With the 2022 NBA season coming to a close it’s time to look at one of the more confusing NBA drafts in the 2020 NBA draft. There were many factors that added to the uncertainty of this draft class. There was no March Madness that year which was a problem as it cut their seasons short. They also had no summer league that year which also stunted their growth. Lastly, it was seen as a somewhat weak draft class with no clear first overall pick. Looking back on it there still seems to be no clear first overall pick. There’s an argument about if people would rather have Anthony Edwards or LaMelo Ball. Both compare very nicely with each other but are also very different players.
Who Should Be the First Pick From the 2020 NBA Draft?
The Real First Overall Pick
The Minnesota Timberwolves took Edwards with the first pick in the 2020 NBA draft. This was a highly debated pick as people saw Ball and even James Wiseman as players with higher potential. These concerns were valid as he struggled to stay engaged defensively and shot a poor 29% from three in college. Edwards did show some potential athletically with his speed and strength which made him shine when attacking the rim.
Edwards came into the league and immediately proved the haters wrong. Some of their critiques were valid as he shot below league average from three for the first half of his first year. His scoring slowly developed as his percentage and production went up in the second half of his first year. He ended that season with four 30+ point games. Since then Edwards has grown two inches, put up nine more 30+ point games, been the second star on a playoff-caliber team, and increased his skills on the defensive side of the ball. Edwards has shown that he has an argument for the best player in the draft and will be a force to reckon with for years to come.
The Debatable First Overall Pick
The only player in this draft class that can argue Edwards’ claim for being the best player in the draft class is Ball. Ball is the only player in the class with an All-Star to his name and has seen great team success in his first two years as the main guy on that team. His first year in the league was capped off with a Rookie of the Year, despite only playing 51 games. His points output was not enough to top Edwards, but his playmaking ability and team success more than made up for it. He ended up making the play-in game in back-to-back years, with high hopes of being a playoff team.
Ball is a natural facilitator with an ability to score the ball well. After Ball had an up-and-down performance in the National Basketball League in Australia, he was seen as an uncertainty. There were also attitude concerns because of being such a star at a young age with the show Ball in the Family. Overall he has shown he has the potential to be one of the most exciting point guards seen in recent years.
The Future of the 2020 NBA Draft Stars
Both Ball and Edwards have accomplished so much in their young careers. They also both have so much potential to be stars in this league. There is no right answer for who is the better player at the moment. Both do different things so well. Maybe one day there will be an obvious candidate for who is the best player from the 2020 NBA draft.
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