Golden State Warriors: 15 greatest draft steals in franchise history

The best way to describe the 1978 NBA Draft would be “meh”. Outside of Hall of Famers Larry Bird, who the Boston Celtics took No. 6 overall, and Maurice Cheeks, who the Philadelphia 76ers snagged in the second round, most of this class peaked out as useful role players.

Considering that the Warriors were one of five teams that passed on Bird, they hardly get a pass for their choices in this draft. However, they made out better than the other teams in the top-five by taking Jackson State swingman Purvis Short.

Short, best known for the majestic rainbow arch on his jump shots, spent his first nine seasons with the Warriors. While four of those seasons were spent as a sixth man, he still got enough minutes to show off his propensity for getting buckets, especially via the mid-range jumper.

He was seemingly at the peak of his powers in 1984-85, his fourth season as a full-time starter, as he averaged a career-high 28.0 points per game on 53.3 percent true shooting. But those numbers should serve as a cautionary tale for anyone who puts too much stock in basic per game calculations.

That 1984-85 Warriors team, in which Short was the featured option on offense, ranked only 15th out of 23 teams in points per 100 possessions. Advanced numbers weren’t as kind either, as Short only registered an 18.9 PER and .097 WS/48, despite his gaudy scoring figures.

If you peruse YouTube in search of Short highlights, like this one, you’ll quickly discover the reason for the disparity (unless you think analytics are hogwash): Short was a craftier version of the other high-volume shooters on this list who offered little outside of the plethora of inefficient 2’s that he adored (how else would he show off that rainbow shot, though?).

Still, he enjoyed a more fruitful career than the likes of Phil Ford, Ricky Robey and Micheal Ray Richardson, so that qualifies him as a steal in this author’s book.