The perception exists that top-tier NBA talent is mostly, if not only, found and obtained via high-draft picks. While that's often the case, basketball history is filled with instances of clubs locating All-Stars and even Hall of Fame players late in the first round or in the second round of player-selection processes. Some out there are convinced the greatest No. 13 draft choice is the best athlete to ever play in the NBA. Others, meanwhile, fancy No. 3 as their No. 1.
The Association hasn't always included 30 franchises, so the 28th pick in the 2019 NBA Draft holds a different value than that same choice from decades ago. For the purposes of this piece, round is merely a formality, as the overall slot holds more significance as it pertains to the modern league. Knowing that several current players made the cut of the best NBA draft picks by slot, one can't help but wonder how and where this list will change between 2020 and 2030.
30: Jimmy Butler
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Spencer Haywood is a Hall-of-Famer deserving a shout here, but we rated Jimmy Butler slightly higher based upon what he could still achieve before walking off into the sunset. The 29-year-old, taken 30th overall in 2011, is a four-time All-Star who has also made four All-Defensive teams. While he hasn't always been the best of teammates (allegedly), nobody can deny his on-the-court achievements or the contributions he could offer to a championship-caliber side as a No. 2 star.
29: Dennis Johnson
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Dennis Johnson somehow goes underrated among pockets of basketball fans who fail to realize he was one of the finest defensive players in history. The five-time All-Star who won three rings during his Hall of Fame career earned nine All-Defensive nods. The clutch postseason performer is also partly responsible for one of the Association's most famous moments.
28: Tony Parker
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Tony Parker will forever be one of the greatest draft steals in NBA history. The 28th pick in 2001, Parker spent 17 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs, where he won four championships and became a six-time All-Star. The same year Parker entered the league, the Washington Wizards drafted Kwame Brown first overall. At least Washington also didn't pass on Pau Gasol. Oh. Right.
27: Dennis Rodman
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Rudy Gobert may go down as a better all-around player a decade or so down the road, but Dennis Rodman still reigns as the greatest No. 27 draft pick. Taken by the Detroit Pistons in 1986, Rodman was a perfect fit for the "Bad Boys" who won back-to-back titles, and Rodman earned three additional rings with the Chicago Bulls. Along with making eight All-Defensive squads, Rodman led the Association in rebounds on seven occasions. He's second all-time in career rebounding percentage.
26: Vlade Divac
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Vlade Divac absolutely earned his "Floppy Divac" nickname for the way he'd humorously toss his own body to the ground looking for calls, but he's still the best of the bunch out of No. 26 draft picks. The Los Angeles Lakers took Divac in 1989, and he spent eight seasons with the franchise before transitioning to the Charlotte Hornets and, later, the Sacramento Kings. The Kings retired Divac's number in 2009, several years after he retired as one of only four players to total at least 13,000 points, 9,000 boards, 3,000 assists and 1,500 rejections, according to ESPN's Marc Stein.
25: Mark Price
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Between 1989 and 1994, Mark Price made four All-Star appearances, and the 25th pick of the 1986 NBA Draft was named First-Team All-NBA for the 1992-93 campaign. Price silenced doubters who questioned his size and lack of speed by dazzling and splitting defenders with masterful dribbling techniques. He's also third all time in career free-throw percentage.
24: Derek Fisher
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Terry Porter, Sam Cassell and, following the 2019 NBA Finals, Kyle Lowry made this a difficult choice, but we elected to show some love to a five-time champion drafted in 1996. Derek Fisher never made an All-Star team, but he also wasn't merely some hanger-on lucky to be signed by title-winning franchises. According to ESPN's Ian Begley, the clutch shooter held records for playoff victories (161) and postseason appearances (259) when he retired. He's still seventh all-time in career three-pointers drained during the NBA Finals.
23: Alex English
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While A.C. Green won three championships as a No. 23 draft pick, Alex English enjoyed the more accomplished career as it pertains to personal achievements. An eight-time All-Star, English, drafted in 1976, led the Association in points scored for the 1982-83 and 1985-86 seasons. He's one of only 26 players in history to tally over 25,000 career points.
22: Truck Robinson
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As much as our hearts wanted to say Reggie Lewis here, Leonard "Truck" Robinson belongs on the list as much as any other 22nd pick. A two-time All-Star, Robinson was First-Team All-NBA for the 1977-78 season, during which he led the Association in minutes played, defensive rebounds, rebounds per game, total boards and defensive win shares.
21: Rajon Rondo
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Michael Finley couldn't get by Rajon Rondo here. Rondo, the 21st pick of the 2006 NBA Draft, is in the twilight of his career as of the summer of 2019, but he has four All-Star nods and four All-Defensive appearances to his name. He led the league in assists per game on three occasions, and he's 18th all time in career helpers.
20: Larry Nance
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Outside of his debut campaign in 1981-82, Larry Nance averaged double digits in scoring every season, and he was also good for eight rebounds a night. The three-time All-Star and All-Defensive player retired with more blocked shots than any non-center in league history, according to the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame. He's one of only 21 individuals to register over 2,000 records blocks during a career.
19: Nate Archibald
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Along with being the greatest 19th selection in history, Nate "Tiny" Archibald also has the best nickname of anybody taken with the pick. Drafted by the Cincinnati Royals in 1970, Archibald was a six-time All-Star, and he led the NBA in both scoring and assists for the 1972-73 season. Per NBA.com, he was the first player to lead the Association in both of those offensive categories.
