Seattle Exchanged Bobby Simmons Rights for Drobnjak
On the night of the 2001 draft, Seattle selected DePaul forward Bobby Simmons with the No. 42 pick and sent his draft rights to Washington. The SuperSonics instead received the rights to Predrag Drobnjak, whom Washington had originally drafted in 1997 while he was playing overseas. The Wizards wanted a fresh American wing prospect, while Seattle chose an international big man it could bring into an NBA frontcourt. Neither side received an established NBA veteran as part of the rights exchange.
Drobnjak Became a Real Seattle Frontcourt Contributor
Drobnjak joined the SuperSonics and appeared in 72 games as a rookie in 2001-02 before taking on an expanded role the next season. That concrete Seattle playing time is the central reason the team's C+ grade is defensible: the exchanged draft rights yielded immediate NBA minutes rather than only speculative overseas value. His tenure did not produce an elite starting center, which limits the victory margin. The stronger local return was a working rotation big, not an unfulfilled promise.
Washington Developed Simmons but His Peak Came Later
The Wizards acquired a second-round forward who had averaged 16.7 points at DePaul during his junior year, and Simmons later established himself in the NBA. His most notable scoring production, however, came with other franchises after the Washington phase of his career. The Wizards' C recognizes that they acquired a legitimate professional player without treating every later season as a Washington accomplishment. That team-specific distinction helps explain why Seattle receives the slight edge despite Simmons's wider career.
Final Verdict
Slight Seattle SuperSonics Edge. Seattle gets C+ for turning No. 42 Bobby Simmons' rights into Predrag Drobnjak's early-2000s frontcourt minutes. Washington receives C for Simmons, who later developed into a capable NBA wing. The Sonics realized the more direct return in their own uniform, though neither acquisition became a franchise star.