Evolution Schematic 06.06.07: WWE Drafting (Part 2)
Posted by Mathew Sforcina on 06.06.2007
Everyone's gone Draft Daft! (See what I did there?)
Writer's Notes
A thought occurs. Perhaps my column needs a banner, a heading picture to signify it's status. A further thought occurs. Since my artistic ability is zero squared, perhaps you, my ‘loyal' reader could make me one. I'll leave it open-ended so as to not limit your creativity. Go nuts. Winner get a lovely warm glow at making a picture heading I like.
This is Part 1. In it, we examined the Draft that created the brands. And now, we look at the rest of them.
Phase 2- The Shake Up.
While after the initial draft many wrestlers changed brands, they were not drafted, they made their own choices to switch brands. One could argue that the Big Show for D-Von Dudley/Al Snow/Maven/Ivory/Val Venis trade was technically a draft, but it lacked the spirit that marks WWE Drafts, in that it was not random, nor was it in a period of time after a draft for trading, hence it does not count.
(At least, I'm not counting it because I'd be here for days recapping all the switches. Maybe for Version 2.0 if you're lucky.)
But, in the days after Wrestlemania XX, Vince McMahon, sole owner of WWE, wanted to shake everything up, since everything had begun, again. A bit of odd English, but you understand the gist.
So, the two General Managers, Raw's Eric Bischoff and Smackdown's Paul Heyman (which, as a side note, was a very telling situation, while it lasted, as Vince had the two men who came closest to killing his company working for him and against each other, in a very symbolic and telling situation) were each given a tumbler containing every on air talent in the other brand's roster. Wrestlers, divas, champions, General Managers, the lot. And so the 2004 Draft was set.
Since the draft was to be held on Raw, they would go second and thus get the last pick, each brand getting to draw six names out of the barrel, gain their services, then have until midnight to trade anyone they wished. So, Paul Heyman drew the first name…
Smackdown Pick #1- René Duprée.
And he was slightly disappointed, but still somewhat pleased. After all, this was a young stud, yet to fully achieve his potential, and also he got to split up one of Raw's factions, La Resistance, which was a major plus. Anything that disrupted and altered Eric Bischoff's show was fine by him.
Raw Pick #1- Shelton Benjamin.
Eric's first draw was, in many respects, a mirror image of Smackdown's. Another young, hungry rookie, breaking out of a tag team, ready to take the world on in a new brand. Of course, whereas Rene faltered and took misstep after misstep, Shelton came out swinging, and soon gained pinfall victories over Triple H, thus quickly cementing himself into Raw's upper echelon, albeit down low in the upper echelon.
Smackdown Pick #2- Mark Jindrak.
This was a rather lowly pick for Heyman. While Mark was certainly well put together, and was another young gun albeit one with a bit more experience under his belt from his time in WCW…It was still Mark Jindrak. Not exactly a name to set the world on fire.
Raw Pick #2- Nidia.
This was a ‘look at the bright side' pick for Bischoff. Yes, he would have probably been much more pleased to draw an Undertaker or a John Cena or a Kurt Angle, but out of all the minor players on Smackdown, he got one of their hot women, who seemed very happy to be on Raw and thus be able to go after the Women's Title, and thus he gained a happy, productive and profitable employee, since anything Diva related sells. Hence while Paul wished her goodbye and ‘hoped she went blind again'. Thus, at this point, Eric was doing well. And then came John Cena.
Smackdown Pick #3- Triple H.
John Cena, at this point, was a disrespectful rapping punk only out for himself.
Wait, let me clarify.
John Cena was a disrespectful rapping punk looking out for himself whom the fans, be they male, female, child or other, loved.
So, naturally, if he was to be at Raw, he'd come out and cut a rap about how he was good and everyone else sucked. And he then drew a ball for Paul Heyman, then left. Paul wanted to redo it, did not want to take John's ball, but Eric Bischoff insisted Paul take it. So Paul opened it up, and told Eric that, if he was sure, he'd happily take Triple H.
Cue spit take.
Thus Eric's night turned from great to terrible. His next pick did not make up for the loss.
Raw Pick #3- Rhyno.
Yes, Rhyno was a former World Champ, if you count the ECW title as a World Title. Yes, he was a powerhouse of a man, a beast. Sure, he's a solid guy. But when you've lost Triple H, Rhyno does not exactly cut it. Especially as Eric gained a lesser ECW Vet for a much bigger one. The fact that Bischoff had granted him a World Title match that night before drawing the name did ensure Rhyno was happy to join the brand, so at least he got some positive out of it.
Smackdown Pick #4- Rob Van Dam.
