What if: the 2003 NBA Draft, LeBron James and the Memphis Grizzlies
By Mike Parrott
On May 22, 2003, the Memphis Grizzlies lost out on a prized possession that would’ve changed their entire future: No. 1 pick, LeBron James.
Picture this: On the 22nd of May 2003, the NBA lottery went down to two teams—the Cleveland Cavaliers, being represented by Gordon Gund, and the Memphis Grizzlies, represented by the logo himself, Jerry West. This was a defining moment for two franchises. Cleveland with the chance to take the hometown icon, or another achievement in West’s career as a general manager by making the Grizzlies contenders for years to come by bringing in LeBron James.
In reality, the No. 1 pick went to Cleveland, and Memphis lost out on the second pick due to a pre-existing trade from 1997 (for some reason, the Grizzlies traded away a top-1 protected pick for Otis Thorpe. He stayed as Grizzly for one season).
Now it’s time to play the ‘what-if’ game. What if Memphis got some extra added luck and got the No. 1 pick? What would happen to all the LeBron James-to-Cleveland conspiracies? All will be covered when I play this ‘what-if’ game looking into the Grizzlies’ future for seven years.
And before I begin, the Grizzlies obviously take LeBron.