No. 1 draft picks in the NBA seem to follow one of two paths. One path leads to stardom, NBA championships and much fame and fortune, as players like Tim Duncan, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar can well attest.
Tim Duncan at Wake Forest. 1997
Courtesy of Getty Images
Then there’s the other path. It’s the road to purgatory taken by the likes of LaRue Martin and Michael Olowokandi, who are forever deemed as colossal NBA No. 1 draft pick busts.
Today the Los Angeles Clippers and expected No. 1 draft pick Blake Griffin out of Oklahoma will begin their own adventure down a path uncharted. Where the two will end up is anyone’s guess, however the signs are mixed. Griffin appears to be a player destined for stardom. The Clippers’ draft history, however, is not so good.
With that in mind, here’s a primer for today’s NBA draft, which begins with the first pick at 7 p.m. Eastern Time on ESPN. Follow along as we chart every NBA draft since 1950, providing the No. 1 overall pick, the best pick, the worst pick, and the steal of the draft. We also grade the overall draft quality, list the Hall of Fame players (and for more recent drafts the potential Hall of Famers) and the number of top scorers that have emerged from each crop of rookies. Note: Our definition of a steal - a productive player chosen with a fairly low pick in the draft.
1950
No. 1 – Chuck Share, Bowling Green, by the Boston Celtics. Boston coach Red Auerbach reportedly didn’t want to be forced into taking local boy Bob Cousy so he went with the big man instead. Never played for the Celtics, however. See below.
Best Pick – Bob Cousy, Holy Cross, No. 3 by the Tri-Cities Blackhawks. The Blackhawks dealt Cousy to the Chicago Staggs before the season started, but the Staggs folded. Cousy’s name was thrown into a hat for a dispersal draft and Auerbach ended up drawing the name of the point guard who would lead the Celtics for the next 13 years.
Worst Pick – Irwin Dambrot, City College of New York, No. 6 by the Knicks. Never played in the NBA.
Steal – Bill Sharman, USC, chosen No. 23 by the Washington Capitals. Played sparingly in his rookie year for the Capitals, but the team folded and Sharman was sent to Fort Wayne in a dispersal draft. However Auerbach acquired Sharman by trading the rights to Share to the Pistons. Together Sharman and Cousy formed the NBA’s best backcourt in the 1950s.
Draft Quality: B – Four Hall of Famers (Cousy, Sharman, George Yardley, Paul Arizin), four players over 10,000 career points.
1951
No. 1 – Gene Melchiorre, Bradley University, by the Baltimore Bullets. Never played in the NBA because of his involvement in a point shaving scandal while in college. He is the only No. 1 pick to never play in the NBA.
Best Pick – Mel Hutchins, Brigham Young, No. 2 by Tri-Cities. Not much of a pick, Hutchins played for six seasons and averaged 11.1 points per game – the best average of any players drafted in 1951.
Worst Pick – Melchiorre, who had to settle for being inducted into the Greater Peoria Sports Hall of Fame rather than an NBA career.
Steal – Al McGuire, St. John’s, No. 55 by the Knicks. Not much of a ballplayer, but he became a Hall of Fame coach and won an NCAA championship at Marquette in 1977.
Draft Quality: F – Zero Hall of Famers, zero players over 10,000 career points. One of the worst drafts ever.
1952
No. 1 – Mark Workman, West Virginia, by the Milwaukee Hawks – a talented shooter for a big man, Workman lasted just two years in the NBA. Did make his mark in sports, however. He is reportedly responsible for bringing bowling to the Orient while working as a salesman for Brunswick Bowling Company.
Best Pick – Clyde Lovellette, Kansas, No. 9 by Minneapolis. Hall of Famer who played 11 years in the NBA for four teams.
Worst Pick – Joe Dean, LSU, by the Indianapolis Olympians. Never played a game in the NBA, which is probably why the Olympians ceased to exist after 1952.
Steal – Gene Conley, Washington State by Boston in Round 10. Played for the Celtics in 1953 but then decided on a baseball career. Eventually returned to the Celtics in the 1960s and became a valuable backup.
Draft Quality: D – One Hall of Famer (Lovellette, although more for his college exploits), one over 10,000 career points.
1953
No. 1 – Ray Felix, Long Island by Baltimore. At 6-11, he became the NBA’s first dominant African-American center, according to his Wikipedia entry. Named Rookie of the Year and played nine seasons.
Best Pick – Frank Ramsey, Kentucky, No. 5 by Boston. The original Sixth Man, Ramsey was a valuable scorer off the bench for the Celtics.
Worst Pick – Jack Molinas, Columbia, No. 3 by Fort Wayne. Played just 29 games. Pistons could have had Ramsey instead.
Steal – Cliff Hagan, Kentucky, Round 3 by Boston. Played only a handful of seasons for the Celtics, but he was valuable because he enabled the Celtics to make the greatest trade in NBA history (see below).
Draft Quality: D – Two Hall of Famers (Ramsey, Hagan), one over 10,000 career points.
1954
No. 1 – Frank Selvy, Furman, by Baltimore. Once scored 100 points in a college game. Later became best known for a shot he missed while a member of the LA Lakers that would have beaten the Celtics in the NBA finals.
Best Pick – Bob Pettit, LSU, No. 2 by Milwaukee. Became one of the NBA’s great all-time forwards and retired in 1965 as the game’s all-time leading scorer.
Worst Pick – Dick Rosenthal, Notre Dame, No. 4 by Fort Wayne. Played only 85 games in the NBA. Pistons could have had center John Kerr.
Steal – Richie Guerin, Iona, No. 17 by the Knicks. Became one of the league’s top scorers in the early 1960s.
Draft Quality: C – One HofF (Pettit), four over 10,000 points.
1955
No. 1 – Dick Ricketts, Duquesne, by St. Louis. Played three NBA seasons and finished his career with Rochester in 1958. According to Wikipedia, Ricketts was “effected by the tragic injury of teammate Maurice Stokes (who was the No. 2 pick in 1955) and retired from the game.”
Best Pick – Jack Twyman, Cincinnati, No. 8 by Rochester – Although Rochester drafted Stokes at No. 2, Twyman ended up being a godsend at No. 8 after Stokes suffered a head injury in 1958. Twyman, who supported and cared for Stokes for the next 12 years until Stokes passed away in 1970. Twyman became a Hall of Fame player with the Royals, playing 12 seasons.
Worst Pick – Johnny Horan, Dayton, No. 6 by Fort Wayne. Played only 19 games. Could have had Twyman.
Steal – Twyman.
Draft Quality: D – Three HoF (Maurice Stokes, Twyman, Tom Gola), one over 10,000 points.
Two great picks, Dwyane Wade and Bill Russell
Courtesy of Getty Images
1956
No. 1 – Si Green, Duquesne, by Rochester. According to Bill Russell’s book “Red and Me”, Auerbach and Celtics owner Walter Brown persuaded the Rochester owner to select Green instead of Bill Russell by promising to have Brown’s Ice Capades troop perform in Rochester during the offseason.
Best Pick – Bill Russell, USF, No. 2 by St. Louis. Of course Russell never played for the Hawks. In the greatest trade in NBA history, Auerbach, who had never seen Russell play, traded Ed McCauley and Cliff Hagan to the Hawks for Russell. Russell and the Celtics won 11 of the next 13 NBA championships.
