This Cavs' Pick Was Named Among Worst NBA Draft Blunders Ever

The Cavaliers took one of the biggest busts in NBA history, but it all worked out in the end.

Jun 27, 2013; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Anthony Bennett (UNLV) walks to the stage after being selected as the number one overall pick to the Cleveland Cavaliers during the 2013 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports / Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Cavaliers are getting set to pick 20th in the NBA Draft on Wednesday night. Well, that's if they don't ultimately trade the pick.

There was a time when the Cavaliers were a mainstay in the draft lottery. Fortunately for the city of Cleveland, things have changed, but the memories remain.

Let's recall the 2013 NBA Draft, for example.

The Cavs owned the No. 1 overall selection that June, and it was unquestionably one of the most unfortunate years to have a top pick in the draft. There was no consensus No. 1, and to this day, it is widely viewed as one of the worst draft classes ever.

Funny enough, the Cavaliers may very well have ended up with one of the least successful players in the group, even they they were picking at the top of the order.

Cleveland selected UNLV forward Anthony Bennett, who actually drew comparisons to Larry Johnson at the time. Looking back, the comparison should have stopped and ended at them both being UNLV products.

Kevin Druley of Deadspin dug up the more-than-a-decade-old history (man, has it been that long?) on Wednesday, listing the Cavs' selection of Bennett among the worst NBA Draft mistakes ever.

But was it really that big of a blunder?

Yes, in hindsight, selecting Bennett in a draft class that included Giannis Antetokounmpo looks like the error to end all errors. But Antetokounmpo went 15th overall that summer. There were many who liked his potential, but clearly, a whole lot of teams missed it on him.

And let's look at the rest of the best players in the class: Rudy Gobert, Victor Oladipo, CJ McCollum, Steven Adams, Kelly Olynyk, Dennis Schroder and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope are the biggest highlights.

Gobert went 27th overall. Oladipo could have been great, but injuries have derailed his career. The rest of those guys look more like the types of players where you would say, "Wow, I can't believe they got this guy in the second round. What a steal!" rather than them being the clear best players out of the 60 picks.

If you want to play armchair general manager with hindsight goggles, then sure. Go ahead and bemoan the fact that the Cavaliers selected Bennett over Antetokounmpo. But be real with yourself: you didn't know Giannis was going to be this good at the time (and I actually loved Antetokounmpo during that draft).

You also probably had no clue who Cleveland should have taken at No. 1, and when you heard then-commissioner David Stern say Bennett's name, you were probably like, "Eh, why not."

Plus, whoever else the Cavs would have taken instead of Bennett probably would have been traded for Kevin Love the following offeason anyway.

The Cavaliers dealt Bennett as part of a package that snared Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves during the summer of 2014, which also played a pivotal role in LeBron James' decision to re-join Cleveland in free agency. That resulted in the Cavs' first NBA championship two years later.

Yeah, Bennett was not a good NBA player. He lasted just four seasons and averaged 4.4 points per game while shooting 39.2 percent from the floor. But he really serves as nothing more than mere footnote in Cavaliers history.

Be honest with yourself: did you really care about Bennett after Cleveland signed James in 2014? And did you really concern yourself with how much of a bust Bennett was when the Cavs won the title in 2016?

Didn't think so.