In 2019, the Spurs selected Luka Samanic with the 19th pick in the first round of the NBA Draft. If we were to do it all over again, he wouldn't be picked in the first round at all—that much I agree with Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes about. Unfortunately, that's where it stops. After skipping down to see [who he had going to San Antonio](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/25293705-2019-nba-re-draft-would-zion-williamson-ja-morant-still-go-top-2) at 19, I nearly gasped from the shock. (That may be a little dramatic, but still.)
Jordan Poole originally wasn't taken until the 28th pick that summer. If he were to make his way up the board, it wouldn't have been Brian Wright to give him a hand. He doesn't fit the culture. Unfortunately, we wouldn't even be able to add Keldon Johnson, based on Hughes' list. KJ was taken by Detroit with the 15th pick. So, the question is, who would have been good for Alamo City?
Goga Bitadze would have made a good backup for the Spurs
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DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge were still on the roster in the 2019-2020 season, so there wasn't much room in the starting lineup for a late first-round pick in what ended up being a very hit-or-miss draft. Well, Bryn Forbes was the starting shooting guard that year, so I guess that could have been better. But there wasn't a player available to solve that problem at that spot.
Aldridge and Jakob Poeltl played the bulk of the minutes at center, but Bitadze didn't play a ton of minutes as a rookie in Indiana anyway. He averaged eight minutes a night. San Antonio definitely could have found that for him in the lineup, taking some time away from guys like Trey Lyles and Drew Eubanks.
The Georgian big man would have come in handy soon enough, with LaMarcus only playing 21 games for the Silver and Black the following year before being bought out and signing with Brooklyn. Goga isn't going to light up the scoreboard, but he's efficient around the rim and a good defender. He also would have added to the international flavor that San Antonio is known for, so that wouldn't have hurt, either.
Hughes had Cody Martin going to the Spurs at 29, and I would have been fine with that had KJ not been available. What to do with SA's first selection that summer just seems to baffle everyone, though.
In regard to the real draft that year, the Spurs did fine by adding Keldon Johnson with the 29th pick, but it's the 19th selection that really ground the gears of Spurs fans. Luka Samanic had a bunch of hype that amounted to a big, fat nothing. Nobody nails the draft 100% of the time, but if Brian Wright could go back and change any of his picks, [Luka is probably high on his list](https://airalamo.com/spurs-draft-day-busts-worse-fans-remember), along with Josh Primo, of course.