Suppose Toronto Raptors Passed On Rafael Araujo & Drafted Philadelphia 76er Andre Iguodala
September 11 07
Flashback to June, 2004. The basketball world is in New York for the NBA Draft. Commissioner Stern is buzzing around the podium, probably complaining about dress codes or some other trivial point. Steven A. Smith is preparing to take GMs to task. And the Knick faithful has gathered to harass, well, everybody.
Toronto owns the eighth overall pick. Time for a little should have, could have, and would have. Suppose the Raptors, who were then led by the infamous Rob Babcock, did something different with their selection.
Pretend the passed on ...
And drafted ...
We can’t go back in time. Of course, Toronto used the eighth overall pick to take little-known Rafael Araujo from BrighamYoungUniversity. Philadelphia, with the very next pick, drafted a raw three-man out of Arizona, Andre Iguodala.
Their careers couldn’t be more different. ’Hoffa’ has spent his three NBA seasons glued to the Raptors and Jazz’s bench, while A.I. is a fixture on ESPN highlight reels and is on the verge of stardom in Philly.
Babcock’s blunder is worth reflecting on because the 76ers will soon reward Iguodala with a rich, multi-year extension. Araujo is currently without an NBA contract and will likely toil in Europe next season.
Believe it or not, passing on Iguodala may have been the best thing to happen to the Raptors. This error contributed to Babcock getting axed and forced the team to hire super GM Bryan Colangelo. The two-time executive of the year has Toronto on the right path.
Get at us with your thoughts on Araujo and Iguodala in the comment box below. Click here to read and subscribe to Oly Sandor’s NBA Blog.
7 Comments: Suppose Toronto Raptors Passed On Rafael Araujo & Drafted (...)
Posted by TEMPY on 09.13.2007
IGUODALA IS THE f-----MAN HES A MAD DUNKER ONE OF MY FAVOURITE PLAYERSADD MY MYSPACEhttp://ndex.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=30237226 .
Posted by
on 09.13.2007
vc proabably would have left ne ways. so it would have been bosh and iggy and add 2 first round draft picks in 05 and they may have not taken joey graham then. the raps may then have taken a solid big man in his spot or pg. .
Posted by wal on 09.12.2007
well i wont say they had a complete loss also bcuz chris bosh is turning this team around right now i mean i went deeper in the playoffs than vc could eva have gotten them perhaps theyll get further next year who knows but ahh that A.I. 2 i callhim thats they next franchise player man and beleive it or not hes a way better dunker than lebron hands down lebron is jus a better player and a huger star point highlight that monster jam at the all star game last year when he went behind the gla-------with the alley oop that was sick .hes on his way mark my word .
Posted by
on 09.11.2007
any1 can be an allstar if they get at least 30 minutes per game, e.g. allen iverson, its obvious that he gets 30 ppg, if he duznt, he wud be a looser, i mean, he takes lyk 30 shots pergame (thats alot of shots), and misses more than half of em, lucky he gets 2 line a lot and shoots a gd percentage from freethrow line .
Posted by
on 09.11.2007
Thats whats up Iguodala Taking over here in Phily 07-08 .
Posted by
on 09.11.2007
i just have to say i am so glad that philly! got andre iguodala!!! .
Posted by bigmanshaq on 09.11.2007
You make a solid point here, but imagine if the raptors had drafted igoudala, Vince carter may not have left Toronto, team two of the best athlete in the league with Chris Bosh would have been a sight to see for years to come. Me on the other hand am not a babc---------fan, so my assumption is once colangelo became available, raps would have axe babc---------anyway. .
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About Oly Sandor
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Oly Sandor is an NBA analyst and sports journalist based out of Vancouver, Canada.After years of the free-lance game, Oly Sandor is bringing his unique brand of NBA analysis exclusively to (...) More