Worst Pick – Si Green. Played nine seasons in the NBA but had 10 fewer NBA titles than Russell. The only championship came in 1966 when he played 10 games for the Celtics.
Steal – KC Jones, USF, Round 2 by Boston. Known more for his defense, Jones did a stint in the armed forces before returning to become a valuable reserve for the Celtics.
Draft Quality: C – Three HofF (Russell, Jones, Tom Heinsohn), two over 10,000 points. Great draft for the Celtics, who also got Hall of Famer Tommy Heinsohn as a territorial pick. Lousy draft for all other NBA teams.
1957
No. 1 – Hot Rod Hundley, West Virginia by Cincinnati. Carved out a solid six-year career in the NBA before going into a long career as an NBA announcer.
Best Pick – Sam Jones, North Carolina Central, No. 8 by Boston. Became one of the final pieces of the puzzle for the Celtics. Jones went on to play on 10 NBA championship teams in Boston.
Worst Pick – George Bon Salle, Illinois, No. 7 by Syracuse. Played three games in NBA. Could have had Sam Jones.
Steal – Woody Sauldsberry, Texas Southern, No. 60 by Warriors. Became a solid NBA player with 10.7 points and 8 rebounds a game over a seven-year career.
Draft Quality: D – One HofF (Jones), one over 10,000 points.
1958
No. 1 – Elgin Baylor, Seattle by Minneapolis. One of the top scorers in college, Baylor led Seattle to the NCAA finals against Kentucky. The runner-up finish would be a theme for Baylor, who played 14 years in the NBA and finished second seven times.
Best Pick – Baylor, who averaged 27.4 points during his career.
Worst Pick – Pete Brennan, North Carolina, No. 4 by Knicks. Played 16 games in NBA career.
Steal – Adrian Smith, Kentucky, Round 15 by Cincinnati. Became a double-digit scorer for the Royals during the 1960s.
Draft Quality: C – Two HofF (Baylor, Greer), five over 10,000 points.
1959
No. 1 – Bob Boozer, Kansas State by Cincinnati. Wilt Chamberlain was already gone to Philadelphia as a territorial pick, leaving Boozer for the Royals. Didn’t join the Royals until 1960 so that he could play in the Olympics. He eventually became a solid scorer with the Chicago Bulls, but he finished 19,000 points behind Chamberlain in career scoring.
Best Pick – Bailey Howell, Mississippi State, No. 2 by Detroit. Howell became an immediate point machine in the NBA, averaging 17.8 his rookie year and finishing with a career average of 18.7 over 12 seasons.
Worst Pick – John Richter, North Carolina State, No. 6 by Boston. Played only 66 games, but there wasn’t a whole lot of room on the Boston roster.
Steal – Rudy LaRusso, Dartmouth, No. 10 by Minneapolis. Averaged 15.6 points and 9.4 rebounds in a 10-year career.
Draft Quality: B – Two HofF (Wilt Chamberlain, Howell), six over 10,000 points.
1960
No. 1 – Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati by Cincinnati. Hard not to choose the hometown hero, especially after he finished his college career as the NCAA’s three-time player of the year and all-time leading scorer.
Best Pick – Robertson, who went on to average 25.7 points in his career. Of course Jerry West at No. 2 by the Lakers wasn’t a bad pick either.
Worst Pick – Al Bunge, Maryland, No.7 by the Warriors. The Terrapin center never played in NBA. Could have had defensive whiz Tom Sanders, who went to the Celtics. Selecting centers who never quite measured up in the NBA became a re-occurring theme for the Warriors with two notable exceptions (Wilt Chamberlain, Nate Thurmond).
Steal – Al Attles, North Carolina A&T, 5th round by Warriors. Philadelphia made up for the Bunge pick by taking Attles, who played 11 years for the team.
Draft Quality: B – Three HofF (Robertson, West, Len Wilkens), three over 10,000 points.
1961
No. 1 – Walt Bellamy, Indiana, by the Chicago Packers. The first ever pick of the Washington Wizards franchise, that started out as the Packers, became the Zephyrs, moved to Baltimore and became the Bullets and eventually ended up in Washington. Bellamy made the Hall of Fame and played 14 years in the NBA.
Best Pick – Bellamy, who was named Rookie of the Year.
Worst Pick – Tom Stith, St. Bonaventure, No. 2 by the Knicks. Stith was a prolific scorer and a hometown hero, but he played only 25 games for the Knicks. Knicks could have had Tom Meschery or Ray Scott.
Steal – No steals in this draft. The Knicks drafted Kevin Loughery of St. John’s in Round 11, but he decided to stay in school and was drafted in the second round in 1962 by the Pistons.
Draft Quality: D- – One HofF (Bellamy), two over 10,000 points. Only the presence of Bellamy keeps this from being one of the worst drafts ever.
1962
No. 1 – Bill McGill, University of Utah by Chicago Zephyrs. Jerry Lucas and Dave DeBusschere were already gone via the NBA’s territorial picks, leaving the Zephyrs to choose McGill, who lasted only a couple of seasons.
Best Pick – John Havlicek, Ohio State, No. 7 by the Celtics. The less heralded of the two Ohio State standouts (Lucas being the other), Havlicek had the better career (although both are Hall of Famers). Finished with 26,395 career points and eight NBA titles.
Worst Pick – Duke Hogue, Cincinnati, No. 2 by the Knicks. It was Hogue, not Oscar Robertson, who led Cincinnati to an NCAA title. However Hogue lasted just 65 games in the NBA. Could have had Zelmo Beaty or Havlicek.
Steal – Don Nelson, Iowa, Round No. 3, 17th pick by Chicago Zephyrs. Didn’t do much his first three seasons, one with the Zephyrs and two with the Lakers, but blossomed under Auerbach and Russell with the Celtics and was part of five NBA titles in his 14-year career.
Draft Quality: B – Three HofF (Lucas, Havlicek, DeBusschere), seven over 10,000 career points.
1963
No. 1 – Art Heyman, Duke, by the Knicks. Can’t blame the Knicks for taking Heyman, a New York native who was the NCAA player of the year at Duke. Had a great rookie season, but eventually lost playing time and signed with the ABA.
Best Pick – Nate Thurmond, Bowling Green, No. 3 by Warriors. Became one of the league’s top centers along with Russell and Chamberlain.
Worst Pick – Bill Green, Colorado State, No. 8 by Celtics. Never played in the NBA.
Steal – Gus Johnson, Idaho, No. 10 by Baltimore Bullets. One of the first true power forwards with great leaping ability.
Draft Quality: D – One HofF (Thurmond), one over 10,000 points.
1964
No. 1 – Jim Barnes, Texas El-Paso, by the Knicks. Made all-rookie team, but had a largely unspectacular seven-year career.
Best Pick – Willis Reed, No. 8 by the Knicks. New York did much better with its first pick of the second round, choosing Reed who would lead team to two NBA titles.
Worst Pick – Gary Bradds, Ohio State, No. 3 by Baltimore. Played 44 career games. Bullets could have had Jeff Mullins, Reed, Paul Silas or Mel Counts.
