nets because of the way they featured the versatile Brook Lopez. While the defensive side of the ball for Bradley needs work, he is the most physical center left at the 22nd spot and he has a lot of offensive talents. He has a great motor to continually attack opposing defenses and is good at drawing a defense in the paint and finding outside help. He has a good shot and is a solid upside guy who can do some really great things that will help push him to be even better offensively and continue to feed him possessions.
23. TJ Leaf, F, Raptors – Leaf is a power forward who averaged 16.3 points per game at UCLA and paired nicely with the offense Lonzo Ball gave the team, which DeMar DeRozan could supplement nicely. The problem the Raptors had with DeMarre Carroll was his steep drop off offensively. With Leaf on the roster, the Raptors have a big man to crash the boards on defense and the offensively versatile forward they wanted with Carroll.
24. OG Anunoby, F, Nuggets – With Millsap and Nikola Jokic in the frontcourt, the best thing for this team is some depth at the forward spots. Anunoby would be in a perfect spot to play 15 minutes as the seventh or eighth man and grow under Millsap.
25. Kyle Kuzma, G, 76ers – A mistake would be to overrate what he has done in Summer League. That said, his 30-point performance against the Trail Blazers without Ball to draw the defense was impressive and he has shown his 3-point prowess already. On a Philadelphia roster that has playmakers like Fultz and Ben Simmons, he will have plenty of open looks.
26. Tyler Lydon, F, Trail Blazers – I will continue to hammer home the point until change happens, the frontcourt of Portland needs playmakers for playoff success. Lydon is a solid defender in the paint and can score, averaging 13.2 points per game in college with 8.6 assists. Portland needs these young guys to be difference makers and quickly.
27. Frank Jackson, G, Nets – Because of the Lopez trade, this pick is headed to the Lakers. With Ball already on the roster the offense of Jackson is a great fit, especially with how well he pushes the ball down the floor. He was one of the most efficient freshmen in college basketball, according to Draft Express, and shot just a shade under 40 percent from deep. He gives the Lakers a solid scorer off of the bench.
28. Derrick White, G, Jazz – The Jazz had a solid run last season that is going to be hard to build on after the departure of Gordon Hayward. The roster has a few young players, but after the addition of Ricky Rubio, the team could use some young depth in the backcourt next to some of their older members. He was a consistent contributor and has a high basketball IQ with the ability to come off the bench.
29. Josh Hart, G, Spurs – Two years ago, this was arguably the best player on a championship team and is a grinder who is willing to do all the dirty work on a basketball team despite being a leader on the roster. He can be a great player for the Spurs and is a great candidate for head coach Greg Popovich’s “show-up-out-of-nowhere” guy who wins a playoff game.
30. Anzejs Pasecniks, C, Lakers – While he struggles on the defensive end, the long European can shoot and is exceptional when cutting through traffic to the basket. At best he is a good role player, but if the Lakers want to be a playoff team, they need a player to come in and pick up the inside offense for when Lopez takes a breather. He is also another lanky weapon for Ball to utilize on long passes to slash the defense.
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