You know we're reaching peak offseason content (or lack thereof) when Bill Simmons of The Ringer is rounding up some of his pals to do a redraft of the 2020 class in late July.
But that's exactly what he did recently, and in doing so he forced Phoenix Suns' fans to once again contend with the fact they selected Jalen Smith 10th overall and likely cost themselves a championship.
Smith over Tyrese Haliburton a shocking mistake that won't go away
As Simmons confidently pointed out when talking about what a devastating decision this was, the Suns ended up making the NBA Finals anyway, and he was sure Haliburton could have helped swing one of the six games their way off the bench and change the outcome of the series.
For those trying to cope by pointing out that Haliburton spent that campaign with the Sacramento Kings and that it took a couple of years to become the offensive darling we know him as now, can we offer one counter-point.
Chris Paul.
The "Point God" was able to make Bismack Biyombo look like prime Dwight Howard on some nights, and essentially every teammate he ever had looked and played better when he was on the court.
Haliburton wouldn't have been any different, and if anything the prospect of him playing 15 minutes each game of the series alongside Paul and Devin Booker only feels worse when you really think about it now.
A championship in 2021 basically confirms Booker will stay in The Valley for life having brought them to the promised land, while Mat Ishbia perhaps would not have bought the franchise if the valuation increased as a result.
Even if that did happen and the Suns decided to go after Kevin Durant anyway, that experiment may have been given more time to blossom. Booker would already have his ring and Durant would be pushing hard to get his first away from the Golden State Warriors, but there would have been much less pressure to succeed.
A crazy what if scenario based entirely on not taking Haliburton, but we are going to end on a positive.
The organization having done a much better job in back-to-back drafts of taking the right guys in Khaman Maluach and Koa Peat.
A championship with them playing an important role still feels a million miles away, but we can't go back in time and Simmons dredging up past mistakes doesn't help matters either. The only way is up, we think...
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