Steal – Happy Hairston, New York University, No. 33 by Cincinnati. Hairston posted a double-double in his career (14.8 points, 10.3 rebounds) and started for the Lakers on the 1972 championship team.
Draft Quality: C+ - One HofF (Reed), four over 10,000 points.
1965
No. 1 – Fred Hetzel, Davidson, by the Warriors. Before Stephen Curry became the sensation at Davidson, there was Fred Hetzel. He led the Wildcats to the No. 1 preseason ranking in the country by Sports Illustrated. While Hetzel made the all-rookie team, he averaged just 7.7 points in his career. Hetzel was the top pick because Gail Goodrich and Bill Bradley were already gone via territorial picks.
Best Pick – Rick Barry, Miami, No. 2 by the Warriors. Barry had one of the more interesting NBA careers, starting out with the Warriors, where he led the NBA in scoring his second year at 35.6 ppg., sat out a year after moving to the ABA, then came back to the Warriors six years later and won an NBA title in 1975. One of the all-time great scoring, and passing, forwards in NBA history.
Worst Pick – Ollie Johnson, USF, No. 8 by Boston. After years of shrewd drafting and dealing in the 1950s, the Celtics weren’t so hot in the 1960s. Johnson never quite panned out like the other draft picks the Celtics took from USF as he never played a game in the NBA.
Steal – Bob Love, Southern University, No. 33 by Cincinnati. Became one of the league’s top scorers in the 1970s while with the Bulls.
Draft Quality: A- - Four HofF (Bradley, Goodrich, Barry, Billy Cunningham), seven over 10,000 points.
1966
No. 1 – Cazzie Russell, Michigan, by the Knicks. Easy choice. Russell was the NCAA player of the year and had five good seasons with the Knicks culminating in a championship in 1970.
Best Pick – Dave Bing, Syracuse, No. 2 by Pistons. Led NBA in scoring his second year and averaged 20.3 points in his career, mostly with the Pistons.
Worst Pick – Dave Schellhase, Purdue, No. 10 by Chicago. Played only 73 games for the Bulls.
Steal – Archie Clark, Minnesota, No. 37 by the Lakers. Averaged 19.9 points per game his second season, allowing Lakers to trade Clark, among others, to the 76ers for Wilt Chamberlain.
Draft Quality: B- - One HofF (Bing), six over 10,000 points.
1967
No. 1 – Jimmy Walker, Providence, by Detroit. The top player in college in 1967 not named Lew Alcindor, Walker had a respectable eight-year career averaging 16.7 points per game.
Best Pick – Walt Frazier, Southern Illinois, No. 5 by Knicks – After a number of bad drafts in the 1950s and early 1960s, the Knicks began to put it together in the mid 1960s with the drafting of Reed, DeBusschere, Russell and Bradley. Acquiring Frazier was the final missing ingredient – a point guard who was also a defensive standout.
Worst Pick – Sonny Dove, St. John’s, No. 4 by Detroit. Played only 57 games. Could have had Mel Daniels (although he ended up in the ABA).
Steal – Mike Riordan, Providence, Round 12, pick 128 by the Knicks. Became a solid backup for the Knicks and became a starter for the Washington Bullets in the mid-70s.
Draft Quality: C+ – Two HofF (Frazier, Earl Monroe), three over 10,000 points.
1968
No. 1 – Elvin Hayes, Houston, by the San Diego Rockets. Immediately established himself as an NBA star averaging 25.8 points and 13.8 rebounds as a rookie. One of the game’s all-time great forwards.
Best Pick – Wes Unseld, Louisville, No. 2 by Baltimore. Hayes wasn’t the NBA Rookie of the year because that honor, along with the league MVP award, went to Unseld. A great rebounder and outlet passer, Unseld became just the second rookie to win the NBA MVP honor. Hayes and Unseld eventually teamed up for an NBA title in 1978 in Washington.
Worst Pick – Skip Harlicka, South Carolina, No. 13 by Atlanta. Only played 26 career games, although in all fairness to the Hawks, the pickings were slim.
Steal – Greg Smith, Western Kentucky, Round 4, Pick 50 by Milwaukee. Smith became a solid role player for the Bucks during their 1971 title season.
Draft Quality: D+ - Two HofF (Hayes, Unseld), two over 10,000 points. Draft talent dropped precipitously after Hayes and Unseld were gone.
1969
No. 1 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, UCLA by the Bucks. The three-time NCAA player of the year led the Bucks to a title in his second season.
Best Pick – Abdul-Jabbar. He won six NBA titles and is the league’s all-time leading scorer. Greatest No. 1 pick in league history.
Worst Pick – Larry Cannon, La Salle, No. 5 by Chicago. He played just 19 games. Bingo Smith and JoJo White were both still available.
Steal – Bob Dandridge, Norfolk State, No. 45 by Milwaukee. As good as Abdul-Jabbar was, the presence of Dandridge (along with a trade for Oscar Robertson) helped turn the Bucks into a title-contending team.
Draft Quality: C+ - One HofF (Abdul-Jabbar), three over 10,000 points. One great player and a lot of solid NBA journeyman types.
1970
No. 1 – Bob Lanier, St. Bonaventure, No. 1 by Detroit. A lot of good choices at the top of this draft and the Pistons made a solid choice with Lanier at No. 1. Averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds in his career.
Best Pick – Dave Cowens, Florida State, No. 4 by Boston. Auerbach re-established himself as the draft wizard with the selection of Cowens. The undersized center led the resurgence of the Celtics during the 1970s with two NBA titles.
Worst Pick – Gary Freeman, Oregon State, No. 16 by Milwaukee. He lasted only 52 games. Could have had Calvin Murphy or Nate Archibald.
Steal – Nate Archibald, Texas El-Paso, No. 19 by Cincinnati. The Royals needed someone to take the place of Oscar Robertson, who was traded to the Bucks. Archibald fit the bill, eventually leading the NBA in scoring and assists in his third season en route to a Hall of Fame career.
Draft Quality: A – Six HofF (Lanier, Pete Maravich, Cowens, Murphy, Archibald, Dan Issel). Ten over 10,000 points.
1971
No. 1 – Austin Carr, Notre Dame, by Cleveland. Carr was one of the all-time leading scorers in NCAA history, but his ability never quite transferred over to the NBA. Still averaged 15.4 in his career.
Best Pick – Fred Brown, Seattle, No 6 by Iowa. An outstanding outside shooter, Brown eventually helped lead the Sonics to an NBA title in 1979.
Worst Pick – Dan Lewis, Tulsa, No. 12 by Philadelphia. Never played in the NBA.
Steal – Randy Smith, Buffalo State College, No. 104 by Buffalo. Became one of the most durable players in NBA history, playing in over 900 straight games. Note: Artis Gilmore of Jacksonville was taken No. 117, but would have gone much higher if he had not already signed with the ABA’s Kentucky Colonels.
Draft Quality: D – Zero HofF. Seven players over 10,000 points.
1972
No. 1 – Larue Martin, Loyola, Portland. Averaged 18 points and 15 rebounds in college and outplayed Bill Walton head-to-head, which was reason enough for Portland to draft him. However Martin has become the poster child for worst NBA No. 1 picks. Lasted just 271 games and averaged 5.3 points and 4.6 rebounds.
