Duke basketball: 2016 re-draft has Blue Devil going first

An NBA Blue Devil has earned the best-in-class distinction.

Former Duke basketball star Brandon Ingram (Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports)

If Brandon Ingram had gone No. 1 at the 2016 NBA Draft, Duke basketball alums would account for a third of the past dozen top selections. The Blue Devils who were first off the board in that span are Kyrie Irving (2011), Zion Williamson (2019), and Paolo Banchero (2022).

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Instead, after his one-and-done campaign in Durham, Ingram went No. 2 to the Los Angeles Lakers. Ben Simmons went No. 1 to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Fast forward six years. On Friday, Andy Bailey of Bleacher Report published his hypothetical 2016 re-draft and slid Ingram to the top spot while dropping Simmons to No. 5 overall. Jaylen Brown, Jamal Murray, and Dejounte Murray rounded out the top four.

Why did the Duke basketball product rise?

Interestingly, in last summer's edition, Andy Bailey kept point guard Ben Simmons at No. 1 with small forward Brandon Ingram at No. 5, even though the latter's scoring average was more than a point higher in 2020-21 than his 22.7 points per game in 2021-22.

It's worth noting, of course, that Ingram helped guide the Zion Williamson-less New Orleans Pelicans to an improbable appearance in the NBA Playoffs last season, their first postseason in four years. Meanwhile, Simmons, now with the Brooklyn Nets, sat out the entire campaign.

Bailey offered the following explanation for the 24-year-old Ingram, entering his fourth season as a teammate to Williamson in New Orleans, barely beating out Boston Celtics shooting guard Jaylen Brown for top honors in his re-draft:

"Ingram gets the nod here for a few reasons. First, and most importantly, he's shown significantly more as a facilitator. Brown is more of a finisher, and you need those as well, but they're often reliant on creators. Ingram may not be a point forward like LeBron James, but his playmaking is a lot closer to point forward status than Brown's is."

He continued:

"It almost feels nitpicky, but the two extra inches in height and three extra inches in wingspan help Ingram as well. That additional length can help him survey the floor and get jumpers off a bit easier against on-ball defense. And finally, there's Ingram's age. He's a year younger than Brown, which isn't a huge difference. But when the margins are this thin, that's a factor."

Although Brandon Ingram was the only Blue Devil who heard his name at the 2016 NBA Draft, two of his college teammates became first-round picks in the years that followed. Luke Kennard went No. 12 in 2017 to the Detroit Pistons, and Grayson Allen went No. 21 in 2018 to the Utah Jazz.

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