By: Tyler Ward
With the draft being almost a week ago, it made me think about the biggest busts in NBA Draft history. The NBA has had it's share of great player and steals, but there have been some players that have simply just be awful at the NBA level.
Honorable Mention: Danny Ferry (Los Angeles, 2nd overall, 1987), Pervis Ellison (Sacramento, 1st overall, 1989), Shaun Livingston (Los Angeles, 4th overall, 2004), Shawn Respert (Portland, 8th overall, 1995), Marcus Fizer (Chicago, 4th overall, 2000), Kent Benson (Milwaukee, 1st overall, 1977), Benoit Benjamin (Los Angeles, 3rd overall, 1985), Yaroslav Korolev (Los Angeles, 12th overall, 2004), Shelden Williams (Atlanta, 5th overall, 2006)
12. Shawn Bradley, Philadelphia, 1993 (2nd Overall)
Players drafted behind him: Penny Hardaway, Jamal Mashburn, Allan Houston
Reason: Bradley was so hyped coming out of Brigham Young in 1993, but he failed to live up to expectations. Bradley stood at an astonishing 7'6", immediately becoming one of the tallest players to walk on an NBA court. Unfortuantely, he was not known for his amazing basketball skills, but for getting posterized every single night. Bradley has gotten embarrased by many players, even leading ESPN to do a "Top 10 Dunks on Shawn Bradley". Although he played 12 long seasons in the NBA, he only averaged 8.1 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. 0 championship rings and 43 playoff games? Definitely not worthy of a 2nd overall pick.
11. Ed O'Bannon, New Jersey, 1995 (9th overall)
Players drafted behind him: Michael Finley, Kurt Thomas
Reason: O'Bannon was the 7th frontcourt player in the draft taken at 9th overall. He was thought to be one of the few good players in the draft. In New Jersey, it started out hectic and just ended up turning downright bad. In his rookie season, O'Bannon started 29 games (played in 64) and averaged 6.2 points and 2.5 rebounds per game in about 20 minutes per game. Hoping it was just a rookie problem, O'Bannon came back the following year, only to do worse in his sophomore season. He started 5 games (played in 64) and averaged 3.7 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. After the 96-97 season, O'Bannon was out of the league and he has never came back.
10. Dennis Hopson, New Jersey, 1987 (3rd overall)
Players drafted behind him: Scottie Pippen, Reggie Miller, Kevin Johnson
Reason: Dennis Hopson was heavily regarded as one of the top players in 1987, but it never turned out in a good way. Hopson stood at 6'5", so he could play at either Shooting Guard or Small Forward. Taken ahead of fellow draftees like Pippen, Johnson, and Miller, Hopson was never able to get in the groove and become the All-Star player he was predicted to be. After 5 seasons and 3 teams, Hopson was released and never made a return. He only averaged 10.9 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.
9. Nikoloz Tskitishvili, Denver, 2002 (5th overall)
Players drafted behind him: Amare Stoudemire, Carlos Boozer, Caron Butler, Nene
Reason: There was yet another European hype in 2002, with Yao Ming and Tskitishvili leading the movement. Tskitishvili was thought to be one of the best shooters and defenders in the draft, but he was never able to live up to the hype. Taken 5th overall out of the small country of Georgia, Tskitishvili was never able to get to the basket, score, or rebound even though he stood at 7'0". He only lasted about 2 1/2 years in Denver before ending up in Golden State, Minnesota, and Phoenix. He only lasted 4 seasons in the NBA before landing in obscurity. Tskitishvili averaged 2.9 points and 1.8 rebounds over his career and was never able to lead the young Nuggets team.
8. Sam Bowie, Portland, 1984 (2nd overall)
Players drafted behind him: Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, John Stockton
Reason: Although I have Bowie 8th in my list, he should be up higher simply because the greatest player to ever be in the NBA was drafted directly behind him. With Hakeem Olajuwon being taken first, Portland didn't know if they should draft Bowie or the mildly good college player, Michael Jordan. They ended up taking Bowie and they will forever be tied to Michael Jordan, even though he never played for Portland. Bowie had an average NBA career, but he would always be in Jordan's shadow. He played 10 seasons in the NBA, but also played in just 29 playoff games. He scarcely played in those 29 games and was never going to be the defensive presence Portland thought he would be. Bowie abruptly retired before the 1995-96 season, only averaging 10.9 points and 7.5 rebounds for his injury-plagued career.
7. Jonathan Bender, Indiana, 1999 (5th overall)
Players drafted behind him: Jason Terry, Richard Hamilton, Corey Maggette, Ron Artest, Manu Ginobili
Reason: Bender was the 2nd Power Forward taken in 1999 and was thought to be a great player. Bender came out of Picauyne, MS (H.S.) with much hype, becoming the first high school player taken in the draft. However, Bender was never able to succumb to NBA success, as he his career was filled with injury-plagued seasons. Bender only played 9 total games from 2004-06 and after a four year hiatus, he returned to the NBA with the New York Knicks for the 2009-10 season. He only played in 25 games in his attempted comeback and it is thought that this will be the last of Jonathan Bender. Throughout 8 seasons and over $30 million worth of salary, Bender played in only 262 (28 starts) out of a possible 656 games. He averaged 5.5 points and 2.2 rebounds for his career.
