There’s an ancient NBA draft proverb that says, “It’s not where you pick, it’s who you pick.” Sometimes, NBA teams ignore the wisdom of the elders only to feel the sting of regret years later; other times, the Cavaliers pick LeBron James at No. 1.
That mantra probably wasn’t chiseled onto a peach basket by James Naismith in the stone ages of basketball — for all anyone knows, Mark Jackson could have been the first to say it during a conference finals telecast last month — but it is a tried-and-true belief regarding the NBA draft. Of course, where directly determines how many whos are available for a team to choose, so getting the first pick should provide a team with the best opportunity to select a great player.