21. Toronto Raptors: Chris Mihm
Mihm falls a long way from his actual No. 7 slot with the Bulls, but outside of two straight years as the full-time starting center for the Lakers, his career was short on accomplishments. Still, his run from 2004-05 to 2005-06 (10.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks on 50.4 percent shooting from the field) is more than enough to get him on the board here.
22. New York Knicks: Jason Hart
Hart played for nine teams in 10 seasons, not including his stop in Greece along the way. His best year was 2004-05 when he averaged 9.5 points and 5.0 assists in 74 games with the Charlotte Bobcats. He set single-game career highs with 21 points (March 23, 2005) and 15 assists (Dec. 21, 2004) that season.
23. Utah Jazz: DerMarr Johnson
There's an alternate timeline in which Johnson doesn't suffer a neck injury in a 2002 car crash, and he goes on to have a long, highly productive NBA career. That injury cost him the entire 2002-03 season, and though it's remarkable Johnson came back to play 194 games from 2003-04 to 2007-08, it's still hard to avoid thinking about what might have been.
A rangy 6'9", Johnson had a perimeter-oriented game and wasn't shy from deep. He hit 36.0 percent of his long-range shots in his second season.
24. Chicago Bulls: Primoz Brezec
Though he couldn't get on the floor in his first three seasons with the Pacers, Brezec blossomed once the Bobcats took him in the expansion draft prior to the 2004-05 season.
He averaged 13.0 points and 7.4 rebounds in his first year with Charlotte, then he backed that up with 12.4 points and 5.6 rebounds per game in 2005-06. Though he played parts of four subsequent seasons, those two years represented the entirety of Brezec's time as a productive center.
25. Phoenix Suns: Jake Voskuhl
The Suns didn't actually draft the UConn center, but Voskuhl spent the majority of his career and had his best seasons in Phoenix. So this one works out.
Never shy about delivering contact underneath, Voskuhl picked up 6.5 fouls per 36 minutes in his career, the most of any player in this class (among those who saw action in at least 100 games). His 54.4 career true shooting percentage was sixth among 2000 draftees.
It speaks to the value of big bodies when a player averages 4.0 points per game and sticks around for nine seasons.
26. Denver Nuggets: Marcus Fizer
Fizer's best season was his second with the Bulls when he averaged 12.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 76 games. Picked fourth overall in reality, he slides a long way here. Chicago was better with him on the floor in three of his four seasons there, but a torn ACL turned him into a journeyman following the 2003-04 campaign, landing him on the Bucks and Hornets before a globetrotting international career.
27. Indiana Pacers: Mark Madsen
28. Portland Trail Blazers: Courtney Alexander
Alexander had the shortest career of anyone in this re-draft, concluding his NBA days at age 25 after just three seasons and 187 games.
There was no denying his ability to get a bucket after he led the country in scoring for Fresno State in 1999-00, and he proved his point production translated to the NBA when he averaged 17.0 points in 27 games following a midseason trade to the Wizards in 2000-01. That hot stretch helped the 6'5" guard rank sixth in total points scored among rookies in 2000-01, but he was still out of the league by 2003.
29. Los Angeles Lakers: Jake Tsakalidis
The 7'2" Tsakalidas averaged 4.8 points and 3.9 rebounds for his career and was the starting center for some intriguing (and mostly forgotten) Suns teams that included Stephon Marbury, Anfernee Hardaway, Joe Johnson and a young Shawn Marion. He actually started over fellow Jake (Voskuhl).
From 2001-02 to 2002-03, Phoenix had over 14 feet of Jake in the middle. That has to be a record.
Voskuhl lasted two more years than Tsakalidis, but you could probably swap their re-draft slots without anyone noticing.
30. Los Angeles Clippers: Mateen Cleaves
Perhaps this is a sentimental pick as Cleaves only lasted six years and never topped the 5.4 points he averaged as a rookie with the Pistons. But the pass-first point guard deserves recognition for leading Michigan State to the 2000 national title and helping put Flint, Michigan, on the map as fertile ground for tough-minded hoopers.
The notoriously wild 2000-01 Clippers could have used the steadying presence of a decorated collegiate floor general.
