“Two spots are mortal locks” - Nick Wright picks Giannis Antetokounmpo and 3x All-Star as players to start a franchise with

Analyst Nick Wright sparked debate on Twitter after choosing Giannis Antetokounmpo and Luka Doncic as his first two picks if the NBA had a re-draft.

Popular sports statistics company Statmuse tweeted a question asking its followers their order of picks if all players entered into a hypothetical draft today. They uploaded pictures of Antetokounmpo, Doncic, Jayson Tatum and Nikola Jokic while posing the question. Nick Wright, the Fox Sports analyst, quote-tweeted and gave his answer:

"It’s Giannis 1, Luka 2 and then the debate starts. But those two spots are mortal locks."

The question doesn't state whether the re-draft will feature players with their current age or whether everyone will hypothetically be of the age they were when they were drafted. Are we seeing a 38-year-old LeBron James or an 18-year-old one?

Most fans agreed that Antetokounmpo is one of the right choices for the first pick. The 27-year-old is already a member of the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team and has a resume longer than many Hall of Famers.

Doncic is an excellent answer, but suggesting he should be picked over established legends like Steph Curry, LeBron James and Kevin Durant has sparked discussions.

If we consider the players to be of their current age, then selecting Doncic makes a lot of sense. He is young and has over a decade of dominance ahead of him, while players like Curry, Durant and James are in their mid-to-late 30s.

But if we believe we are selecting players at the age they were initially drafted and watching their careers play out, then Curry and James are the ones to go for. The two future Hall of Famers will almost guarantee your franchise championship parades, high ticket and jersey sales along with MVP awards and scoring titles.

The Warriors were worth less than $500 million at the time Curry was drafted. Two MVP awards, two scoring titles, six Finals appearances and four championships later, they are worth nearly $5.6 billion. Meanwhile, James is in the GOAT discussion and has countless records and accolades.

Doncic might do the same for the Mavericks down the line, but picking him over Curry and James wasn't well received by many fans.

Giannis Antetokounmpo gets ready for EuroBasket 2022 with Greek National Team

Giannis Antetokounmpo representing Greece in the 2019 FIBA World Cup

Giannis Antetokounmpo is representing his home country, Greece, in the FIBA Basketball World Cup European Qualifiers, aka EuroBasket 2022. He has started working out with the team and is ready to take on Serbia in the second round of the competition on Aug. 25 in Belgrade.

The two teams are in Group I along with Latvia, Turkey, Belgium and Great Britain. Counting first-round games, Greece has a 3-1 record whereas Serbia has a 1-3 record. The Serbian National Team features the reigning NBA MVP, Nikola Jokic, and fans are excited for the battle between the two two-time MVPs.

Antetokounmpo's participation comes at a time when fans are afraid he might take his one-year sabbatical joke seriously. After Game 5 of the 2022 Eastern Conference semifinals, Antetokounmpo said he is considering taking one year off from the NBA and spending time with his family on a Greek island. He said:

"If I take a year off, what would I do? I would disappear. I would go to an island in Greece, stay with my family and disappear for a year. … I’m being serious."

The reporters in the news conference took the statement as a joke, but was it?