Best Pick – Bob McAdoo, North Carolina, No. 2 by Buffalo. Became one of the league’s top scorers, leading the NBA in his second, third and fourth seasons.
Worst Pick – Martin. Could have had Julius Erving, although he had signed with the ABA.
Steal – Kevin Porter, Saint Francis, No. 39 by Baltimore. Small school sensation set an NBA record for assists.
Draft Quality: C - Two HofF (McAdoo, Erving). Three over 10,000 points. Not a lot of great players, but a number of solid players who played at least five seasons.
1973
No. 1 – Doug Collins, Illinois, by Philadelphia. The Olympian became a solid scorer for the 76ers during their championship runs over the next decade.
Best Pick – Collins. Not a lot to pick from since Indiana’s George McGinnis had signed with the ABA.
Worst Pick – Raymond Lewis, Cal State LA, No. 18 by Philadelphia. Never played in the NBA.
Steal – Caldwell Jones, Albany State, No. 32 by Philadelphia. Went to the ABA, but joined the 76ers and became a solid starter in the late 70s and early 80s.
Draft Quality: D - Zero HofF. Zero players over 10,000 points, although McGinnis had 17,000 in combined ABA and NBA career. A great number of career backups drafted in 1973.
No. 1 pick in 1974, Bill Walton.
Courtesy of Getty Images
1974
No. 1 – Bill Walton, UCLA, No. 1 by Portland. After blowing the pick in 1972, the Trailblazers got it right in 1974, taking the three-time NCAA player of the year No. 1. He led the Blazers to a title in 1977, but suffered foot injuries the rest of his career.
Best Pick – Jamaal Wilkes, UCLA, No. 11 by Warriors. Walton was a great pick at No. 1, but a no-brainer. Wilkes was just the right pick for the Warriors at No. 11 and gave Rick Barry the scoring complement he needed at forward to help boost Golden State to an NBA championship the ensuing season.
Worst Pick – Marvin Barnes, Providence, No. 2 by Philadelphia. The flamboyant and enigmatic Barnes ended up playing in the ABA and never quite lived up to the promise he showed in college.
Steal – Phil Smith, USF, No. 29 by the Warriors. Golden State put together one of the most underrated drafts ever by getting Smith in the second round. Smith and Wilkes both started as rookies for the Warriors during their championship run.
Draft Quality: B+ Two HofF (Walton, George Gervin, who signed with ABA). Nine players over 10,000 points. Only a few great talents, but a wealth of solid contributors in first and second rounds.
1975
No. 1 – David Thompson, NC State, by Atlanta. The high-flying guard never played for the Hawks, signing instead with the ABA.
Best Pick – Alvan Adams, Oklahoma, No. 4 by Phoenix. Earned Rookie of the Year honors and led the Suns to the NBA finals against the Celtics.
Worst Pick – Gene Short, Jackson State, No. 9 by Knicks. Played only 34 NBA games.
Steal – World B. Free, Guilford College, No. 23 by 76ers. Free was a tremendous scorer who didn’t quite fit in with Philadelphia, which had a wealth of talent by the end of the 1970s. Became one of the league’s top scorers while with the Golden State Warriors. Other good second round picks included Gus Williams, Bob Gross and Dan Roundfield.
Draft Quality: C – One HofF (Thompson). Seven over 10,000 points.
1976
No. 1 – John Lucas, Maryland, by Houston. An outstanding assist man, drugs derailed what could have been a spectacular career.
Best Pick – Robert Parish, Centenary, No. 8, by Warriors. Parish ended up with the longest career of any player in this draft, or any player in NBA history for that matter. His 1,611 games played is an NBA record. He does later figure into the second greatest trade in NBA history.
Worst Pick – Norm Cook, Kansas, No. 16 by Boston. The Celtic dynasty of the 1970s began to wane after the 1976 championship and picks like Cook, who played just 27 NBA games, were a reason why. Could have had Alex English.
Steal – Dennis Johnson, Pepperdine, No. 29 by Seattle. Became one of the league’s elite defensive guards and led the Sonics to the NBA finals in 1978 and 1979.
Draft Quality: B – Three HofF (Adrian Dantley, Parish, English), four over 10,000 points, but three of them are over 23,000 points.
1977
No. 1 – Kent Benson, Indiana, by Milwaukee. The Bucks needed to find a replacement for Abdul-Jabbar, who they traded to the Lakers. Benson was not the answer, although he had a solid career as a sometime starter/backup.
Best Pick – Jack Sikma, Illinois Wesleyan, No. 8 by Sonics. Helped lead the Sonics to two straight NBA finals, winning it all in 1979. Bernard King at No. 7 by the New Jersey Nets became the best overall pick of the draft, but Sikma provided the more immediate rewards.
Worst Pick – Rich Laurel, Hofstra, No. 20 by Portland. Played only 10 games in the NBA. Could have had Norm Nixon.
Steal – Robert Reid, St. Mary’s, No. 40 by Houston. Reid became a key starter for the Rockets during their matchups against Boston in the NBA finals in 1981 and 1986.
Draft Quality: B – Zero HofF. Eleven over 10,000 points. Great depth in this draft with 21 picks playing over 600 games in their career.
1978
No. 1 – Mychal Thompson, Minnesota, by Portland. This pick came via the Bill Walton trade to the Clippers. Thompson was a solid starter for the Blazers, but found his niche later in his career as a power forward for the Lakers.
Best Pick – Larry Bird, Indiana State, No. 6 by the Celtics. Boston GM Red Auerbach gambled and chose Bird as a junior eligible. Although Bird stayed in college for his senior year, he signed prior to the 1979 draft and led a second Celtic resurgence during the 1980s with three NBA titles.
Worst Pick – Rod Griffin, Wake Forest, No. 17 by Denver. Never played in the NBA. Could have had John Long or Maurice Cheeks.
Steal – Michael Cooper, New Mexico, No. 60 by Lakers. The defensive stopper for the great Laker teams of the 1980s.
Draft Quality: C+ - One HofF (Bird). Seven over 10,000 points.
1979
No. 1 – Magic Johnson, Michigan State, No. 1 by Lakers. Los Angeles got Johnson thanks to free agent compensation involving Gail Goodrich, who had signed with the New Orleans Jazz three years prior and was actually out the league by 1979. The Lakers ended up with the No. 1 pick and Johnson was the easy choice since Bird had already signed with the Celtics.
Best Pick – Johnson, who led the Lakers to five NBA titles including one as a rookie in 1980.
Worst Pick – Larry Knight, Loyola, No. 20 by Utah. Knight, who played at the same college as LaRue Martin, never played in the NBA.
Steal – Allen Leavell, Oklahoma City, No. 104 by Houston. The speedy guard played 10 years for the Rockets.
Draft Quality: B- - One HofF (Johnson). Eight over 10,000 points.
1980
No. 1 – Joe Barry Carroll, Purdue, by Golden State. At the time, it sort of looked like the Warriors were getting the better end of the deal. Golden State sent Robert Parish and the No. 3 pick to the Celtics for the No. 1 pick. Carroll was the premier center coming out of college and Parish didn’t quite look like he was ready to be the center of the future for the Warriors. However Parish became a Hall of Famer and that No. 3 pick became another Hall of Famer (see below). Carroll, meanwhile, had a solid NBA career average of 17.7 points per game, but it was obscured by the championship banners the Celtics hung from the roof of the Boston Garden.
