The star power of Tyrese Haliburton today sees a few teams clearly regretting passing on him in the 2020 NBA Draft. A new story has emerged from Haliburton that makes it clear that he fully expected the Golden State Warriors to draft him. The Warriors ultimately selected draft bust James Wiseman with the second overall pick, and Haliburton dropped all the way to 11th overall via the Sacramento Kings.
A new interview with the Numbers on the Board podcast featured Haliburton sharing the story:
“My Golden State workout, that was the best workout of my life. I swear I didn’t miss. Steve Kerr stepped into my workout and was like, ‘He needs to do conditioning shooting. We need to see it full court.’ And then I didn’t miss again. I was like, ‘They’re drafting me at 2.’ Then in the interview, they were like, ‘We know you fit us perfectly. We know you fit us perfectly, but we don’t know if we could draft you at 2.”
Haliburton believed that his great workout and meeting with Golden State would have led to him getting drafted by a winning franchise. However, things would turn out differently for both sides. Haliburton only spent a few seasons in Sacramento and ended up on the Indiana Pacers where he’s become a franchise player.
Why Golden State Warriors Didn’t Draft Tyrese Haliburton
Haliburton passed all tests to impress the Warriors, but they still drafted for the best possible fit. Both Haliburton and LaMelo Ball have now been named as guards that Golden State considered before settling on Wiseman.
The idea of drafting another point guard when you already have Stephen Curry on the roster is a risk in itself. The Warriors didn’t wait to add Haliburton to a situation where he wouldn’t develop since the ball is in Curry’s hands most of the time.
Haliburton did cite that Curry can play off the ball, but Golden State was planning to contend for more titles. Letting a rookie guard run the offense over Curry and Draymond Green felt unlikely at the time. Wiseman was drafted since the Warriors lacked a center and already had the point guard situation filled.
Warriors Should Have Went With Instinct
Haliburton revealed that he had the best workout with Golden State to the point where they talked about how perfectly he would fit their franchise. The truth in Haliburton’s talent would have worked far better than taking the chance on Wiseman’s talent.
Wiseman did not play a noteworthy role in the Warriors 2022 NBA Championship run and couldn’t outplay limited role player Kevon Looney. Haliburton likely would have been a good bench piece for that team and still found a way to develop due to his pure talent.
Golden State would be in a far better position today with Curry having a real co-star. Haliburton has led his Pacers team to the NBA Finals and fell just one game short of upsetting the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Warriors missed out on a new young star in favor of betting on Wiseman.
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