6. Michael Olowokandi, Los Angeles Clippers, 1998 (1st overall)
Players drafted behind him: Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Pierce
Reason: First off, I don't understand why the Clippers would even want to draft a player with the 1st overall pick from a very small college. Every one knew "The Kandi Man" would not succeed in the NBA, but Donald Sterling thought that Olowokandi would be their franchise player and yet another Clippers draft was doomed. His college stats weren't even that amazing either beating out good players like the ones listed above. Olowokandi only spent 5 seasons in L.A. before signing with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Historically, Olowokandi has the 3rd lowest points per game career average (8.3) out of all the NBA's #1 overall picks. He would eventually end up in Boston where he played sparingly and soon was out of the NBA. For his career, he averaged 8.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.
5. Adam Morrison, Charlotte, 2006 (3rd overall)
Players drafted behind him: Brandon Roy, Rudy Gay, Rajon Rondo
Reason: Morrison did really well for Gonzaga, but his game would not translate to the NBA. Drawing comparisons of Larry Bird, he was poised to become a franchise player to a newly-found Charlotte Bobcats squad. Michael Jordan, the greatest player ever and GM of the Bobcats, felt that he had to draft Morrison. No one knows why, but I think it's because of Morrison's great college game. In Morrison's last collegiate game, they played a very talented UCLA team and lost the game, 73-71. He is perhaps known more for collapsing on the court and crying after the loss than he is for his NBA skills. He only lasted 1 1/2 seasons in Charlotte before ending up on the Los Angeles Lakers (where he's won 2 rings, played in 2 playoff games, and didn't contribute). With his contract expiring, he may not even be on an NBA roster next year. He has also made almost $17 million for his career and hasn't done anything to warrant that kind of money.
4. Kwame Brown, Washington, 2001 (1st overall)
Players drafted behind him: Pau Gasol, Jason Richardson, Joe Johnson, Zach Randolph
Reason: There was much hype surrounding Brown before the 2001 draft, as he would become the first player ever to be selected from high school as the #1 overall pick. The Wizards franchise thought that Kwame would become their savior as they had suffered many years of frustration. However, Brown was everything, but the savior. Kwame would never end up becoming the great player he was considered and he would end up becoming a bench player or backup. With players such as Gasol and Johnson, one of them would have supplanted Brown as the #1 overall pick. But, no one knew that beforehand and Brown would live an NBA career of obscurity. Kwame only lasted 4 seasons in Washington before going to the worst Lakers team of this decade. He didn't last long there either, as he would soon make short stops in Memphis and Detroit. Brown would never be able to put up great stats and it is reflected upon that as he has only averaged 6.7 points and 5.4 rebounds per game throughout his career.
3. Chris Washburn, Golden State, 1986 (3rd overall)
Players drafted behind him: Dennis Rodman, Ron Harper, Dell Curry
Reason: This is frankly one of the worst selections ever. Ever. Like all top rated players, there was hype around Washburn, coming out of North Carolina State. He was the second Center taken (Brad Daugherty, 1st) and some scouts thought he would even be a better player than Daugherty. Unfortunately, life in the California would not out so well, but some if it had to do with Washburn's off-the-court issues. In January 1987, Washburn suffered a kidney infection, but that would not be the worst of his issues. It got even worse as on January 28, 1987, Washburn checked into a drug rehabilitation clinic in California for his cocaine addiction. He returned to the team in March, but didn't play up to the Warriors standards. On December 15, 1987, Golden State traded Washburn to Atlanta, where he only played 29 games for them. After the season was over, Washburn was out of the league.
2. Darko Milicic, Detroit, 2003 (2nd overall)
Players drafted behind him: Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh
Reason: Like Tskitishvili, Milicic was supposed to come to the United States and change the way the NBA played the game. Although he was very young on draft day, most scouts saw him as a developmental player that would soon be one of the greatest Europe-to-NBA players of all-time. And like all the players listed above, Darko never lived up to the hype of the NBA; and also the Pistons-placed hype, too. The Pistons would sparingly use Milicic in his rookie season and that would become the way Joe Dumars wanted to use him. He would only last 2 1/2 seasons in Detroit before being handed to the Orlando Magic. Darko would also have a few short stints in Memphis and New York before arriving in the place he is now, Minnesota. Milicic was thought to be the Pistons' franchise player for many years to come, but it wouldn't be paradise unlike his fellow draftees of LeBron, Wade, and Bosh. After 7 seasons and 5 teams, Milicic has posted career averages of 5.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.
1. LaRue Martin, Portland, 1972 (1st overall)
Players drafted behind him: Julius Erving, Bob McAdoo
Reason: Of course, I wasn't a live at this point in time, but Martin's numbers tell me by far that he is the biggest NBA Draft bust of all time. Ahead of players like Erving and McAdoo, Martin was believed to be the franchise-changing big man. Like Olowokandi, he should not have been drafted first overall, coming from such a small school of Loyola University. Martin did not play that well for Portland as he only played 4 seasons in Portland before being dealt to Seattle for cash considerations and soon after, left the NBA. Erving and McAdoo clearly overshadowed everyone in the draft, but the #1 overall pick should have been on the same page as both players. He managed to have a career with a lack of clarity. He posted the worst numbers ever for a #1 overall pick with averages of 5.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.
