The Detroit Pistons need look no further than this year’s NBA Finals for a blueprint for small market teams.
The Denver Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat in five games to win their first NBA championship. Of the best players on the court in any of those games, only Jamal Murray, 7th overall, was drafted in the top ten.
Nikola Jokic, the best player in the series and perhaps the world (at the moment), was drafted 41st during a Taco Bell commercial. The Heat fielded a team of overlooked talent including Jimmy Butler (30th), Bam Adebayo (14th), and undrafted players Caleb Martin, Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Duncan Robinson, and Udonis Haslem’s 29.