Six years ago on the night of the 2011 NBA Draft, when the San Antonio Spurs shockingly agreed to trade coach Gregg Popovich’s “favorite player,” point guard George Hill, to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for the rights to Kawhi Leonard — they also received the rights to a little-known European player named Davis Bertans.
At the time, Leonard was considered a solid prospect who might one day be as good or perhaps slightly better than Hill, while Bertans was considered a low-risk throw-in who might not ever make an NBA roster.