Top No. 1 Overall NBA Draft Picks

Magic Johnson won five NBA championships, played in nine NBA Finals series, and was elected three times for both NBA Finals Most Valuable Player and NBA Most Valuable Player. Johnson also played in 12 All-Star games and was voted into 10 All-NBA First and Second Teams, and led the league in regular. . . more

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is regarded as one of the best players of all time. He is the all-time leading NBA scorer with 38,387 points, having collected six titles, six regular season MVP and two Finals MVP awards, fifteen NBA First or Second Teams, a record nineteen NBA All-Star call-ups and averaging. . . more

Oscar Robertson was a twelve-time All-Star, eleven-time member of the All-NBA Team, and one-time winner of the MVP award in fourteen professional seasons. He is the only player in NBA history to average a triple-double for an entire season, and he is regarded as one of the best and most versatile. . . more

Shaquille O'Neal is a player for the National Basketball Association's Phoenix Suns, widely regarded as one of the best centers to ever play the game of basketball. In his career, O'Neal established himself as a formidable low post presence, putting up lifetime averages of 25.9 points on .580 field. . . more

Hakeem Olajuwon was a legitimate two-way threat, being effective on both ends of the floor. On his own half of the hardwood, he was a standout defender (he was a two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year winner) and thwarted opponents with his shot-blocking ability, averaging 3.09 blocks per game. . . more

With a double double career average, Tim Duncan is one of the most consistent players in the NBA, having been selected in all ten years of his professional career for both the All-NBA and All-Defensive teams and for being a perennial Most Valuable Player and Defensive Player of the Year candidate.. . . more

Lebron James has established himself as a legitimate triple-double threat and has averaged 26.7 points, 6.4 assists and 6.7 rebounds per game for his career. As of the 2006-07 season, he has recorded twelve triple-doubles in his career, with ten in the regular season and two in the. . . more

David Robinson joined the Spurs for the 1989-90 season, and he helped the team produce the second greatest single season turnaround in NBA history (the Spurs also hold the record for greatest turnaround, in 1997-98, after drafting Tim Duncan). The Spurs went from 21-61 in the 1988-89 NBA season to. . . more

The Minneapolis Lakers used the No. 1 overall pick in the 1958 NBA Draft to select Elgin Baylor, then convinced him to skip his senior year at SU and instead join the pro ranks. The Lakers, several years removed from the glory days of George Mikan, were in trouble on the court and at the gate. The. . . more

Patrick Ewing was selected first overall in the 1985 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks. Although injuries marred his first year in the league, he was named NBA Rookie of the Year by averaging 20 points, 9 rebounds and 2 blocks per game. Very soon, he became one of the premier centers of the. . . more

Iverson is the third leading points per game scorer in NBA history. He has averaged 27.9 points per game in his career, trailing all-time leader Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain in this category by only 2.0 points per game. Iverson is one of only 30 players in NBA history to score over 20,000. . . more

College career Bill Walton played college basketball for John Wooden at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1970 to 1974, winning the national title in 1972 over Florida State and again in 1973 with an 87-66 win over Memphis State in which the big redhead from San Diego made. . . more

James Worthy was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers as the first overall pick of the 1982 NBA Draft. As a Laker, he contributed to three NBA championships in 1985, 1987, and 1988. He was best known for his one-handed "Statue of Liberty" slam dunk. Although lesser known than teammates Kareem. . . more

Dwight David Howard (born December 8, 1985, in Atlanta, Georgia. . . more

Bob Lanier was drafted number one overall by the National Basketball Association's Detroit Pistons and was named to the All-Rookie Team following the 1970-71 season. He starred for Detroit until being traded to the Milwaukee Bucks in 1980. In his five seasons with the Bucks, they won the division. . . more

In his career with the San Diego/Houston Rockets and the Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets, Elvin Hayes played 1,303 games over 16 seasons, registering 27,313 points (eighth all-time) and 16,279 rebounds (sixth all-time). Hayes never missed more than two games in any of his 16 seasons in the. . . more

