Re-draft 2003 NBA Draft

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Clippers NBA first round pick Chris Kaman, a 7–footer from Central Michigan, holding up his jersey, during press conference at Staples Center. (Photo by Ricardo Dearatanha/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) /

77. . C. Central Michigan. Chris Kaman. 6. player

While the Los Angeles Clippers have never exactly been the beacon of good drafting, they actually made a solid pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. With the No. 6 overall pick in the draft, the Clippers selected Central Michigan center Chris Kaman.

Even in the re-draft, this is the right pick for the Clippers at this spot. While they would struggle the following year, they would make a decent playoff run a few years later with Kaman at center and Elton Brand at the power forward spot.

Kaman would prove to be long term option at the center position and played a great deal of time for Los Angeles. He even got better as he aged and ended up making an All-Star appearance down the line.

Drafting a young man from Central Michigan may not have been the flashy pick, but it was the right pick at the time. The same scenario applied when the Phoenix Suns drafted Dan Majerle with their first pick in 1988.

There’s just something about taking someone from Central Michigan that ends up paying off in the first round of the NBA Draft. At the end of the day, he was a player that could be depended on and that was what the Clippers needed at that time.

Next: No. 7 Pick