Ayton, Bagley, Bowie, Ellison, Milicic, and others would like a word.
I get what you are saying, but a large majority of draft picks end up just being "average" players if they are even able to get a second contract in the league. And you can bust high picks with the absolute best of intentions. So, no, draft picks aren't always worth "gold", especially in down draft years or if your GM makes the wrong decision.
This is like the glass half full/empty debate.
Of course when a franchise misses on draft picks they didn’t end up being worth much. However, in the hands of more capable people — the same picks could have been gold. That’s the point. Regardless, the draft has been and still remains the most effective way to acquire talent and do so while maintaining financial flexibility.
Ask San Antonio how much draft picks are worth. They built a long dynasty with them. Ask Sam Presti, who has stockpiled a ton of picks vs giving them all away, and has managed to build a contender. Ask Danny Ainge, who has a history of acquiring many picks and using them to build contenders. I don’t recall Jerry West trading away so many picks. The Bulls dynasty wasn’t built that way, and neither was the most recent Warriors dynasty.
It goes without saying that if a GM/franchise sucks at drafting talent — the draft picks can become meaningless. But that’s all via hindsight. Before they are used, they represent opportunity. Potentially big opportunity.
How many teams/franchises can you name that have built dynasties or even just been contenders for a multitude of years by trading 4-5 draft picks for players? The list is short. And the downside is potentially really really bad if it doesn’t work out.
Lastly, I’ll re-state that the draft picks are indeed gold. Because of the leverage and options they offer. I mean, using this very trade as example, the draft picks were worth enough to someone else to land a coveted player. Who himself was part of a megatrade that landed him in Brooklyn in the first place.
The real argument is whether the 5 picks and the swap and Bojan Bogdanovic are worth more than Mikal Bridges + SRP and the salary cap ramifications. I’d argue that it’s most likely that they will be. More championship teams have been built via using draft picks over the history of the NBA than by trading away multitudes of picks for a single player. There’s not many examples to cite in an argument against.
But if Minnesota, PHX, or NYK win a title any time soon, that’ll add to the list. But kinda like the prevailing public opinion that the Dodgers need to win a multitude of titles to validate the $$$ they spent on Ohtani, Betts, Freeman, Yamamoto, etc, I see this situation quite similarly. I don’t see a single title, if it happens, being worth destroying a decade or more of opportunities. But that’s just me.