Yao Ming was initially pressured to enter the NBA draft in 1999 by Li Yaomin, the deputy general manager of the Shanghai Sharks. Li also pressured Yao into signing a contract with Evergreen Sports Inc., which stated that Yao would have to give Evergreen 33% of his earnings. However, Yao quickly. . . more

The two-time All-Star Elton Brand plays the power forward position, despite being only 6 ft 8 in tall and thus usually giving up two inches and more to his direct opponent. However, Brand has established himself as one of the top big wingmen of the NBA, averaging 20.3 points, 10.4 rebounds (with a. . . more

Larry Johnson was a key member of the Knicks' 1999 Eastern Conference championship team and was the player who was hit with a foul by Antonio Davis of the Indiana Pacers. Standing outside the three-point line with 11.9 seconds left, Johnson held the ball, and then began to dribble. He leaned into. . . more

In spite of his talent, Chris Webber has yet to lead a team to an NBA ring. At age 34, and with the 2003 injury that took most of his athleticism, the closest he has been to a title was in 2002, when the Lakers defeated the Kings in a controversial Western Conference Finals in seven games. Injury. . . more

Brad Daugherty averaged nineteen points and ten rebounds per game over eight seasons in the NBA and retired as the Cavaliers all time leading scorer (10,389 points) and rebounder (5,227). He played in 41 postseason games and led the Cavaliers as far as the Eastern Conference Finals in 1992. Brad. . . more

Walt Bellamy had a stellar 14 year career in the NBA and was the NBA first overall draft pick in 1962. Bellamy was named the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1962 after having arguably one of the three greatest rookie seasons in NBA history (along with Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson). His 31.6 point. . . more

Sampson played in three NBA All-Star Games, 1984, 1985, and 1986. He was voted the 1985 All-Star Game's Most Valuable Player. Sampson's performance in the 1985 Game prompted Magic Johnson to say, "He really made me look good. All you've got to do is throw the ball high and anywhere near him, and. . . more

Bargnani entered the 2006 NBA Draft and was selected first overall by the Toronto Raptors. In his NBA summer league debut against the Washington Wizards, Bargnani recorded 20 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks and 1 steal in 29 minutes of action. He became the first player to foul out in a summer league. . . more

As a rookie, Kenyon Martin moved from center to power forward and averaged 12 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game and was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team. In his second season, Martin averaged 14.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.7 blocks per game in helping the Nets rise. . . more

Danny Manning was drafted with the first overall pick by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1988 NBA Draft and spent more than a decade in the league. During his NBA Career, Manning scored 12,367 points and averaged 14.0 points per game. He played only 26 games as a rookie because of arthroscopic knee. . . more

Austin Carr's first season in the NBA was marred by a series of injuries that limited his output. During the 1971 preseason, he broke his foot and missed the first month of the season. Less than one month after returning to the court, he was sidelined again by another foot injury, missing another. . . more

He was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the first overall pick in the 1994 NBA draft. After a holdout that lasted until the beginning of training camp after demanding a then-unprecedented 13 year $100 million contract, he eventually signed an also unprecedented 10-year, $68 million deal that. . . more

Andrew Bogut finished a successful rookie season with the Bucks averaging 9.4 ppg and 7.0 rpg. He was named to the 2005-06 All-Rookie First Team and finished third in votes for the 2006 Rookie of the Year Award. Bogut was also the only top-10 pick from the 2005 draft to start for his team in the. . . more

Cazzie Russell spent twelve seasons in the NBA (1966-1978), and is best remembered for his five seasons with the New York Knicks (1966-71). Russell was the NBA's first draft pick in 1966, and was named to the 1967 All-Rookie Team. He was later part of the famous 1970 Knicks team that won the NBA. . . more

