Ranking the Last 10 Pacer Drafts
By Jared Wade
#2. 2008 NBA Draft
- Acquired Roy Hilbert (#17), Rasho Nesterovic, and Maceo Baston from Toronto Raptors for Jermaine O’Neal and Nate Jawai (#41)
- Acquired Brandon Rush (#13), Jarrett Jack, and Josh McRoberts for Jerryd Bayless (#11) and Ike Diogu
Bird´s never been much of schemer. He rarely involves himself in complex dealings, whether in the draft or later in the summer.
He is more of a straight shooter who looks at a draft pick as a chance to pick a good player more so than a theoretical asset that can be exchanged throuhg a stock-marketesque game of veiling and highlighting value.
In this respect, he is not Daryl Morey, Sam Hinkie, or even his co-worker Kevin Pritchard.
He is old school about the draft, which should surprise nobody.
That´s why the 2008 draft was so interesting.
Bird pulled off two major deals involving many moving parts. Really, the principles of the first transactions wasn´t that complicated — this is still Bird after all: He traded Jermaine O´Neal for Roy Hibbert. The rest of the deal was just contract filler.
The other one was bit less Bird-like, however.
Legend wanted him some Brandon Rush, who had just starred for the Kansas Jayhawks as they won the national title by knocking off John Calipari´s Derrick Rose-led Memphis Tigers.
Rush was a prototypical Bird guy: older, proven skills, from a collegiate powerhouse, an athletic two-way wing.
But it seems that when he found out Portland wanted the flashier Jerryd Bayless, he agreed to trade down a few picks and in the process he picked up a few assets. Really, it is quite impressive that he was able to squeeze out two players, in Jarrett Jack and Josh McRoberts, who would go on to start in many NBA games while also getting the guy he really wanted.
Basically, he gave up a Mazda Miata in exchange for a pickup truck, and that pickup truck came with a wheelbarrow and a bed full of firewood.
I´m burying the lede a bit here though.
This was The Draft The Pacers Got Roy.
Few teams saw as much in Hibbert as Bird did, and while parting ways with JO in 2008 wasn´t exactly trading Lew Alcindor in his prime, Bird saw the guy he liked and got it done.
A few years later, Roy was the best defensive anchor in the NBA as the Pacers made back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals.