Trust me when I say that not all of these draft classes have been in the last 20 years, but I believe that the 2011 draft class will be considered one of the elites after everyone retires.
To break this one up, I want to put the players into a couple different categories; stars, role players, and surprise players.
Also, from now on, I am going to implement a Draft Class MVP as well as a Draft Class Bust.
Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, Kemba Walker, Tobias Harris, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler Nicola Vucevic.
This list of stars is very very very stacked. Most of these players were actually drafted outside of the lottery, so they could technically be considered surprises. Only Kyrie, Kemba, and Klay were drafted in the lottery. These players have emerged as all stars and lead their teams, many to championships. Klay, Kyrie, and Kawhi all have won the NBA Championship, and Kawhi has been named Finals MVP twice. None of them have won MVP, but all have consistently made All-NBA teams and have thrived in the league. Kawhi Leonard has also been awarded Defensive Player of the Year award and is considered as one of the all-time greats as a defender.
Role Players:
Reggie Jackson, Marcus Morris, Markieff Morris, Brandon Knight, Nikola Mirotic, Kenneth Faried, Enes Kanter, Tristan Thompson, Davis Bertans.
This draft class is absolutely loaded with significant role players. Reggie Jackson has been an elite role player and has provided necessary offense off the bench which is crucial for contending teams. Also, this year, Marcus Morris and Davis Bertans have emerged as key players in the offense for their respective teams.
Surprise Players:
There are two main surprise players from this draft and they both come from the second round; the first pick of the second round and the last pick of the second round. Bojan Bogdanovic was the first pick of the second round and is currently KILLING it for the Utah Jazz. He is averaging 21 points and is shooting over 40% from 3. Isiah Thomas was the last pick of the second round and truly made a name for himself. Just a few years ago, he was considered a top 3 point guard in the league and averaged 27 ppg. He is truly a surprise because he is 5 foot 9 inches which is absolutely undersized in a league where the average height is around 6 foot 5 inches. Isiah beat the odds and became arguably the greatest 60th pick of all time.
Draft Class MVP: Kawhi Leonard (#15 Overall)
Draft Class Bust: Derrick Williams (#2 Overall)