The first round of the NBA Draft has come and gone, and let's be honest. It was rather uneventful. There were no players with superstar potential in this draft, only one major trade (if we can call it that) went down in the draft itself, and the most intriguing player, Bronny James, was not selected.
Bronny remaining on the board isn't much of a surprise, and it also gives NBA fans more of a reason to watch the second day of the NBA Draft. That's right. The NBA has split the draft up into two days for the first time, which is an interesting experiment, to say the least.
Adam Silver, as usual, called the names of those selected in the first round, but he will not be calling the names of those picked in the second round of the draft. That responsibility is in the hands of the NBA's Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum.
Who is Mark Tatum?
Tatum was appointed as the NBA's Deputy Commissioner in 2014, and has been running the second round of the NBA Draft ever since. From Nikola Jokic, to Mitchell Robinson, to Nic Claxton, Tatum has shaken the hands of several quality NBA players at the podium.
While he's been in his current role since 2014, Tatum has been in the NBA since 1999. Here's how NBA.com describes his current duties.
Tatum, who joined the NBA in 1999, is responsible for the NBA's business operations, including leading the league's international efforts. He oversees the Global Partnerships, Marketing, Communications, Events, Global Strategy & Innovation and Team Marketing & Business Operations, Data & Analytics, and New Business Ventures departments in addition to the NBA G League.
In addition to calling the second round of the NBA Draft, Tatum is the one who reads out the order of the NBA Draft Lottery. He was the one congratulating Landry Fields when the Hawks won the No. 1 overall pick.
He might not be well-known, but Tatum is very involved. He's more involved than fans might give him credit for. NBA fans should tune into the second round to see if he'll shake Bronny James' hand on Thursday afternoon.