This is it.

This is what many wrestling fans have been asking for.

A “brand split”. A “brand extension”.

Whatever you want to call it, a large portion of wrestling fans have been clamoring for another WWE Draft for the last few years now. It had been five whole years since the last time Vince McMahon decided to shake things up a bit, and a lot has changed in the “WWE bubble” since then. You have the WWE Network, which is your one-stop-shop for just about every piece of wrestling footage that is currently owned by the company. You have NXT breaking out as it’s own entity, with some viewing it as a third “brand”, of sorts. There is a new dedication and focus towards the smaller wrestler, possibly brought on by the overwhelming popularity of Daniel Bryan, which has now manifested itself into the Cruiserweight Classic, with wrestlers from all over the globe performing.

The Undertaker is no longer undefeated at WrestleMania. Sting has wrestled in a WWE ring… twice. The list goes on and on, really.

When it was announced that we were getting another Draft , my first instinct was to be a little leery of the entire thing. I looked at the five-plus hours of television a week that needed to be filled (not even counting things like Main Event, Superstars, etc), and I could see that the WWE Creative Team was already having a difficult time filling those hours properly. Watch any episode of Raw or Smackdown, and you’re already looking at plenty of “filler” and time wasting. Are we really going to expect them to use their time better when each show only has half the amount of wrestlers to use?

Now that the Draft is over, and the speculation of who will be going where is done, there are a couple things that really stand out to me. I’ve seen the thoughts and opinions of many people… some were more positive in their outlook, while others seem to have given up on the process already. Those points that stand out to me should stand out to everyone, though, no matter what side of the fence you sit on when it comes to the state of WWE programming moving forward.

Credits WWE.com

Best Pick (Overall): Seth Rollins to Raw with their 1st pick (1st overall). When it comes to having the former WWE Champion and top overall pick in the Draft, unless there’s a glaring need in one particular area, you simply have to take the best “player”, and that’s what Raw did here. Rollins just turned 30 two months ago, so it can be argued that his best in-ring days are yet to come, which is a scary thought.

Worst Pick (Overall): Nia Jax to Raw with their 15th pick (25th overall). Even many of her biggest fans and supporters have been saying she was barely ready to be used in NXT, but now, she immediately becomes the “monster” of the main roster Women’s division. More eyeballs will be on her, and I just don’t see how her in-ring work will hold up. On top of that, the aforementioned fact that Bayley and Asuka were available to be chosen just makes this selection worse.

Best Pick (For Value): Apollo Crews to Smackdown with their 19th pick (45th overall). Now, I am fully aware of my bias towards Mr. Crews. With that said, though, here is someone with everything it takes to be WWE Champion one day, and Smackdown got him towards the end of the Draft. When he appeared on television, he was always booked to look strong, and was always put over by the commentary during his matches. Unfortunately, he wasn’t always able to appear on television thanks to there being so many talents to use. Hopefully, he will be one of the talents that really benefits from the split, and he’ll be given much more time to shine and build a character on the blue brand. View my Flipboard Magazine.

Worst Pick (For Value): Randy Orton to Smackdown with their 4th pick (9th overall). There is no denying that Orton is one of the biggest names in the wrestling business. There is no denying that Orton has been there, done that, achieving just about everything there is to achieve. There is also no denying, though, that he is 36 years old and has missed the last nine months due to injuries. He also just got married last year, and is expecting a child with his wife soon. His “star” isn’t as bright as it once was, and he could transition into more of a part-time “attraction” role at any point, especially if he wants to be able to spend more time with his family, which he has said he wants to do. For that, perhaps he should have been chosen a bit later.

Biggest Disappointment (On A Personal Level): That we didn’t get to see Shinsuke Nakamura selected at all. His entrance music is already an all-time classic (I would dare say it’s in the top five already). His entrance itself, from the strobe lights to the crowd “singing” his theme and everything in between, is a spectacle that has to be seen each and every time. Then, he gets in the ring and puts on great match after great match. I was dying to see him ply his trade on the main roster, but it appears I will have to wait at least a little while longer. For now, I’ll just picture his entrance taking place at a WrestleMania, with 80,000+ people “singing” along. Epic.