Kobe Bryant will play at Oracle Arena on Thursday night for the last time. Todd Fuller won't be there to see it. Nor will Dave Twardzik, the man who could have drafted Bryant for the Warriors 20 years ago but took Fuller instead.
It may stand as the greatest "what if" disaster in Warriors draft history. Twardzik, in his second year as general manager, not only passed on Bryant with the 11th pick in the 1995-96 draft, he declined to select other future standouts such as Steve Nash to take the 6-foot-11 Fuller, who flopped in the NBA after five undistinguished seasons and with the Warriors after two.