Kevin Love has been slotted second in a 2008 NBA re-draft, behind former UCLA teammate Russell Westbrook and ahead of a class that still includes several major names. The ranking, based on what each player became, gives Love the kind of retrospective lift that only comes years after a draft night has passed and the careers are already written.

That is a long way from the night the Memphis Grizzlies took Love fifth overall in the 2008 NBA Draft, only to trade his rights for O.J. Mayo. In the re-draft, the case for Love starts with the numbers and ends with the resume: 15.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, with shooting splits of 43.7% from the field and 36.9% from three. Those are the marks of a player who was not just productive, but unusually complete for a big man.

Love’s path was also shaped before he ever reached the NBA. He played at UCLA with Westbrook and Darren Collison, and the Bruins reached the Final Four in both seasons Westbrook was there. That college connection matters in the re-draft because Westbrook is the only player placed ahead of Love, and the comparison hinges on how each man translated his game from school to the pros.

The argument for Love is not subtle. He was described as a preposterously good scorer and rebounder at his peak, a floor-spacing big man with crazy face-up scoring abilities. HoopsHype’s framing of him as “a college teammate of Westbrook” who had done enough to be considered the second-best player in the draft class captures the basic logic: Love’s best years gave evaluators more than one elite skill to point to, and that is rare enough to change the order long after the draft has ended.

There is also the part of the story that made the re-draft easier to accept. Love acclimated well to a tertiary role with the Cleveland Cavaliers, helping them win the 2016 championship. That matters because it keeps him from being remembered only as a numbers star on weaker teams; he also proved he could fit next to other stars and still affect a championship run.

For all the hindsight baked into any re-draft, Love’s case is still rooted in a simple fact: the player taken fifth in 2008 turned out to be one of the most efficient and adaptable frontcourt talents of his era. The Grizzlies made the pick, traded the rights, and moved on. Love kept building a career that now looks better with every year the draft recedes into the background.