Best Pick – Kevin McHale, Minnesota, No. 3 by Boston. Perhaps the key part of the second best trade in NBA history, McHale was not a huge contributor as a rookie, but he later became the league’s best sixth man and ultimately a Hall of Fame power forward.
Worst Pick – Monti Davis, Tennessee State, No. 21 by Philadelphia. Played two games in the NBA.
Steal – Kurt Rambis, Santa Clara, No. 58 by the Knicks. Never actually played for the Knicks, who probably didn’t realize, or appreciate, Rambis’ singular talents. The Lakers signed him as a free agent and Rambis became the team’s designated rebounder and defender during the championship seasons of the early 1980s.
Draft Quality: C – One HofF (McHale). Six players over 10,000 points
1981
No. 1 – Mark Aguirre, DePaul, by the Mavericks. The DePaul Blue Demon great became a dependable scorer in the NBA, average 20 points per game. Joined No. 2 pick, Isiah Thomas, in Detroit at the end of his career to win an NBA title.
Best Pick – Isiah Thomas, Indiana, No. 2 by Detroit. The key to the Pistons’ back-to-back championship seasons in 1989 and 1990.
Worst Pick – Charles Bradley, Wyoming, No. 23 by Boston. Played only 110 games in the NBA. Could have had Jay Vincent.
Steal – Danny Ainge, Brigham Young, No. 36 by Boston. The Celtics took a slight gamble picking Ainge in the second round. The NCAA player of the year, Ainge would have gone much higher in the draft, however he had already signed to play Major League Baseball with the Toronto Blue Jays. He eventually returned to play for the Celtics and was a starter on two NBA title teams.
Draft Quality: B+ - One HofF (Thomas). Eleven players over 10,000 points. Very solid first round with 17 picks playing at least 500 career games.
1982
No. 1 – James Worthy, North Carolina, by the Lakers. The drafting of Worthy reportedly eventually led the to the NBA draft lottery. The Lakers were the NBA champions, but held the draft pick of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs and the Clippers finished as the two worst teams in the NBA and when the Lakers won a coin flip with the Clippers, they received the No. 1 pick in the draft. Worthy became a star for the Lakers, especially in the playoffs, where he helped lead LA to three NBA titles.
Best Pick – Dominique Wilkins, Georgia, No. 3 by Utah. Although he never played for Utah, Wilkins became the most exciting player in the NBA with his ferocious dunks and high-scoring antics. Averaged 24.8 points in his career.
Worst Pick – Keith Edmondson, Purdue, No. 10 by Atlanta. It’s a good think the Hawks got Wilkins because Edmondson played a grand total of 87 games in his two seasons with Atlanta.
Steal – Mark Eaton, UCLA, No. 72 by Utah. Never much of an offensive player, Eaton developed into one of the league’s top defensive players as a shot blocker for the Jazz.
Draft Quality: B- - Two HofF (Worthy, Wilkins), Six over 10,000 points.
1983
No. 1 – Ralph Sampson, Virginia, by Houston. The three-time NCAA player of the year, Sampson was the easy pick. He helped lead the Rockets to the finals in 1986, but injuries plagued him much of his career.
Best Pick – Clyde Drexler, Houston, No. 14 by Portland. The Trailblazers have a spotty draft history ranging from great picks to awful ones. Drexler was a great one, leading the Trailblazers to the NBA finals in the early 1990s and averaging 20.4 points for his career. He later won a title with the Rockets.
Worst Pick – Russell Cross, Purdue, No. by the Warriors. Perhaps trying to make amends for drafting Carroll, the Warriors selected another center out of Purdue in Cross. However he lasted just 45 games before washing out.
Steal – Sedale Threatt, West Virginia IT, No. 139 by Philadelphia. Threatt was a solid scoring threat off the bench for the 76ers during the 80s.
Draft Quality: C+ - One HofF (Drexler), Six players over 10,000 points. Lots of solid pros, but few greats.
1984
No. 1 – Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston, by Houston. Unknown only a few years earlier, Olajuwon came to the United States from Nigeria and became one of the NBA’s true success stories. Raw in college, Olajuwon became a polished Hall of Fame player while leading the Rockets to a pair of NBA titles.
Best Pick – Michael Jordan, North Carolina, No. 3 by the Bulls. At the time, Jordan at No. 3 wasn’t totally outrageous, seeing as how his scoring talents were harnessed in Dean Smith’s system at North Carolina. Now, Jordan, a six-time NBA champion, is considered the greatest player in history, which leads to the Worst Pick.
Worst Pick – Sam Bowie, Kentucky, No. 2 by Portland. This pick was not a huge sin by the Blazers at time, considering they needed a big man and Bowie had been a solid center ever since his high school days at Lebanon in Pennsylvania. But two broken legs after a promising rookie season proved to be Bowie’s demise. He had a journeyman career as a backup and has been deemed, perhaps unfairly due to injury, as one of the largest NBA busts in history.
Steal – Jerome Kersey, Longwood University, No. 46 by Portland. Having Kersey around helped soften the blow of the loss of Bowie. Kersey scored over 11,000 points in his career, more than double Bowie.
Draft Quality: A- - Four HoF (Olajuwon, Jordan, Charles Barkley, John Stockton), 10 players over 10,000 points. Great star power, but not a lot of depth.
1985
No. 1 – Patrick Ewing, Georgetown, by the Knicks. In the first NBA draft lottery, the Knicks hit the jackpot and got the No. 1 pick. Ewing was the consensus pick after leading Georgetown to the NCAA finals three years in a row. He retired as the Knicks all-time leading scorer and rebounder.
Best Pick – Karl Malone, Louisiana Tech, No. 13 by Utah. Malone flew under the radar much of his college career and was not well known out of high school. However he became one of the best power forwards in NBA history and retired as the league’s second all-time leading scorer (36,928 points).
Worst Pick – Kenny Green, Wake Forest, No. 12 by Washington. Played only 60 games for the Bullets. Could have had Karl Malone.
Steal – Mario Elie, American International, No. 160 by Milwaukee. One of the great steals in NBA draft history, Elie didn’t sign with Milwaukee and eventually played in Europe and in the CBA. Tried the NBA again in the early 1990s with the Warriors and later became a key player in the Rockets’ two NBA title teams in 1994 and 1995.
Draft Quality: A- - Two HofF (Ewing, Joe Dumars), two potential HofF (Chris Mullins, Karl Malone), 11 players over 10,000 points.
1986
No. 1 – Brad Daugherty, North Carolina, by Cleveland. Helped resurrect the Cavalier franchise. Back problems cut short an otherwise promising career. Averaged 19.0 points over eight seasons.
Best Pick – Daugherty.
Worst Pick – Chris Washburn, North Carolina State, No. 3 pick by Golden State. The No. 1 example that drugs are bad. Washburn had an abysmal career with the Warriors who were trying once again to find that elusive big man to fill the middle that previous drafts did not find. Washburn played only 72 games and averaged just 3.1 points.
