Over the history of the NBA draft, there have been thousands of players who have heard their names be called, putting them in a rare fraternity of guys who have laced ’em up for a pro sports franchise. And while there have been a few guys who have panned out—whether an early-round selection or later in the draft—here are 20 players who heard their name early on, yet not living up to the high pick, as they’re the biggest busts in NBA history.
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20. Darko Milicic
Drafted after LeBron James and before players like Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade, the Detroit Pistons made the mistake of choosing a 17-year-old kid by the name of Darko Milicic with the No. 2 pick in the 2003 draft. He never panned out, bouncing around from team-to-team and only playing in garbage time, making him one of the worst draft decisions ever—especially as the three guys taken after him panned out to be potential Hall of Famers.
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19. Greg Oden
As bad as the Darko Milicic pick was for the Detroit Pistons in 2003, the choice by the Portlant Trail Blazers to take big man Greg Oden at No. 1 over multitalented Kevin Durant in 2007 might be even more painful. The Blazers have a history of striking out on high picks, and by taking Oden—who played in just 82 games during his four years in Portland—is one of the worst ever.
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18. Jonny Flynn
Chosen sixth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves out of Syracuse—even though the team didn’t need a point guard at the time—the Jonny Flynn selection grew criticism from the beginning. When Flynn went out and performed badly in during his time in Minnesota, failing to ever become the playmaker they envisioned, things only got worse for him and the team. He bounced around and is currently playing overseas after a three-year NBA career.
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17. Kent Benson
Following a national title with the undefeated Indiana Hoosiers in 1976, the Milwaukee Bucks hoped that Kent Benson would be the answer to all of their big man problems. He wasn’t, as he averaged just 9.8 points and 6.1 boards during his three years for the Bucks. He managed to stick around for 11 years, but without doing anything noticeable.
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16. Michael Olowokandi
Playing at small-school Pacific, former NBA big man Michael Olowokandi failed to live up to the stature that comes with being the No. 1 overall pick. Taken in 1998 by the L.A. Clippers, the Kandi Man was anything but sweet for the Clips, as he was chosen before future All-Stars like Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter Dirk Nowitzki and Paul Pierce, making the choice even more disheartening for the Clips to live with—especially as he struggled during his entire career.
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15. Shawn Bradley
Although he stands 7’6″, former No. 2 overall pick Shawn Bradley lacked strength and a killer instinct. For that reason, he was often shoved around while he stood in the paint, often being found on the wrong end of a nasty dunk. While he does rank in the top-15 of all-time blocks in the NBA, he never became a player who was worthy of being the second-best player in his draft.
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14. Adam Morrison
Talk about striking out big time. When owner Michael Jordan decided to take Adam Morrison No. 3 overall back in 2006, the Charlotte Bobcats—now Hornets—believed they were getting the next Larry Bird. A sweet-stroking stretch forward, Morrison seemed how to shoot a basketball, incapable of doing so wit any consistency on the NBA-level and finding himself out of the league by 2010.
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13. Hasheem Thabeet
Selected second overall in the 2009 draft, former UConn big man Hasheem Thabeet has never lived up to the high position that the Memphis Grizzlies put on him. Going from Memphis to Houston to Portland and currently with Oklahoma City, Thabeet has never been able to develop his game and has career averages of 2.2 points and 2.7 boards in his career thus far.
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12. Sam Bowie
Drafted ahead of some guy by the name of Michael Jordan, the selection of Sam Bowie by the Portland Trail Blazers was just part of a trend of bad choices in the history of the franchise. Going ahead of Jordan at No. 2 was going to be difficult enough to live up to—especially after seeing the way MJ stamped himself as the greatest ever. But that Bowie battled injuries his entire career only made it that much worse.
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11. Nikoloz Tskitishvili
After catching the eye of many GMs and scouts during his redraft workouts, Nikoloz Tskitishvili was expected to help the Denver Nuggets with both his defense and streaking offensive game. Drafted No. 5 overall in 2002, he failed to do either. Lasting just four seasons in the NBA, the seven-footer played for four teams and is an afterthought these days—except when it comes to lists like these.
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10. Kwame Brown
Another one of the bad choices of Michael Jordan the front-office executive, former high-schooler Kwame Brown was handpicked by Jordan to be the face of the Washington Wizards for years when they took him No. 1 overall in 2001. Since then, though, Brown played for seven teams in 12 years, battling both injuries and inconsistency in each season he played in the league, finally being waived for good by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2013.
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9. Joe Alexander
Not having played in the Association since 2010, when the Milwaukee Bucks selected former West Virginia Mountaineer Joe Alexander No. 8 overall in 2008, many worried his career would be a bust. Little did they know they would be so accurate. Averaging just 4.2 points in 67 games, the big man was overdrafted and never became the player Milwaukee believed he could.
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8. Darius Miles
He had all the talent in the world, but Darius Miles was, like others on this list, just a high-schooler whose maturity and game never developed to NBA-level. Drafted No. 3 overall in 2000, Miles bounced around and failed to show the skills that made him a prep-to-pro player to begin with, running into trouble off the court, too, spelling the end of his pro career.
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7. Jonathan Bender
A McDonald’s All-American who was built in the same mold as another former high school star, Kevin Garnett, Jonathan Bender was supposed to be the same type of player as KG was. Unfortunately, after the Indiana Pacers chose him with the No. 5 overall pick in 1999, they never saw a glimpse of that kind of production due to injuries to the teenager which, eventually, cut his career short.
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6. Bill Garnett
A former star while in college at Wyoming, Bill Garnett never could put it together once he reached the NBA. Chosen at No. 4 in 1982, he played just four seasons, scoring 5.5 points and 4.3 rebounds for bad teams like the Dallas Mavericks and Indiana Pacers.
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5. Jon Koncack
It’s hard to believe that the Atlanta Hawks believed that Jon Koncack was worthy of the No. 5 selection back in 1985. While he, eventually, lasted 11 seasons in the league, it was mostly as a backup, filling in during garbage time or being asked to do the one thing that he could bring to his teams—foul. He averaged 4.5 points and 4.9 rebounds per game during his time in the league.
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4. Chris Washburn
There could be a case that Chris Washburn is the biggest bust in the history of the NBA. After starring at North Carolina State, Washburn was chosen by the Golden State Warriors with the third pick in 1986, with the team thinking they had a superstar in the making. However, Washburn battled drug problems and horrid production, scoring a total of 222 points in 72 career NBA games, before finding himself out of hoops.
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3. Dennis Hopson
One of the many who have been coined as the “Next Jordan,” when the New Jersey Nets selected Dennis Hopson with the third overall pick in 1987, they thought their luck had changed. It’s too bad it only got worse. Flaming out without much production at all, Hopson scored just shy of 11 points per game during his five seasons in the league.
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2. Danny Ferry
Taken with the No. 2 pick in 1989, the former Duke Blue Devil, Danny Ferry, went the prima donna route by refusing to play for the team that drafted him, the L.A. Clippers. Weaseling his way into a trade to the Cleveland Cavs, Ferry didn’t see his career flourish there, either, as he spent 10 years with the Cavs and is best known for punching Michael Jordan than anything else he did on the basketball court.
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1. LaRue Martin
Selected as the No. 1 pick in 1972 brought a ton of pressure on LaRue Martin to begin with. But, as it turned out, thanks to the Hall of Famer career of Bob McAddo, the Portland Trail Blazers choosing the former Loyola product first overall was an even bigger mistake. Never averaging more than seven points in a season during his four in the league, Martin retired following the 1976 season—which was a year prior to the Blazers winning their first and only NBA title.
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