Everyone said the 2024 NBA Draft was going to be a disaster. A "historically weak" class. No stars. Just a bunch of role players and projects. Well, it's 2026 now, and honestly? The scouts weren't entirely wrong, but they weren't entirely right either. We're seeing that "bad" drafts don't actually exist; only "different" drafts do. While we aren't seeing a Victor Wembanyama-level supernova, the way we handed out 2024 NBA draft grades on draft night looks pretty hilarious in hindsight.
Context is everything. You've got guys who were mocked as "safe" picks struggling to stay in rotations, while "reaches" are suddenly looking like franchise cornerstones.
The Hawks and the Risacher Dilemma
Let's talk about the Atlanta Hawks. Taking Zaccharie Risacher at No. 1 was always a bet on a high floor. People wanted a star. They got a guy who, in his second season, is averaging around 12.7 points. It's not bad. But when you look at the guys who went right after him, the "B" grade Atlanta got from many outlets is starting to feel more like a "C-."
Why? Because Stephon Castle is currently tearing it up in San Antonio.
Castle has basically become the perfect sidekick for Wemby. He’s putting up roughly 18 points and nearly 8 assists a night. He’s a winner. When experts like Zach Lowe start saying it might be "too early but also not too early" to say the Hawks whiffed, you know the vibes are shifting. Risacher is a solid NBA player. He'll have a 12-year career. But was he the No. 1 pick? Probably not.
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Washington Actually... Won?
It feels weird to type that. The Washington Wizards and "winning" don't usually go in the same sentence. But Alex Sarr is making a lot of people eat their words.
Remember the 0-for-15 summer league game? The memes were brutal. Everyone gave the Wizards an "A" for potential but a "D" for immediate impact. Fast forward to now, and Sarr is putting up a 19/8/4 line. His mobility at 7 feet is just stupid. He’s guarding wings. He’s hitting face-up jumpers. He’s the modern NBA center prototype.
Washington also grabbed Bub Carrington and Kyshawn George in that same first round. Both are legit rotation pieces now. For a team that was a total dumpster fire, their 2024 draft haul is arguably the best in the league.
The Memphis Grizzlies and the Zach Edey Factor
This was the most polarizing pick of the night. People hated it. "He's too slow," they said. "He's a dinosaur."
Wrong.
Zach Edey has been a monster for Memphis. He’s basically the new-age Steven Adams but with a better offensive touch. He sets screens that feel like car crashes. He’s averaging a double-double when healthy and his advanced impact metrics are through the roof. Memphis didn't need a superstar; they needed a mountain. They got one.
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Mid-First Round Steals
Sometimes the best 2024 NBA draft grades belong to the teams that didn't even have a lottery pick.
- Dalton Knecht (Lakers): How did he fall to 17? Honestly. He was a 23-year-old "plug and play" wing who is currently one of the best shooters in the league. The Lakers got an absolute gift.
- Jared McCain (76ers): Despite some injury hiccups, McCain has proven he’s more than just a TikTok star. His shooting gravity is real, and he’s a perfect fit next to Embiid.
- Kel'el Ware (Heat): Everyone questioned his motor. Then he got into the "Heat Culture" blender and came out as a double-double machine. Spoelstra found another one.
What We Got Wrong About the "Weak" Label
The biggest misconception was that "no superstars" equals "no value."
This draft was deep in a way people didn't appreciate. Look at the second round. Jamal Shead went 45th and is now arguably one of the best backup point guards in the NBA. Jaylen Wells (pick 44) is top 10 in some defensive metrics. These aren't just warm bodies; they are winning players.
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We expected a desert. We got a forest of very useful trees.
The Disappointments (For Now)
It’s not all sunshine. Reed Sheppard has had a rocky start in Houston. It’s crowded there. There’s no room for him to make mistakes, and for a high-IQ shooter, that’s a tough environment. Ron Holland in Detroit is another one—the "Bruce Brown" comparisons are there, but the jumper is still... well, it's a work in progress.
And then there's Rob Dillingham. Minnesota traded a future first to get him at No. 8. He spent most of his rookie year on the bench. In year two, he's still struggling to find minutes behind Mike Conley and Anthony Edwards. It’s a classic case of a talented player in a "win-now" situation that doesn't have time for his defensive lapses.
Actionable Insights for Future Draft Cycles
If you're looking at draft grades in the future, keep these three things in mind:
- Ignore "Upside" if there's no "Feel": Players like Castle and Edey succeeded because they understand the game, even if their "ceiling" was supposedly lower than the raw athletes.
- Context is King: A "B" grade pick on a bad team (Sarr) might look like an "A+" because of opportunity. A "A" grade pick on a contender (Dillingham) might look like a "D" because they never play.
- The Second Year is the Real Draft: Don't judge a class by the first six months. The jump from year one to year two—the "Sophomore Leap"—is where the real stars of the 2024 class like Sarr and Castle truly revealed themselves.
Check the current rotation stats for the 2024 class on Basketball-Reference to see how the PER (Player Efficiency Rating) of these sophomores compares to the 2023 class at the same stage. You'll find the gap is much smaller than the "weak draft" narrative suggested.