Steal – Jeff Hornacek, Iowa State, No. 46 by Phoenix. A gifted shooter and scorer, Hornacek was a steady offensive weapon for the Suns and later for the Jazz during his 14-year career.
Draft Quality: C+ – Zero HofF (although Dennis Rodman could be a curious possibility), seven players over 10,000 points. Odd draft in which there were, perhaps, more quality picks in second and third rounds with Mark Price (No. 25), Rodman (No. 27), Johnny Newman (No. 29), Kevin Duckworth (No. 33), Hornacek (No. 46), and Drazen Petrovic (No. 60). Drugs played a role in keeping this draft from being better as Roy Tarpley, William Bedford and Washburn each washed out and Len Bias died as a result of drug use.
David Robinson and Michael Jordan both lead their team's to multiple NBA titles.
Courtesy of Getty Images
1987
No. 1 – David Robinson, Navy, by San Antonio. Robinson didn’t join the Spurs right away, due to commitments to the Navy, but he turned into one of the great No. 1 picks of all time by playing on two championship teams with the Spurs.
Best Pick – Scottie Pippen, University of Central Arkansas, No. 5 by Seattle. Pippen was a walk-on in college, but became a star at Central Arkansas. Became involved in a draft-day trade when Chicago drafted Olden Polynice at No. 8 and sent him to Seattle for Pippen. Pippen fit right in with Jordan and the duo went on to win six NBA crowns.
Worst Pick – Ron Murphy, Jacksonville, No. 17 by Portland. Hate to keep picking on the Trailblazers, but Murphy played just 18 games in his career and Mark Jackson was available with the next pick.
Steal – Sarunas Marciulionis, Soviet Union, No. 127 by Golden State. The Warriors gambled a pick on Marciulionis, who didn’t join the team until the 1989-90 season. He proved to be a valuable scorer off the bench for the Warriors.
Draft Quality: B- - One HofF (Robinson), two potential HofF (Reggie Miller, Scottie Pippen), eight players over 10,000 points.
1988
No. 1 – Danny Manning, Kansas, by the Clippers. Fresh off a national championship with the Jayhawks, Manning was the popular pick at No. 1. Never led the Clippers out of the basement, though, and finished his career with a 14.0 scoring average.
Best Pick – Mitch Richmond, Kansas State, No. 5 by Golden State. Became a dependable scorer for the Warriors and later with Sacramento. Averaged 21 points per game in his career.
Worst Pick – David Rivers, Notre Dame, No. 25 by the Lakers. Perhaps looking for someone to back up Magic Johnson, who was closing in on 30 years of age, the Lakers took the mercurial Rivers with the last pick of the first round. He lasted only 114 games in the NBA.
Steal – Anthony Mason, Tennessee State, No. 53 by Portland. Mason became a rugged rebounder and defender, most famously with the New York Knicks, in the mid 1990s.
Draft Quality: C – Zero HofF. One possible future HofF (Richmond). Seven players over 10,000 points.
1989
No. 1 – Pervis Ellison, Louisville, by Sacramento. The Kings had the misfortune of winning the NBA lottery during a year where there really wasn’t a definitive No. 1 pick. Ellison proved to be a less-than-satisfying choice, but he was no worse than seven of the other top 10 picks. Only Sean Elliott (No. 3) and Glen Rice (No. 4) had substantially better careers than Ellison among the top 10 selections.
Best Pick – Tim Hardaway, Texas El Paso, No. 14 by Golden State. Proving that the Warriors are pretty shrewd at drafting players other than centers, they picked Hardaway, a guard, who teamed up with Chris Mullin and Mitch Ritchmond to form a high-scoring trio (Run TMC). Averaged 17.7 points in his career.
Worst Pick – Michael Smith, BYU, No. 13 by Boston. Only played 141 games in his career. Could have had Hardaway or Shawn Kemp.
Steal – Clifford Robinson, Connecticut, No. 36 by Portland. One of the all-time leading scorers among second round draft picks, Robinson scored 19,591 points during an 18-year career.
Draft Quality: C – Zero HofF. One potential HofF (Hardaway). Eight players over 10,000 points.
1990
No. 1 – Derrick Coleman, Syracuse, by the Nets. Always sort of an enigma, Coleman showed immense promise but often coupled it with a lack of fire, or perhaps desire. Played 15 years with five teams.
Best Pick – Gary Payton, Oregon State, No. 2 by Seattle. Became one of the league’s all-time great point guards.
Worst Pick – Bo Kimble, Loyola Marymount, No. 8 by the Clippers. Kimble won a number of fans when he honored his fallen friend, Hank Gathers, by shooting a free throw left handed in his honor during the NCAA tournament. However Kimble lasted only 105 games in the NBA.
Steal – Cedric Ceballos, Fullerton, No. 48 by Phoenix. Averaged 14.3 points during an 11-year career, mostly with the Suns.
Draft Quality: D+ – Zero HofF. One potential HofF (Payton), four players over 10,000 points.
1991
No. 1 – Larry Johnson, UNLV, by Charlotte. Injuries limited the career of Johnson, who averaged 16.2 points over 707 games.
Best Pick – Dikembe Mutombo, Denver, No. 4 by Georgetown. One of the top defensive centers in NBA history, Mutombo finally retired this year after an 18-year career.
Worst Pick – Shaun Vandiver, Colorado, No. 25 by Golden State. More bad news for the Warriors, another center doesn’t pan out. Vandiver never plays a game in the NBA, opting instead for Europe.
Steal – Isaac Austin, Arizona State, No. 48 by Utah. Had a brief NBA career and played in relative obscurity his first five seasons before having a breakthrough season in 1998 with 13.5 points and 7 rebounds per game. That led to an increase in pay from $384,000 to $5M a year over the next four years, which were played with four different teams.
Draft Quality: D - Zero HofF. One potential HofF (Mutombo). Four players over 10,000 points. Not much to get excited about in this draft.
Shaq is entering his 18th season in the NBA.
Courtesy of Getty Images
1992
No. 1 – Shaquille O’Neal, LSU, by Orlando. Has become one of the top five centers in league history with four NBA titles and 24.7 points per game over a 17-year career.
Best Pick – O’Neal. Still commands attention despite entering his 18th season in the league.
Worst Pick – Randy Woods, La Salle, No. 16 by the Clippers. Played only 151 games and averaged 2.4 points. Could have had Doug Christie or Latrell Sprewell.
Steal – PJ Brown, Louisiana Tech, No. 29 by New Jersey. Brown’s been a bit of a journeyman in his 15-year career with six teams, but he was a valuable reserve in his final season and picked up an NBA title last year with the Celtics.
Draft Quality: B - Zero HofF. Two potential HofF (O’Neal, Alonzo Mourning), six players over 10,000 points.
1993
No. 1 – Chris Webber, Michigan, by Orlando. Never played for Orlando. Was traded to Golden State for Anfernee Hardaway. Had a solid career and helped make the Sacramento Kings a perennial playoff team in the early part of the millennium.
Best Pick – Allan Houston, Tennessee, No. 11, Detroit. Tough call since Webber and Hardaway didn’t play with the teams that drafted them and Webber only played one year at Golden State. Houston was regularly one of the top scorers in the league, both with the Pistons and with the Knicks, averaging 17.3 points for his 12-year career.
