The 2022 NBA Draft’s top five picks felt like a sidekick draft

The 2022 NBA Draft’s starting lineup is exactly what we thought it would be with a zesty twist.Paolo Banchero, Jabari Smith, Chet Holmgren, Jaden Ivey, and Keegan Murray flew off the shelf to kick off the evening. After reports emerged earlier in the day that the Orlando Magic were sinking their hooks into Jabari Smith, an atom Woj bomb threw the top five into a blender. This top five may not emanate the death lineup aura that the 2018 Draft’s top five (Deandre Ayton, Marvin Bagley, Trae Young, Luka Dončić, and Jaren Jackson Jr.) radiated. We may not know for a few seasons if Banchero, Holmgren, Ivey, Murray, and Smith are the franchise cornerstones on their new teams, but they may be talented pillars besides their respective superstar teammates eventually.

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