Re-Drafting the 2010 NBA Draft - Top 10

The 2010 NBA draft was quietly one of the better drafts of the last decade. With three All-NBA talents, multiple All-Stars, and quite a few rotational guys, that year's draft changed the future for many teams. Here's how things might have shaped out had we known what would have come of these players back then!

#1 Overall: Paul George - SF - Washington Wizards
Original Pick: John Wall - PG

While number one pick John Wall has turned out to be a superstar for the Washington Wizards, in the re-draft, Washington goes with Paul George out of Fresno State. Despite George not having the immediate impact that John Wall did, PG-13 gives Washington one of the best two-way players in the NBA. George gives Washington a player with the length and athleticism to matchup against LeBron James. There's no telling whether George pushes Washington into that upper echelon, but he certainly improves the team and easily becomes the face of the franchise for many years to come.

#2 Overall: John Wall - PG - Philadelphia 76ers
Original Pick: Evan Turner - SG

It doesn't take long for #1 pick John Wall to get snatched up in the re-draft. While one could argue that bigger talents are available at the number two spot, it's hard to argue the perfect fit that John Wall is for the Sixers at this point in their franchise's history. Wall instantly inserts himself with Jrue Holiday as a deadly backcourt combo on an athletic Sixers team that potentially finishes with an above .500 record. With prime Andre Iguodala and a solid Elton Brand manning the floor, Wall has amazing players to dish the ball to and doesn't have to do everything by himself. Something that would have helped him develop into a more well-rounded player.

#3 Overall: Gordon Hayward - SG - New Jersey Nets
Original Pick: Derrick Favors - PF

Gordon Hayward and Brook Lopez just seems like a tandem that would have had some special days had they played together. This was one of the hardest picks to nail down because the Nets were in such an odd spot. They ended up doing a trade for Deron Williams that likely hurt the franchise in the long run, but with a capable guard in Gordon Hayward, it's hard to determine if the Nets still make that deal. A core of Devin Harris, Gordon Hayward, and Brook Lopez sounds like a potentially great core that could have led the Nets to multiple playoff berths.

#4 Overall: DeMarcus Cousins - C - Minnesota Timberwolves
Original Pick: Wesley Johnson - SF

This pick would make any Timberwolves fan salivate at the thought of Kevin Love and DeMarcus Cousins teaming up in Minnesota. Cousins and Love as they sit now in 2017 would be a perfect big man combination due to Love's ability to shoot from long range and Cousins' banging down low style. Love likely would have been able to stretch his game earlier in his career had he been paired with such a skilled big man as Cousins. This pick is the one that had my mind thinking the most as Minnesota instantly becomes a contender and potentially dominant force in the West with this pick.

#5 Overall: Greg Monroe - PF - Sacramento Kings
Original Pick: DeMarcus Cousins - C

There is a pretty steep drop off after those first four picks, so Sacramento gets killed by this re-draft (not that they were able to get the best out of Boogie Cousins). The Kings pick the second best big man out of the class in Greg Monroe and things are honestly not much different than having DeMarcus Cousins. They still remain near the bottom on the league and have a hot head in the locker room. The Kings season and future don't change a whole lot with this pick.

#6 Overall: Eric Bledsoe - PG - Golden State Warriors
Original Pick: Ekpe Udoh - PF

A potentially huge shift in the dynamic of the league happens with this pick. Due to injury and defensive effort concerns with Steph Curry, the Warriors again search for a point guard to run the show. Do I honestly think that Bledsoe would have beaten out Curry for the starting point guard spot? No, but I wouldn't be surprised if Steph takes this pick as an offensive gesture and looks to take his talents elsewhere. There's also the possibility that the Warriors go with a two point guard lineup and Monta Ellis still gets the boot. In conclusion, this pick could have the biggest impact on the future of the league.

#7 Overall: Avery Bradley - SG - Detroit Pistons
Original Pick: Greg Monroe - PF

Ironically, the Pistons ended up with Bradley after the Celtics dealt him this summer to clear cap space for Gordon Hayward. At this point, the Pistons have given up on Ben Gordon as the future of their shooting guard position and decide to find a younger defensive stopper that harkens back to the days of the Pistons winning championships. The Pistons certainly do get hurt by the fact that Greg Monroe gets taken higher in the re-draft, because he was a steal at number seven overall. It's hard to know whether Bradley becomes as successful after being thrust into the rotation early in his career, but with an aging Rip Hamilton and god-awful Ben Gordon ahead of him, Bradley finds minutes on this Pistons team.

#8 Overall: Hassan Whiteside - C - Los Angeles Clippers
Original Pick: Al-Farouq Aminu - SF

Hassan Whiteside has been a bit of a late bloomer in terms of finding his stride in the NBA, so it's entirely possible that his career ends up going similarly being stuck behind DeAndre Jordan and Chris Kaman for minutes on this Clippers team. The Clippers really don't gain or lose a ton with this pick in the re-draft as Whiteside would have simply offered more of what the team already had; athletic big men that could eat up minutes. Swapping Aminu for Whiteside doesn't radically change the landscape of the Clippers' future.

#9 Overall: Patrick Patterson - PF - Utah Jazz
Original Pick: Gordon Hayward - SG

Patterson is another player who took a while to find his niche in the league and has come onto the scene as of late. The nice part for Utah and Patterson alike is that the Jazz don't need Patterson to immediately contribute heavy minutes. The tandem of Paul Milsap and Al Jefferson beef to man the middle of the floor. Either way, Patterson becomes a solid rotational player for the Jazz and can potentially fill the spots of the soon to be departing pair mentioned prior.

#10 Overall: Al-Farouq Aminu - SF - Indiana Pacers
Original Pick: Paul George - SF

Rounding out the top ten we have the Indiana Pacers selecting Al-Farouq Aminu. An extremely poor man's Paul George, Aminu struggles to shoot the ball from range and doesn't defend as well. While Aminu doesn't affect the short term prospects of the Pacers franchise, he certainly didn't evolve into a player of Paul George's caliber. But, on the bright side, at least Indiana doesn't trade a franchise cornerstone for Victor Oladipo and Domantas Sabonis. Just forget the fact that they probably don't stand a chance in the playoffs for the next few years without Paul George. It would have been interesting to see Lance Stephenson without Paul George stealing shooting opportunities away from him.

And with that the first ten picks of the 2010 NBA re-draft are over. As you can see, many fates are shifted and some franchises would be in totally different places had they gone with different players. There's no telling just how important picking the right player can be, and re-drafting the 2010 NBA draft shows that to perfection. In this scenario, do the Wizards become LeBron's arch rivals? Does Steph Curry become the MVP he is today while trading minutes with Eric Bledsoe? And does Indiana's fate change at all if you swap Paul George for Al-Farouq Aminu? We may never know the answers to these questions, but it's always fun to speculate.

I hope you enjoyed this post. Tell me down in the comments how you would have re-drafted the 2010 NBA draft. I look forward to writing more NBA centric articles about past drafts so if you are interested, please follow @brandonp to get all of my posts directly to your feed!