Worst Pick – Luther Wright, Seton Hall, No. 18 by Utah. Looking for a big man to fill the center spot for the aging Mark Eaton, the Jazz pinned their hopes on Wright, who rewarded them with 15 games and 19 total points.
Steal – Nick Van Exel, Cincinnati, No. 37 by Lakers. An explosive scorer throughout his career, Van Exel became expendable when the Lakers traded for Kobe Bryant on draft day in 1997.
Draft Quality: C+ - Zero HofF. One potential HofF (Webber), seven players over 10,000 points.
1994
No. 1 – Glenn Robinson, Purdue, by Milwaukee. Robinson was the player of the year in the NCAA and he had a solid, if somewhat short, NBA career with a 20.7 ppg average in 688 games.
Best Pick – Jason Kidd, California, No. 2 by Dallas. One of the all-time great point guards in NBA history, Kidd ranks among the top 10 all-time in three-point goals, assists and steals.
Worst Pick – Yinka Dare, George Washington, No. 14 by New Jersey. Spectacular bust lasted 110 games and had a whopping total of four assists.
Steal – Voshon Lenard, Minnesota, No. 46 by Milwaukee. Picked near the end of the second round, Lenard was a solid reserve and part-time starter for Miami and Denver during an 11-year career.
Draft Quality: C+ - Zero HofF. One potential HofF (Kidd), seven over 10,000 points.
1995
No. 1 – Joe Smith, Maryland, No. 1 by Golden State. Much like Sacramento’s choice of Ellison in 1989, there wasn’t a definitive No. 1 choice in 1995. In hindsight, Garnett would have been the better choice, but drafting high school players was viewed as a much riskier proposition in 1995.
Best Pick – Kevin Garnett, Farragut High School, No. 5 by Minnesota. One of the top big men in NBA history, Garnett led the Celtics to an NBA title last year. His success opened the door for more high school players to enter the draft.
Worst Pick – Randolph Childress, Wake Forest, No. 19 by Detroit. Played only 51 games in the NBA. Could have had Michael Finley.
Steal – Eric Snow, Michigan State, No. 43 by Milwaukee. Played 12 seasons and had his best years with Philadelphia in 2001-03.
Draft Quality: B- - Zero HofF. Two potential HofF (Garnett, Rasheed Wallace), seven players over 10,000. Good value throughout. Seventeen first round played over 500 career games.
1996
No. 1 – Allen Iverson, Georgetown, No. 1 by Philadelphia. Helped lead the 76ers to the NBA finals in 2001, but wore out his welcome in the ensuing years in Philadephia and later Denver. One of the league’s all-time scoring leaders at 27.1 points per game.
Best Pick – Kobe Bryant, Lower Merion High School, No. 13 by Charlotte. The Hornets would probably like to re-think this draft-day trade that sent Bryant to the Lakers and gave them Vlade Divac. Bryant is generally considered the game’s top player (along with LeBron James) and has won four NBA titles.
Worst Pick – Todd Fuller, North Carolina State, No. 11 by Golden State. Yet another entry from the Warriors, who got 225 games of service and zero NBA titles from Fuller while Bryant was still available.
Steal – Shandon Anderson, Georgia, No. 54 by Utah. Selected at the bottom of the first round, Anderson played for nine seasons in the NBA.
Draft Quality: A- - Zero HofF. Four potential HofF (Iverson, Ray Allen, Bryant, Steve Nash), 10 players over 10,000 points.
1997
No. 1 – Tim Duncan, Wake Forest, by San Antonio. Duncan ranks among the great all-time No. 1 picks after leading the Spurs to four NBA titles in his career.
Best Pick – Duncan. He’s averaged 21.4 points and 11.7 rebounds in a 12-year career.
Worst Pick – Paul Grant, Wisconsin, No. 20 by Minnesota. Lasted just 16 games in the NBA.
Steal – Stephen Jackson, Butler Community College, No. 2 Phoenix. Bounced around to several teams and has had at least one notable run-in with the fans, but has been a valuable contributor wherever he has played.
Draft Quality: B- - Zero HofF. Three potential HofF (Duncah, Chauncey Billups, Tracy McGrady), three players over 10,000 points.
1998
No. 1 – Michael Olowokandi, Pacific, by the Clippers. Ranks with LaRue Martin as one of the NBA’s top draft busts among No. 1 picks.
Best Pick – Paul Pierce, Kansas, No. 10 by Boston. Has gotten better with age, winning an NBA title in his 10th season. Has become one of the great players in Celtic history.
Worst Pick – Olowokandi. Averaged 8.3 points and 6.8 rebounds in his career.
Steal – Rashard Lewis, Alief Elsik High School, No. 32 by Seattle. Has become a potent scorer and three-point shooter, helping Orlando reach the NBA finals this year.
Draft Quality: B- - Zero HofF. Three potential HoF (Vince Carter, Dirk Nowitzki, Pierce). Six players over 10,000 points.
1999
No. 1 – Elton Brand, Duke, by Chicago. Although he has averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds in his career, he hasn’t quite lived up to the promise of a number one pick, although he has often played on awful teams.
Best Pick – Richard Hamilton, Connecticut, No. 7 by Washington. Blossomed when he went to the Detroit Pistons where he became a steady scorer during the team’s run to an NBA title in 2004.
Worst Pick – Frederic Weis, No. 15 by the Knicks. More and more teams began gambling on foreign-born players during the late 1990s and the Knicks’ gamble with Weis didn’t pay off. He never played in the NBA.
Steal – Manu Ginobli, Argentina, No. 57 by San Antonio. The Spurs’ gamble on Ginobli has paid off as he has been a key component on three championship teams for the Spurs.
Draft Quality: B- - Zero HofF. Zero potential HofF, nine players over 10,000 points. Lots of solid players, but nothing spectacular.
2000
No. 1 – Kenyon Martin, Cincinnati by New Jersey. No definitive No. 1 choice in a draft that hasn’t produced any great players yet.
Best Pick – Hedo Turkoglu, Turkey, No. 16 by Sacramento. Turkoglu emerged this year as a force in the NBA after leading Orlando to the NBA finals.
Worst Pick – Jerome Moiso, UCLA, No. 11 by Boston. Averaged just 2.7 points in 145 games for the Celtics.
Steal – Michael Redd, Ohio State, No. 43 by Milwaukee. Became one of the league’s top scorers with a 20.5 career average.
Draft Quality: D - Zero HofF. Zero potential HoF, Two 8,000 career point scorers. Still in a wait and see mode with this draft, although it doesn’t look good.
2001
No. 1 – Kwame Brown, Glynn Academy, by Washington. He hasn’t reached the LaRue Martin or Michael Olowokandi ranks yet, but Brown’s status as a No. 1 bust is nearing completion. Averaged just 7.0 points and 5.6 rebounds in eight seasons with four different teams.
Best Pick – Pau Gasol, Spain, No. 3 by Atlanta. Never played for the Hawks, went instead to Memphis. Eventual trade to the Lakers showed how good Gasol can be as he teamed with Kobe Bryant to lead Los Angeles to 2009 NBA crown.
Worst Pick – Brown. The first high school player chosen overall in the NBA draft, although he wouldn’t be the last.
