13th Is The Charm? Kobe Bryant, Devin Booker And Others Have Been Selected With The Pick The Pacers Have At 13

Many All-Stars, including Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns and the late Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers, have been selected with the 13th overall pick, which the Indiana Pacers have in the 2021 NBA Draft.

The Indiana Pacers have the 13th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, which takes place on Thursday evening. 

Ironically, many elite players have actually been taken with the pick that is just inside the lottery. 

Here is a look at the three best players to be taken with the 13th overall pick in the last 25-years: 

1.) Kobe Bryant: 

Bryant was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft and traded on draft night to the Los Angeles Lakers. The 18-time NBA All-Star spent his entire career with the Lakers and won five NBA Championships. He was also the 2008 MVP and won two Olympic gold medals with the Team USA Men's Basketball Team. 

2.) Devin Booker: 

Booker was the 13th overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft by the Phoenix Suns and made the playoffs for the first time in his career this past season. However, his first trip to the NBA Playoffs included a Western Conference Finals Championship and a trip to the NBA Finals. The scoring guard is already a two-time NBA All-Star and has a career average of 23.0 points per game. 

3.) Donovan Mitchell: 

Mitchell was the 13th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz and is a two-time NBA All-Star. He's been to the NBA Playoffs every season as a pro, and the Jazz were the number one seed in the Western Conference this past season. 

The entire list of players drafted 13th overall can be seen here from Basketball Insiders.