Chris Livingston’s Bizarre Journey to NBA Might not Last Long Based on History of 58th Pick in Draft

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Chris Livingston’s basketball journey has been full of highlights and expectations but NBA draft night certainly was bizarre for him.

He was the 58th — and last — pick of the draft by the Milwaukee Bucks. That’s not what most expected when Livingston emerged as one of the nation’s best high school players. Many figured he might be one-and-done at Kentucky but it would be because he was a first-round choice.

Instead, he was good but not great at Kentucky last year when he started 26 games and averaged 6.3 points and 4.2 rebounds in 22 minutes per game. He shot 43 percent from the field — only 30 percent from 3 — and his best game was a 10-point, 15-rebound outing against Florida.

He was not projected by many mock drafts to even be drafted yet he left his name in the draft and never seemed to have any real intention of being back at UK. Rumors swirled that Klutch Sports, his agency, was not happy with the way coach John Calipari used his talents at Kentucky.

There was buzz Thursday during the draft that agent Rich Paul was telling teams not to pick Livingston in the second round because he had a specific team he wanted to play for. Apparently that team was Milwaukee and Paul and his agency didn’t mind Livingston being the final pick in the draft.

But it gets even better. Callipari was at the draft and was very visible after UK freshman Cason Wallace was picked 10th. Calipari tweeted he was leaving the draft and wished Livingston and Oscar Tshiebwe good luck since they were not at the draft as they waited to see where they would be picked.

However, it turns out that Livingston was in Brooklyn at the draft. How could Calipari not know that? Did Klutch Sports not want Calipari to know or did Calipari maybe not want to be around that agency, especially with the recent drama with new Wildcat Aaron Bradhsaw’s foot/ankle injury?

“I am so happy for Cason and Chris to be drafted,” Calipari tweeted Friday morning. “We had some miscommunication and I didn’t realize Chris was at Barclays until I saw him on TV. I let him know last night that I would’ve stayed and sat with him if I had realized he was there.”

Livingston had told Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal for a story June 21 that he was excited about his pre-draft workouts that played a “major role” in his decision to keep his name in the draft. He said he shot the ball well which he knew he needed to do to impress NBA teams.

“Just me ultimately knowing that I’m prepared to be a part of the NBA, just understanding how ready I am, the type of player I am, seeing how my game translates to the next level and also just wanting to fulfill a long-term goal,” Livingston told Ulrich. “This has been a goal of mine my whole life, so I’m kind of just taking advantage of the moment, taking advantage of my opportunity and just taking that step forward in my life. It’s what I wanted to do.

Maybe it will work out for him but Sporting News national columnist Mike DeCourcy — who said two months ago that Livingston should return to UK and become a first-round pick in 2024 — noted that the 58th pick in the draft has an “abysmal” NBA track record.

“The first player taken at that number was Don Reid, in 1995, out of Georgetown. He played eight seasons and scored 1,454 career points. He’s the only player taken at 58 to reach even 1,000 career points,” DeCourcy wrote. “Remember, that’s what Jayson Tatum gets in less than half a season.

“Only one other player has reached even five seasons. Thirteen taken in the same spot as Livingston never played a single NBA game.”

The Sporting News columnist praised Livingston’s devotion to defense and team-oriented play but also pointed out the obvious.

“How many times does the NBA select a wing player in the NBA Draft who averaged single-figure scoring as a collegian? You’re free to do the research on that. Pretty sure the answer to that is ‘zero,’” DeCourcy wrote.

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You can read DeCourcy’s entire story here.