There’s just over a week left before the NBA Draft begins on June 25 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, NY. With prominent franchises like the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks picking in the top-five, the intrigue is high and continues to build until draft night, when the direction of numerous basketball teams is about to take shape.
The ticket prices to the NBA Draft points to the high amount of hype as well. The 2015 NBA Draft average ticket price on the secondary market is the second highest it has been in the past five years, according to TiqIQ.com. Here are all of them collectively:
6/23/11 | NBA Draft | Prudential Center | Average Price: $42 | Get-in Price: $23
6/28/12 | NBA Draft | Prudential Center | Average Price: $52.48 | Get-in Price: $19
6/27/13 | NBA Draft | Barclays Center | Average Price: $64.65 | Get-in Price: $27
6/26/14 | NBA Draft | Barclays Center | Average Price: $160.98 | Get-in Price: $47
6/25/15 | NBA Draft | Barclays Center | Average Price: $93.93 | Get-in Price: $41
At the same time, when there is a large amount of hype, there is bound to be a couple of disappointments sprinkled in. There’s no better time to go over some NBA Draft busts that were selected in the top-10 over the past five years.
2011: Derrick Williams and Jan Vesely
Williams was selected No. 2 overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves, while Vesely was selected No. 6 overall by the Washington Wizards. Williams is a back-of-the-rotation player on the Sacramento Kings now, though he has looked good on offense in spurts, but sports career averages of 10.1 points and 4.3 rebounds. Not a huge bust compared to others, but as the No. 2 pick overall, there were higher expectations. Vesely is currently playing for Turkish club team Fenerbahce Ulker after averaging just 3.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in the NBA.
2012: Dion Waiters and Thomas Robinson
As the years get closer to 2015, the “bust” label is certainly a stretch. These players all have chances to turn things around and be valuable roleplayers in the NBA. Dion Waiters, the No. 4 selection from this draft, is one example, and though he has shined at times, he was shipped from Cleveland after he wasn’t meshing with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. Thomas Robinson was selected one pick later at No. 5, and is averaging 5.7 points and 5.6 rebounds. He’s also astoundingly been on four different teams already.
2013: Anthony Bennett
Anthony Bennett was surprisingly selected No. 1 overall out of UNLV by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Bennett put in the worst rookie season of any No. 1 pick in the past quarter-century, finishing with PER near 1. He currently plays for the Timberwolves after being dealt to Minnesota last summer and didn’t look particularly effective in his first season with his new team.
2014 Potential Candidate: Joel Embiid
Discouraging news came from the Philadelphia Sixers the other day when it was announced Joel Embiid had a setback in the healing of the stress fracture in his right foot. Embiid missed the entire 2014-15 campaign and is rumored to have a “significant chance” of missing all of next year as well. Hopefully the big man from Kansas can get on the court soon.
NBA fans can attend the NBA Draft with Hipmunk.com by reserving flights to and from Brooklyn. As one of the more hyped-up drafts in the past five years, Hipmunk is the one-stop shop for a visit to the Barclays, providing the ability to book Brooklyn hotels starting from only $42 a night.
