NFL
By Keith Richards
The WWE Draft 2023 has come to a close! There were some expected WWE Draft picks, some unexpected WWE Draft picks, and some WWE Draft picks that just didn’t make any sense. Either way, WWE Draft 2023 is sure to shake up the brands for the foreseeable future. So, what were the best and worst picks of the WWE Draft for each brand? That’s what we’re here to discuss!
The Best of Raw
The Raw brand had a great 2023 WWE Draft! Not long before the draft, Triple HHH unveiled the new, beautiful, WWE World Heavyweight Championship. More importantly, before the WWE Draft, Triple HHH stipulated that whatever brand the WWE Undisputed Universal Champion, Roman Reigns, was not drafted to would be the exclusive brand of the new title.
Not So Spoiler Alert: Reigns was the first overall pick to Smackdown. So, Raw will be the home of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. This means Raw’s WWE Draft picks on the men’s side held huge implications for potential holders of that title. Without further ado, here are the best of the 2023 WWE Draft picks for Raw.
1. Imperium
Ludwig Kaiser. Giovanni Vinci. And the Intercontinental Champion, GUNTHER! Since Gunther won the IC title and reformed Imperium, they have been one of the best and arguably underrated stables in WWE. For lack of a better phrase, Gunther has made the IC title great again.
The Ring General appears to be in line for the top dog championship and the new World Heavyweight Championship has to be in his sights now. Imperium will turn Raw on its head. Gunther will immediately compete with the American Nightmare for the spot of top dog. They may not be booked as such now, but Kaiser and Vinci have plenty of potential to be a top tag team as well. It was a phenomenal pick for Raw in the WWE Draft.
2. Katana Chance and Kayden Carter
Katana and Kayden bring something to Raw that is sorely missing: More legitimate women’s tag teams. Though Raquel Rodriguez and Liv Morgan currently hold the title (and are growing as a team), teams like Chance and Carter can bring more legitimacy to the women’s tag division. They were NXT Women’s Tag Champs and continued to be a force in the division after losing the titles. It was another great, arguably underappreciated, pick for Raw in the WWE Draft.
3. Seth “Freakin’” Rollins
OOOOOOOOOOOOOO! WHOA-OOOOOOOOOO!!! Monday Night Raw will remain Monday Night Rollins. This was a pick that Raw had to make in the WWE Draft. When it was made clear the new title would be with Raw, it’s where The Visionary needed to be. Seth is right up there with Gunther as a favorite to take that title. He’s carried that show for a long time and deserves his flowers once more. The Raw crowd will look forward to continuing to sing his song.
The Best of Smackdown
1. LA Knight
YEAH!!! Let me talk to ya! Some wrestlers are over for no other reason than charisma. LA Knight is one of those wrestlers. Let’s be serious. It will be a couple of months at least before Roman loses those titles. Until then, there is going to need to be something else that keeps people tuned in. Knight fits that bill. He’s a crowd-pleaser and above-average wrestler that can be a ratings magnet if given the opportunity. YEAH!!
2. Bobby Lashley
This was an almighty pick for Smackdown in the WWE Draft. With Rhodes and Rollins not drafted to Smackdown and Imperium leaving, there’s not much competition for The Tribal Chief. Enter Lashley. Though it’s difficult to see Lashley dethroning Roman at this point, he easily becomes one of the best faces Smackdown has to offer to pit against Reigns. The crowd loves him and has the chops to go toe-to-toe with Roman.
3. Grayson Waller
Grayson Waller may have been one of the last picks of the WWE Draft, but he has one of the highest ceilings all the same. If they wanted, Waller and LA Knight could immediately kick off a fantastic feud as they have an NXT history. There are few up-and-comers better on the mic than Waller. In fact, the only one that might be better is LA Knight. Grayson has tremendous heel potential and could easily carry a mid-card title well.
The Worst of Both
Now that we’ve covered the best of the WWE Draft, we’ll cover the three worst across both brands.
• Cody Rhodes – I don’t understand this pick for Cody back to Raw. The feud with Reigns was just in its infancy and had the potential to be great. Assuming brand wrestling will be tighter now, Cody now cannot finish the story. It’s WWE World Heavyweight Championship or bust. And, if I’m being honest, I think Gunther and Rollins are more deserving of that title.
• Bianca Belair and Rhea Ripley – Belair and Ripley are the Raw and Smackdown Women’s Champions respectively. Even though Rhea just won the Smackdown title…she was drafted to Raw in the WWE Draft. You know? The brand that Biana has held its title for a year now. It’s just stupid! Now, there will be a stupid title swap again. It would have been much easier to just move Judgement to Smackdown.
• Karion Kross and Scarlett – Kross just started, or appeared to start, a feud with Shinsuke Nakamura. Now, in less than a week, they will be on different brands due to the WWE Draft. So…what was the point? There’s not anyone on Smackdown you can see him having a good feud with. So, again, what’s the point?
The new WWE Draft rosters go into effect on May 8th after WWE Backlash. Then, Night of Champions and the crowning of the new champion shortly after. Team NBS will be here to cover it all! Don’t miss out!
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