LA’s draft history: Ranking every #4 overall pick
4. Shaun Livingston
LA Clippers stats: 7.4 ppg, 4.8 apg, 3.1 rpg
During the early 2000s, primitive thinking surrounding high school ball players and their entrance into the NBA was long gone. After watching Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, and Tracy McGrady make the successful leap, more and more NBA scouts visited the idea. In 2004, drafting high school players became all the rage.
One year prior, in the 2003 NBA Draft, LeBron James was taken with the first overall pick. After dropping 25 points and dishing out nine assists in the first game of his career, on his way to winning Rookie of the Year, Shaun Livingston was given a long and strong look the followong year.
The lanky point guard was abnormally tall, standing at 6’7” with an explosive game. Unwilling to allow Livingston to slip through their fingers, LA grabbed him with the fourth overall selection in 2004. For most of his time there, Livingston was fairly pedestrian, although he was getting better.
- Year one: 7.4 ppg, 5.0 apg, 3.0 rpg
- Year two: 5.8 ppg, 4.5 apg, 3.0 rpg
- Year three: 9.3 ppg, 5.1 apg, 3.4 rpg
His progression, while minuscule, came to a screeching halt once Livingston suffered a devastating knee injury. He was never quite able to reach the lofty heights many were expecting from him but nonetheless, Livingston was a solid and respectable player in the league.