Just like with most things in sports, fans take amateur drafts a lot more seriously than executives. Front offices are realistic with their picks. They have scouts everywhere in the world, are looking for very specific things and generally have pretty realistic expectations regarding their decisions. Fans, on the other hand, live and die with every pick. The right guy will guarantee 12 straight championships while the wrong guy will doom the team to a fate worse than hell itself: losing at a game.
Amateur drafts are funny, because in the end, everything is a crapshoot. For every LeBron James, there were multiple Kwame Browns and Michael Olowokandis. For every Peyton Manning, there were multiple JaMarcus Russels and Tim Couches.
The point is, nobody actually has any idea of what they're doing, which is why projecting this draft is so difficult.
Fate somehow determined that the 2013 NBA draft would feature basically no one all that exceptional, which makes sense because there were no exceptional teams in college basketball this year. The weak crop of players led to a record 12 international players being taken in the first round. Compare that to next year's draft, likely headlined by "future stars" Andrew Wiggins and Jabari Parker.
That said, someone could tell you today that Anthony Bennett will perfectly complement Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters, and that the Cavs are building such a strong dynasty that they won't even want LeBron back in 2014. Others could tell you that he'll barely crack five minutes per game on a crummy lottery team. While the reality is probably somewhere in the middle, both camps will fight tooth an nail to make sure you know what they think.
That's why the draft is so much fun. It only adds to a fan's compulsive desire to argue about anything. Some teams draft based on need, some get the star power, and some make you scratch your head and say, "yeesh, I hope they know what they're doing out there..." Either way, it gives us a chance to argue about things that cannot be proven. Don't believe me? See if these projections sounds realistic:
1) The best player in this year's draft will be new Washington small forward Otto Porter because playing with young teammates John Wall, Bradley Beal and Jan Vesely will allow for him to develop alongside them. His scoring and rebounding abilities will vault him into a perennial top-5 talent in this league.
2) The 76ers got the steal in the draft by trading for Nerlens Noel and selecting Michael Carter-Williams. MCW's height gives him the advantage over smaller opponents while Noel's shot-blocking and rebounding abilities will make him a force down low for years to come. In receiving a first round pick from what many expect to be a pretty bad New Orleans team in next year's drat, Philadelphia is well on its way to bringing glory back to the City of Brotherly Love.
Can you disagree with either of those? Of course you can! Can you back it up with evidence? Of course you can't! I didn't really use any facts in making my claims and you wouldn't in trying to refute them. Plenty of players rack up stats in college and then don't pan out in the pros, others have reasonable-yet unspectacular college careers and become all stars at the next level.
Personally, I think this draft will be remembered for adding some key role players to already good teams, a couple all-star cameos, and that's about it. It might not be historically memorable, but how many drafts ever really are?
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