One of the league's most flashy and prolific scorers during the 1980s, Mark Aguirre averaged 20 points per game over the course of his 13-year NBA career. He was selected as the first overall pick by the Dallas Mavericks in the 1981 NBA Draft and remained with the Mavericks until 1989. His greatest. . . more

Doug Collins scored a total of 7,427 points in 415 NBA games, for an average of 17.9 points per game, while grabbing 1,339 rebounds for 3.2 per game, and passing for 1,368 assists, averaging 3.3 assists a game. As the three point shots were new to basketball when Collins retired, he only took one. . . more

Coleman was drafted in 1990 after a successful college career that was also fueled by controversy due to his reckless behavior. However, he had a solid rookie season and went on to win the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in 1991. Coleman went on to improve during the 1991-1992 season, averaging close. . . more

Bob Boozer was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the 1966 NBA Expansion draft. Boozer flourished in his first year with Chicago, averaging 18.0 points and 8.5 rebounds and leading the young franchise into the playoffs. The following year, he averaged 21.5 points and 9.8 rebounds and became the third. . . more

He played in the NBA for fourteen years and was a member of the 1986 Houston Rockets team that made the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics. However, that off-season his career took a turn for the worse when longstanding drug problems became known. Several Rockets teammates, Mitchell. . . more

Mychal Thompson was a fixture in the Portland lineup for eight years (though one season was missed due to injury), where he started at both power forward and center positions (depending on other personnel). He was named to the 1979 All-Rookie team, and had his statistically best season in. . . more

Ernie Beck played seven years in the NBA for the Philadelphia Warriors and St. Louis Hawks. He was the first overall pick in the 1953 NBA Draft, selected by the Warriors. He attended University of Pennsylvania. Trivia Picked No. 1 overall in the 1953 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia Warriors.. . . more

Frank Selvy was drafted first overall by the Baltimore Bullets in the 1954 NBA Draft. He went on to play nine seasons in the National Basketball Association during the late '50s and early '60s, interrupted by a three-year stint in the U.S. Army. As a professional, Selvy is mostly known for his time. . . more

Originally signing a letter of intent to play for the University of Florida, he later declared for the 2001 NBA Draft. The Washington Wizards, under team president Michael Jordan, decided to use their first overall pick on him, becoming the first team to ever select a high-school prospect with the. . . more

Charlie Share was the first draft pick in NBA history, being selected by the Boston Celtics as the number one pick in 1950. Share never played for the Celtics, and started his career with the Fort Wayne Pistons and played nine years, playing for the Pistons, Milwaukee Hawks/St. Louis Hawks, and the. . . more

Rod Hundley played for WVU from 1954 to 1957. The Mountaineers made their first NCAA appearance and three total appearances between 1955 and 1957. During his junior year, Hundley averaged 26.6 points and 13.1 rebounds per game. He scored more than 40 points per game six times, which led to the. . . more

During his first few seasons, Joe Barry Carroll was actually a very productive player. He averaged 18.9 points and 9.3 rebounds as a rookie and two seasons later averaged a career high 24.1 points to go along with 8.7 rebounds. Carroll raised some eyebrows for leaving the Warriors in 1984 to play. . . more

Ellison was made the first overall pick in the 1989 NBA Draft by the Sacramento Kings. An injury kept him on the sidelines for 48 of 82 games of his rookie year, after which he was traded to the Washington Bullets. (A Sacramento teammate, Danny Ainge, had nicknamed him "Out of Service Pervis."). . . more

A 6'8" forward/center from the University of Texas at El Paso, Barnes was selected by the New York Knicks with the first pick of the 1964 NBA Draft. He played 7 seasons (1964-71) in the NBA with five teams, scoring 3,997 career points. Trivia Picked No. 1 overall in the 1964 NBA Draft by the. . . more

Benson played college basketball for coach Bobby Knight at Indiana University. With Quinn Buckner and Scott May, he led Indiana University to the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship in the 1975-1976 season. That season, they were undefeated throughout the entire regular and post season.. . . more