NBA: Stephen Curry headlines a redrafting of the 2009 draft class

5. Minnesota Timberwolves (from Washington) – DeMar DeRozan, USC

With the 5th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, the Minnesota Timberwolves select DeMar DeRozan.

The rest of the players in this list are legitimate All-Star and All-NBA level players. DeMar DeRozan fits that bill to a T. For his career, DeRozan averages 20 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists on 46-28-83 shooting splits, and a PER of 18.2. While not a terrific shooter from 3-point range, DeRozan has been hailed as one of the best mid-range players in the last 10 years. And DeRozan has been incredibly durable throughout his career, missing just 54 total games in 11 seasons, the value of which cannot be understated.

DeRozan’s resume includes being a four-time NBA All-Star and making the All-NBA team twice. He made his first All-Star team with Toronto during the 2013-14 season. That was the season that he really took his step and has been here ever since. Then in 2016-17, DeRozan made his first All-NBA team, averaging 27.3 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.9 assists in a year that could be regarded as the best year of his career to this point.

In July of 2018, DeRozan was involved in a trade that sent him to San Antonio in exchange for Kawhi Leonard. Since then, his scoring has dipped a little bit, averaging 21.6 points per game. However, he saw career-high averages in both assists (6.2) and rebounds (6.0) in his first season with the Spurs, and remained high through his second season at 5.6 and 5.6, respectively.

While the Raptors went on to win their first NBA championship with Kawhi in 2019, DeRozan’s value should not be overlooked, as he has consistently been a top 20-25 player in the league for the last six or seven seasons. In the 2009 redraft, the T-Wolves take DeMar Derozan with the fifth pick.