An all-time NBA great draft class. Over five potential franchise players. Better than the Lebron class, maybe the Jordan class, possibly the Kobe class. This has been the most hyped NBA draft class of all time. But the hype has died down with the college season playing out and it does not look like this will end up as a historic class. Still a great draft class, but not one of the best ever. However for Canada, this IS the best draft class ever. With 8 players having entered their names in the draft, it is almost a lock for this to be the draft with the most Canadian players ever selected. Here is a complete Canadian NBA Draft preview for 2014.

 

The Prospects

 

On this historic night for Canadian basketball, there are three types of prospects that will be selected. First there is the elite, Andrew Wiggins. Wiggins is the only elite prospect of the Canadian group but he may also be the best prospect out of all of them in the draft, and he has a great shot at going number one overall. Next, there are the impact players, Nik Stauskas and Tyler Ennis. Both of these young players have the potential to be impact players in the NBA, Stauskas as a shooter and scorer and Ennis with his playmaking abilities. The third group of Canadian prospects that there are in this draft are, the rotation players. Jordan Bachynski, Melvin Ejim, Dwight Powell, and Khem Birch are all prospects who have the potential to be solid NBA rotation players. They may never be true impact players on a competitive team, but all four of them have a shot at being solid NBA contributors. Those three groups make up seven of the eight Canadian prospects who have entered the draft. The last remaining prospect is Sim Bhullar. The reason Bhullar does not file into any of these groups is because he doesn’t fit any common prospect description. Sim Bhullar is 7’5” and weighs over 330 pounds, he is no regular prospect. His high-end potential could be that of a star center, but his likely materialisation is that of a serviceable backup, and there is also reason to believe that he could end up never playing in the NBA. Bhullar is an unimaginably unique player because of his tremendous size and for that reason, he does not fit any consistent prospect grouping. Those are the eight Canadian prospects who could be drafted this year in 2014 and create Canadian NBA history in the process.

 

Draft Projections

 

These are the individual predictions for each Canadian prospect will be selected on draft night and the reasoning behind each pick.

 

Andrew Wiggins: 1st Overall – Cleveland Cavaliers

Wiggins is the best overall prospect in the draft. He is the player with the best risk-reward ratio available in the draft and this is why the Cleveland Cavaliers will select him, and with Joel Embiid out of the running because of injury, Wiggins’ only competition for the top pick seems to be Jabari Parker who does not want to play in Cleveland making the Cavs decision even easier come draft night.

 

Nik Stauskas: 9th Overall Pick – Charlotte Hornets

Stauskas is potentially the best shooter in the draft. The Charlotte Hornets desperately need shooting. While shooting alone is not the sole reason they will select Stauskas, it is very much an important factor. Others are the potential that Stauskas owns as he is still very young and has shown that he is still consistently improving every year.

 

Tyler Ennis: 16th Overall – Chicago Bulls

Outside of the lottery, Tyler Ennis is a steal for Chicago. A potential impact player on a cheap contract is something the Bulls need as well as point guard depth behind Derrick Rose’s knees. Ennis fits both of these needs and that is why the Bulls will take him with their first of two first round picks.

 

Dwight Powell: 42nd Overall – Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets have forever been looking for a big man who can stretch the floor alongside their star center, Dwight Howard. Powell might not receive many minutes next to Howard but every single one that he does will make the all-star center’s job easier in the paint. The Rockets will be getting a potential role player at 42 who fits a need in Powell.

 

Jordan Bachynski: 47th Overall – Philadelphia 76ers

Bachynski has an NBA mentality, body, and skillset. At 24 years old he is the oldest player to enter the draft this year and because of Philadelphia’s extreme youth movement, all age and maturity should be welcome in the draft. Their backup center position also needs filling behind Nerlens Noel and Bachynski seems like a perfect fit for that job.

 

Melvin Ejim: 51st Overall – New York Knicks

With the New York Knicks having recently acquired their second round pick they will be looking to draft safe as they own no first rounder. Melvin Ejim is an NBA ready role player who can step in for the Knicks right away and provide them with solid rebounding, defense, and energy. This late in the draft most teams will be reaching simply for a future NBA player and Ejim could fit that mold as soon as next year for the Knicks, a safe pick.

 

Khem Birch: 55th Overall – Miami Heat

The Miami Heat’s needs for rebounding and shot blocking have been well noted. Late in the draft, Khem Birch could provide them with exactly that coming off the bench, and with Chris Anderson opting out and Joel Anthony being traded earlier in the year, Miami has room for him to make the roster as soon as next season.

 

Sim Bhullar: 58th or 60th Overall – San Antonio Spurs | 59th Overall – Toronto Raptors

Where Sim Bhullar will end up going in the draft is a difficult prediction. Realistically, he could go anywhere in the second half of the second round but I’m leaning towards the very end of the draft because of this year’s draft class’ depth. The San Antonio Spurs are well known for their exceptional player development, drafting presumed projects in the second round, and crafting them into solid NBA players. Since they own two of the final three picks in the draft, it is almost certain that they have thought of drafting Bhullar considering the potential he has to help them down the road. The Toronto Raptors own the 59th pick in the draft and it makes the most sense for Bhullar to end up with the Raptors here. He is a native of Toronto and the Raptors are also in need of a backup center who can play a few minutes while Valanciunas is resting and Dwayne Casey would like to remain big on the court.

 

Canadian NBA Draft History

 

For this to be the greatest Canadian NBA Draft Class ever, there must be historic records that are being broken. First, if Andrew Wiggins is selected first overall, it will be just the second time a Canadian is selected first overall (Anthony Bennett, 2013) and also the FIRST time in NBA history that in back-to-back years the first overall pick is from the same city (Toronto). For the first time in Canadian NBA history, there will be 3 players selected in the first round. For the first time in Canadian NBA history, there will be more than 2 players selected in the second round. And finally, the previous Canadian NBA record of 3 players being taken in one year’s draft will be broken, potentially doubled. Those records, along with many others, are just a foresight into the rise of Canadian basketball. Expect these records to be broken once again in the near future, maybe in one of the next few drafts even.

 

Three Point Dunk