LeBron James, Kobe Bryant top list of players who jumped from preps to pros in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
This is the 30th anniversary of Kevin Garnett being selected fifth overall in the 1995 NBA Draft out of high school. He was the first player to go to the NBA directly out of high school in 20 years and it started a revolution.
From 1995-2005, 39 high school players were drafted by NBA teams including a record eight in the first round in 2004. But commissioner David Stern changed the rule following the 2005 draft and the direct route to the league for preps was closed.
Of the 39 players, 31 (79.5 percent) of them played at least 410 NBA games, the equivalent of five seasons.
In honor of Garnett's anniversary and that unique era, we set out to rank all of them based on accolades and longevity.
LeBron James takes the top spot on the list and is the only active player remaining from this era. The four-time NBA champion is a 21-time All-Star and the leading scorer in league history.
Kobe Bryant comes in at No. 2 after playing from 1996-2016. The former Lakers great is a five-time NBA champion and is No. 4 all-time in points.
Of the 39 players selected, three were selected No. 1 overall and 10 were NBA All-Stars. While Monta Ellis and Rashard Lewis are the highlights of the 10 second-round picks, the bottom four players on this list slipped out of the first round. Two of them never played a game in the NBA.
No. 1 overall pick, 2003 NBA Draft
Years in NBA: 2003-present, 1,562 games
2004 Rookie of the Year
21x NBA All-Star
4x NBA MVP
4x NBA Champion
4x NBA Finals MVP
10 NBA Finals appearances
3x All-Star Game MVP
42,184 career points (No. 1 all-time)
11,731 rebounds (No. 25 all-time)
11,584 assists (No. 4 all-time)
2,345 steals (No. 6 all-time)
4x Olympic medalist
No. 13, 1996
Years in NBA: 1996-2016, 1,346 games
18x NBA All-Star
5x NBA Champ
4x NBA All-Star Game MVP
2x NBA Finals MVP
2008 NBA MVP
1997 NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner
33,643 career points (No. 4 all-time)
1,944 steals (No. 17 all-time)
2x Olympic medalist
Hall of Famer
No. 5, 1995
Years in NBA: 1995-2016, 1,462 games
15x NBA All-Star
2003 NBA All-Star Game MVP
2008 NBA Champion
2004 NBA MVP
4x NBA rebounding leader
26,071 career points (No. 21 all-time)
14,662 career rebounds (No. 9 all-time)
2,037 career blocks (No. 19 all-time)
1,859 steals (No. 19 all-time)
2000 Olympic gold
Hall of Famer
No. 9, 1997
Years in NBA: 1997-2013, 938 games
7x NBA All-Star
2x NBA scoring leader
18,381 career points
Hall of Famer
No. 1, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-22, 1,242 games
2020 NBA Champion
8x NBA All-Star
3x NBA Defensive Player of the Year
2x NBA blocks leader
5x NBA rebounding leader
2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest Winner
19,485 career points
14,627 rebounds (No. 10 all-time)
2,228 blocks (No. 13 all-time)
2008 Olympic gold
Hall of Famer
No. 9, 2002 9th overall
Years in NBA: 2002-16, 846 games
6x NBA All-Star
2003 NBA Rookie of the Year
15,994 career points
6,632 career rebounds
2004 Olympic bronze
No. 17, 1996
Years in NBA: 1996-2014, 1,011 games
1,820 career blocks (No. 24 all-time)
13,309 career points
6x NBA All-Star
No. 2, 2001
Years in NBA: 2001-20, 1,160 games
9,509 career points
10,467 rebounds 9.0RPG
2011 NBA Champion
2013 NBA All-Star
NBA Defensive Player of the Year
2012 Olympic gold
No. 32, 1998
Years in NBA: 1998-2014, 1,049 games
2x NBA All-Star
2013 NBA Champion
15,579 career points
No. 40, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-17, 833 games
14,858 career points
No. 15, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-18, 915 games
14,343 career points
7,690 career rebounds
1,093 career blocks
No. 45, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-22, 1,123 games
15,593 career points
3,789 career assists
3x NBA Sixth Man of the Year
No. 25, 1998
Years in NBA: 1998-2014, 981 games
13,327 career points
No. 17, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-17, 894 games
2005 NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner
12,996 career points
6,653 career rebounds
1,713 career blocks
No. 18, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-20, 977 games
2x NBA Champion
12,148 career points
No. 4, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-19, 833 games
3x NBA Champion
5,231 career points
No. 10, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-13, 418 games
2x NBA Champion
2012 NBA All-Star
4,822 career points
No. 4, 2001
Years in NBA: 2001-12, 527 games
2012 NBA Champion
6,820 career points
2,725 career rebounds
No. 18, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-19, 658 games
2007 NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner
6,412 career points
No. 27, 2003
Years in NBA: 2003-18, 782 games
2008 NBA Champion
4,214 career points
4,532 career rebounds
903 career rebounds
No. 34, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-21, 849 games
8,108 career points
No. 23, 2000
Years in NBA: 2000-13, 824 games
2011 NBA Champion
5,930 career points
No. 23, 2003
Years in NBA: 2003-14, 622 games
5,273 career points
No. 3, 2000
Years in NBA: 2000-09, 446 games
4,507 career points
No. 6, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-15, 580 games
5,056 career points
No. 1, 2001
Years in NBA: 2001-13, 607 games
4,035 career points
No. 13, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-14, 564 games
4,183 career points
1,960 career assists
No. 19, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-16, 549 games
4,597 career points
29. Andray Blatche, South Kent School
No. 49, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-14, 564 games
5,706 career points
No. 56, 2005
Years in NBA: 2005-19, 870 games
6,102 career points
4,692 career rebounds
839 career blocks
31. DeSagana Diop, Oak Hill Academy
No. 8, 2001
Years in NBA: 2001-13, 601 games
1,185 career points
630 career blocks
No. 5, 1999
Years in NBA: 1999-2010, 262 games
1,453 career points
No. 12, 2004
Years in NBA: 2004-09, 97 games
416 career points
376 career rebounds
No. 26, 2003
Years in NBA: 2003-05, 19 games
40 career points
No. 29, 1999
Years in NBA: 2002-04, 15 games
33 career points
No. 40, 1998
Year in NBA: 1999, 3 games
13 career points
No. 48, 2003
Years in NBA: 2006-07, 11 games
11 career points
No. 35, 2005
Did not play in NBA
No. 47, 2001
Did not play in NBA