Steal – Gilbert Arenas, Arizona, No. 30 by Golden State. An explosive scorer, Arenas has been bothered with injuries of late, but he can light up the scoreboard with the best of them when healthy.
Draft Quality: C- - Zero HofF. Zero potential HofF (although Tony Parker and Gasol bear watching), seven players over 8,000 points.
2002
No. 1 – Yao Ming, China, by Houston. Although injuries have robbed Ming of playing time the past four seasons, he has become one of the top post players in the NBA when healthy.
Best Pick – Amare Stoudemire, Cypress Creek High School, No. 9 by Phoenix. A potential superstar, Stoudemire missed all but three games in 2006. Rebounded with over 20 points a game in each of the past three seasons, but missed 29 games this year due to injury.
Worst Pick – Nikolz Tskitishvili, Tbilisi, Georgia, No. 5 by Denver. In his brief career Tskitishvili has been with seven different teams in the NBA and abroad. Considered one of the biggest busts in NBA history. Could have had Stoudemire.
Steal – Carlos Boozer, Duke, No. 34 by Cleveland. Despite helping Duke win an NCAA title, Boozer somehow dropped into the second round. Made the All-NBA third team in 2008 and is a two-time all-star.
Draft Quality: C – Two potential HofF (Ming, Stoudemire), three players over 8,000 career points. First round had six picks that played fewer than 90 NBA games before calling it a career. Not good.
2003
No. 1 – LeBron James, St. Vincent St. Mary’s High School, by Cleveland. The Cavaliers have become a force in the Eastern Conference with James the reason why. Named the NBA MVP in 2009 and is considered, along with Kobe Bryant, the top player in the league.
Best Pick – James, although four of the top five picks were excellent – 1. James, 3. Carmelo Anthony, 4. Chris Bosh, 5. Dwyane Wade.
Worst Pick – Darko Milicic, Serbia, No. 2 by Detroit. Colossal misstep by Joe Dumars and the Piston organization, considering the three picks that followed Milicic’s selection.
Steal – Maurice Williams, Alabama, No. 47 by Utah. He has become a solid scorer in the NBA, averaging 17 points per game and helping the Cavaliers reach the Eastern Conference finals in 2009.
Draft Quality: A- - Four potential HofF (James, Anthony, Bosh, Wade), four players over 8,000 points. No great players selected after Wade, but plenty of quality with Kirk Hinrich, TJ Ford, Mickael Pietrus, David West, etc.
2004
No. 1 – Dwight Howard, Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, by Orlando. Showed his worthiness as a No. 1 pick by leading Magic to NBA finals this year.
Best Pick – Howard, who was named the defensive MVP in 2009.
Worst Pick – Luke Jackson, Oregon, No. 10 by Cleveland. Trying to find a complement for LeBron has not been easy for the Cavaliers. Jackson wasn’t the answer, lasting only 73 games.
Steal – Trevor Ariza, UCLA, No. 43 by the Knicks. Ariza has traveled around a little bit since draft day, but he may have found a home with the Lakers after winning a title with L.A. in 2009.
Draft Quality: C+ – One potential HofF (Howard), three players over 5,000 career points. Few bright spots beyond Howard. Will keep an eye on Ben Gordon, Devin Harris, Luol Deng, Josh Smith, Jameer Nelson, Delonte West and Kevin Martin.
Chris Paul has turned into one of the NBA's best point guards.
Courtesy of Getty Images
2005
No. 1 – Andrew Bogut, Utah, by Milwaukee. Hasn’t played a full season since his rookie year. Played only 36 games this year.
Best Pick – Chris Paul, Wake Forest, No. 4 by New Orleans. Immediately made the Hornets a contender.
Worst Pick – Fran Vasquez, Spain, No. 11 by Orlando. Never played in the NBA, but the Magic still hold his rights. Advancing to the NBA finals might be enough to get Vazquez to leave Barcelona.
Steal – Ryan Gomes, Providence, No. 50 by Boston. Went to Minnesota in the Kevin Garnett trade and has been a steady scorer for the Timberwolves.
Draft Quality: C- - Little star quality past Paul and No. 3 pick Deron Williams. The good news is that 19 first round picks have already played more than 250 games in their career, meaning they are still gainfully employed and could blossom into something special.
2006
No. 1 – Andrea Bargnani, Italy, by Toronto. Hasn’t set the world on fire, but at least he averages in double figures, which is more than can be said for 23 of the other first-round picks.
Best Pick – Brandon Roy, Washington, No. 6 by Minnesota. Has already emerged as one of the league’s top all-around players.
Worst Pick – Patrick O’Bryant, Bradley, No. 9 by Golden State. Our old friends the Warriors return with yet another big man gone bad. O’Bryant never started a game in two seasons for Golden State, but managed to start three games in Toronto this past season.
Steal – Leon Powe, Cal, No. 49 by Denver. Although drafted by the Nuggets, Powe emerged as an up-and-comer during the playoffs last year with the Boston Celtics.
Draft Quality: D+ – It’s still early, but only six selections are averaging double figures, which wouldn’t be a problem since they have only been in the league for three season, except that 11 players from the 2007 draft are already averaging double figures.
2007
No. 1 – Greg Oden, Ohio State, by Portland. Had to make a tough call between Durant and Oden and the Trailblazers chose Oden. Unfortunately Portland’s past history with big men and injuries (see Bill Walton, Sam Bowie) has held true for Oden, who has played just 61 games in two seasons.
Best Pick – Kevin Durant, University Texas, No. 2 by Seattle (Oklahoma City). Is there any doubt? No other pick is within eight points of Durant’s 22.7 career scoring average, and he’s only going to get better as Oklahoma City surrounds him with better players.
Worst Pick – Morris Almond, Rice, No. 25 by Utah. Almond could someday be a fine young player, but right now his 3.1 points per game isn’t cutting it, especially since Utah could have had Aaron Brooks, who was taken with the next pick.
Steal – Ramon Sessions, Nevada Reno, Milwaukee, No. 56. Averaged 11.4 points and six assists in his first two seasons in the league.
Draft Quality: B- – One star (Durant), but plenty of potential with Oden, Al Horford, Jeff Green, Al Thornton, Thaddeus Young and Rodney Stuckey all still capable of becoming strong NBA players.
2008
No. 1 – Derrick Rose, Memphis, by Chicago. The rookie of the year has already shown that there is plenty of reason to get excited about Rose’s future with the Bulls.
Best Pick – Rose, although O.J. Mayo and Russell Westbrook will receive serious consideration in the ensuing years.
Worst Pick – Danilo Gallinari, Italy, No. 6 by the Knicks. I suppose New York needed a big man, but Gallinari was the wrong one to take. He averaged just 6.1 points and 2.0 rebounds a game in 28 outings while Brooke Lopez, taken four spots later by New Jersey, averaged 13 points and 8.1 rebounds in 82 games.
Steal – Mario Chalmers, Kansas, No. 34 by Minnesota. The only second round pick to average in double figures and was third in assists behind Rose and Westbrook out of the entire rookie class.
Draft Quality: B+ - Lots of promise in this group, especially at the top with Rose, Michael Beasley, Mayo, Kevin Love, Westbrook, Lopez and Eric Gordon.
Sources consulted - Basketball-reference.com.