RVD was at this point teaming with Booker T, but Mr. Monday Night, soon to be Mr. Thursday Night, was all too happy, once he got over the shock, to get shifted to Smackdown. After all, it meant he was now working for Paul Heyman again, albeit Paul Heyman with someone else writing the checks, and if anyone brought out the absolute best in RVD, it was Heyman and his Kool Aid. Of course, Heyman must have wished he had draw the name a little earlier, since mere moments before he drew RVD's name he and Booker lost Raw's Tag Titles to Batista and Ric Flair.
Raw Pick #4- Tajiri.
The ECW flavor continued as Raw drafted the Japanese Buzzsaw Tajiri. This was, admittedly, a bit of a coup, as it broke up Kyo Dai on Smackdown, and out of all the Cruiserweights on Smackdown, Tajiri probably had the best track record with fighting in the heavyweight division. And the Mist thing was popular with the kiddies. But still, Eric was not happy. Another chance to draw a big name back was wasted. He only had two more.
Smackdown Pick #5- Theodore Long.
This was a pick that is much more significant in retrospect than at the time. While Heyman was quite pleased to have such an odd-ball draft come his way, in that he respected and liked Long as a negotiator and manager and felt he could offer Smackdown a level of gravitas it otherwise lacked, the fact is that this is more important because this led to Long eventually gaining the position of Smackdown GM, after a few iterations. Long's eventual post was only possible because he was drafted here.
Raw Pick #5- Edge.
So very, very close. The fact that, at the time, Edge was injured did not concern Bischoff. He was aware Edge was due back from injury any day now. And certainly this draft made up, somewhat, for the loss of Triple H. Of course, at the end of the night Eric Bischoff got speared out of his boots by Edge, but at the time he drew the name it was a good thing. Just not a great thing.
Smackdown Pick #6- Spike Dudley.
Well, it could have been worse. It could have been-
Raw Pick #6- Paul Heyman.
And suddenly, everything changed. Paul refused to be forced to become Bischoff's lackey, and promptly quit.
Hence, confusion reigned as the midnight deadline for trades was extended until a new Smackdown GM could be found.
Phase 2b- The Aftershocks
Kurt Angle eventually stood up and took the job, and thus negotiated trades with Eric Bischoff.
To Smackdown- Rico & Miss Jackie.To Raw- A-Train & Chuck Palumbo.
The ‘minor' trade seemed to show that Kurt was quick to learn good negotiation. Gaining a technically gifted albeit odd athlete in Rico and a hot diva in Jackie for two big bruisers who almost immediately fizzled out on Raw and were soon released was a good move on his part. The second trade confirmed it.
To Smackdown- The Dudley Boyz (D-Von & Bubba Ray) & Booker T.To Raw- Triple H.
Bischoff was desperate to get Triple H back. Kurt, not a huge fan of him to begin with, was happy to gain the most dominate team ever in the Dudleys (and thus also have the whole clan together) and a name like Booker T and thus reunite the hot Booker/RVD combo. Hence, in his mind, he lucked out on the deal, 3 for 1, he had proven his ability to be GM within hours of taking the job. Booker disagreed, given that he hated Smackdown. But that wasn't Kurt's concern.
Phase 3- The Drawn Out Superstars.
The following year, June 2005, another Draft was announced. This time however, it would be drawn out, with names being drawn by Bischoff and SD GM Long one at a time for 3 weeks, then 2 on the final week, thus 5 superstars switching sides. And boy, were they ever Superstars…
Raw Pick #1- John Cena.
This was perhaps the mother load. With the very first pick, Eric got the WWE Champion. Thus, Raw had, for a few weeks, both World Champions on their brand. This was major, as was that fact that they had John Cena now on the roster. This set off the 05 Draft with a huge bang, as it seemed that as opposed to the mixed bag of last time, this time round, Eric and Teddy were feeling lucky, as they drew big, big names.
Smackdown Pick #1- Chris Benoit.
While perhaps not quite as dynamic a superstar as John Cena, Chris was the kind of guy Long wanted. Solid, a name, great in the ring, an ass kicker of the highest order. Basically anyone who might be able to shut up JBL, Long wanted. So while an outside observer might thing Raw was in the lead, Smackdown seemed to be heading back to it's roots as the wrestling brand.
Raw Pick #2- Kurt Angle.
This kinda shot that down a few notches. After all, when an opposing brand has Kurt Angle, it's slightly harder to claim you're the Wrestling brand. And certainly, Angle's move gave him a chance to get his hands back on Shawn Michaels, whom he had tangled with at Wrestlemania in a hell of a match. But could Smackdown draw an equal name?
Smackdown Pick #2- Randy Orton.
Well… No. Not to say Randy Orton wasn't a name, far from it, but losing Kurt to gain Orton is like missing out on a prime cut of the most tender beef sirloin steak and getting a Big Mac instead. Sure, the Big Mac isn't bad, and it'll go down smooth, but still, you're missing out.
Should you be vegetarian, replace ‘steak' and ‘Big Mac' with ‘tofu' and ‘not as nice tofu' and the point still holds.
Raw Pick #3- Carlito.
And really, after Cena and Angle, there was really only one place to go. It would be hard to pick yet another huge name, and thus we get Carlito, who seems a slight disappointment but really anyone should be most pleased to draft the Cool One. Especially when he was granted an Intercontinental Title shot for his debut on Raw, a match he would win and thus cement a unique record as having title wins in both of his debut matches (US on Smackdown, IC on Raw…Just hope he doesn't get drafted to ECW).
Smackdown Pick #3- Muhammad Hassan & Daivari.
Well, Hassan was technically the one drafted, Daivari as his manager came along. Hence SD sort of got 2 for the price of 1, although at the time no-one liked either man so it was more a double headache then any real bonus. Hassan and Daivari, with their constant moaning and bitching, were not well liked. But then, that's always been around Wrestling, so it wasn't a huge deal. The fact Hassan vanished a short while later and Daivari couldn't stick to a brand were a big deal, but at the time, it was ok.
Raw Pick #4- The Big Show.Raw Pick #5- Rob Van Dam.
The final two draft picks were made in the same night. Thus, Raw got Big Show and RVD on the same evening, and thus got a big boost before Smackdown deflated them back down slightly. RVD's constant moving meant that he never got tired or predictable, he was constantly fresh, and Big Show was beloved, so these were both high quality picks, and also it removed two of Smackdown's main contenders for a World Title which it seemed they would have to crown anew, given that both World Champs were still on Raw. But…
It proved unnecessary, as after a 6 man match, including latest SD superstar Christian (who thus main evented both Raw and Smackdown in the same week, a first since the extension), JBL emerged as not the new Smackdown World Champion, but rather #1 Contender for the World Heavyweight Title, since DAVE got drafted and hence the two world titles swapped shows. Hence SD didn't do too badly overall, although it is hard to argue that Raw got the best of the drafts.
Phase 3b- The Quick Trade
To Raw- Danny Basham, René Duprée, Chavo Guerrero, Mark Jindrak, Kenzo Suzuki & Hiroko.To Smackdown- Simon Dean, Sylvan Grenier, Candice Michelle, William Regal, Steven Richards
At midnight on the final day, Long and Eric made a trade that in the long run didn't really help either brand, although Raw for the worst of it. Neither Basham achieved much alone, Rene was pretty much MIA, Kenzo, Jindrak and Hiroko were all released soon after (the bastards…Hiroko was hot dammit!), and Chavo… was affected by circumstance. But Smackdown at least gained the solid William Regal, a couple of bit players, Dean, Sylvan, Stevie, and Candice, who was used as a trading chip much later (later in the year, as the Diva Search wrapped up, 4 divas, Torrie Wilson and Candice from SD and Stacy Kiebler and Christy Hemme were traded in a Diva Search related situation, not a Draft). So overall, they benefited most.
Phase 4- The ECW ‘Draft'
A year later, a mere two men were drafted, by choice, by Paul Heyman, one from Raw, one from Smackdown, to form the nucleus of the new ECW.
Raw Pick- Rob Van Dam.Smackdown Pick- Kurt Angle.
Angle was a surprising but logical choice, given Kurt's new found acceptance of the ECW ideals. After assurances that there was to be nothing religiously offensive, Heyman worked his magic and was able to convince Kurt that he was being held back by rules, by other people's limitations, and that in ECW, he could be free.
RVD on the other hand, was an odd one. After all, anyone who wanted to go to ECW could, and you would have imagined RVD would jump at the chance. But Paul wanted, needed RVD, and thus he wanted to make sure he got him. He didn't want any little fiddly contract stipulations or anything like that stop him from getting RVD. So, he ensured he got him.
And neither man truly worked out, but that's not Paul's fault.
Today- Here we go round the mulberry bush…
This Monday, the 2007 WWE Draft will occur in a special 3 hour event. All 3 brands will be eligible, and we have no idea the scope or number of drafts that will occur. One thing is certain.
That things are uncertain.
Conclusion
In the end, have the Drafts done their jobs? Certainly most of the people drafted failed to make huge impacts, with obvious exceptions. But that is perhaps not the point. The point is to create chaos, to kick over the anthill, so to speak. By changing things around, buy creating new conflict, new battlefronts, by changing the rules, you create a new product, a better product, the cream is separated, the junk is seen for what it is. Ruts are smoothed over, complacency is gone, change brings evolution.
And that is always a good thing, at least in my column.