18: Joe Dumars
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The Detroit Pistons received an absolute gift when Joe Dumars fell to the club in the 1985 NBA Draft. A two-time champion with the Detroit Pistons, Dumars was the heart and soul of the "Bad Boys" defense, a lockdown opponent named to five All-Defensive squads. The six-time All-Star was also NBA Executive of the Yearin 2003.
17: Shawn Kemp
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One of the best in-game dunkers to ever terrorize rims started his pro career via the 17th pick of the 1989 NBA Draft. Shawn Kemp was a human highlight reel seemingly out of a version of "NBA Jam," but the "Reign Man" was also a six-time All-Star named All-NBA Second Team every year from 1994 through 1996. He still holds the SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder franchise record for career offensive rebounds.
16: John Stockton
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Let's take a look at who went ahead of John Stockton in the 1984 NBA Draft: Lancaster Gordon, Leon Wood, Jay Humphries and Michael Cage to name several. Stockton, a 10-time All-Star who made 11 All-NBA appearances, is still fourth all time in games played (until Vince Carter leapfrogs him during the 2019-20 season), and his record for career assists (15,806) will never be approached, let alone broken.
15: Kawhi Leonard
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Maybe the hottest take in this piece is that Kawhi Leonard has grabbed the title of best 15th draft pick ever away from Steve Nash. After the Toronto Raptors denied the Golden State Warriors of a third straight title, Paul Pierce said Leonard's performance in the postseason was "one of the single greatest runs" he'd ever witnessed while referring to the two-time NBA Finals MVP as the "dynasty killer." Board Man gets paid, Board Man gets rings and Board Man gets his rightful place here.
14: Clyde Drexler
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Clyde Drexlerwas an easy choice among No. 14 draft picks. An absolute steal in 1983 , "The Glide" would probably own more than one ring had the Hall of Famer and his Portland Trail Blazers not run into the "Bad Boy" Detroit Pistons and also that Michael Jordan guy. The 10-time All-Star who still holds numerous Portland franchise records eventually won his championship as a member of the Houston Rockets in 1995.
13: Kobe Bryant
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We'll listen to anybody who wants to argue Karl Malone deserves to be here ahead of Kobe Bryant. We simply disagree. Along with being a five-time champion, the 13th selection of the 1996 NBA Draft was a two-time NBA Finals MVP, First-Team All-NBA 11 times and First-Team All-Defensive on nine occasions. Granted, nobody missed more shots than Kobe, but it's the attempts Bryant made and when he made them that place him in debates regarding who is the Association's greatest ever superstar.
12: Julius Erving
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Those who want to be picky could go with Chet Walker, a seven-time All-Star and Hall of Famer, over Julius Erving since Erving, drafted 12th overall in 1972, didn't play in the NBA until the fall of 1976. We can't do that to Dr. J. The 16-time All-Star who won three titles overall is widely remembered for soaring through the air and becoming the game's first ambassador of the slam dunk. But he was so much more. He's eighth in career points, seventh in career steals and sixth in career field goals.
11: Klay Thompson
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Reggie Miller's shot was pure poetry, but Klay Thompson's contributions to the dynastic Golden State Warriors shouldn't go overlooked. The less-famous half of the "Splash Brothers," Thompson is a three-time champion, one of the league's greatest catch-and-shoot players and the Association's most underrated defender for at least the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. It's a shame he suffered a torn ACL in what became the closeout contest of the 2019 NBA Finals, because "Game 6 Klay" seemed on the verge of carrying the Warriors back to Toronto.
10: Paul Pierce
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As Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston tweeted, Robert Parish (more on him later) recently called Paul Pierce "the greatest offensive Celtic ever." That's good enough for us. "The Truth" began his professional career in 1998 , and he went on to become a 10-time All-Star who won NBA Finals MVP in 2008 after he helped the Boston Celtics defeat Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. Pierce holds Celtics franchise records in career three-pointers, free throws and steals.
9: Dirk Nowitzki
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Tracy McGrady is a Hall of Famer, and deservedly so, butDirk Nowitzki is simply in a category all his own. The greatest European NBA player in history, Nowitzki retired a 14-time All-Star named All-NBA on 12 occasions. Along with winning league MVP in 2007, he won Finals MVP after Dallas defeated the Miami Heat to win the title in the spring of 2011. Five players sit ahead of Dirk in the all-time scoring category : Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Michael Jordan.
8: Robert Parish
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Sam Jones won 10 titles and is a Hall of Famer, but a nine-time All-Star who entered the NBA in 1976 takes this position. Robert Parish, affectionately known as The Chief, was a four-time champion, and his record of most games played (1,611) may never be toppled. He's also third in career offensive rebounds as of the summer of 2019.
7: Stephen Curry
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There was a time when John Havlicek, who won eight championships, would've run away with this mention, but Stephen Curry has changed plenty about how we view and discuss the game heading into the 2020s. The league's first ever unanimous regular-season MVP who has twice won that award, Curry has set and broken multiple three-point shooting records. No player in history has revolutionized firing from beyond the arc like the three-time champion guard.
6: Larry Bird
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No sixth pick comes all that close to matching the resume possessed by Larry Bird. Larry Legend won three titles and three league MVP awards, he was a two-time NBA Finals MVP and was named an All-Star on 12 occasions. The greatest shooter in history before Stephen Curry rewrote record books, Bird somewhat flies under the radar as it pertains to his phenomenal passing abilities.
5: Scottie Pippen
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Charles Barkley, Dwyane Wade and Kevin Garnett are each basketball icons, but the disrespect some show for Scottie Pippen as of the last year of the 2010s is downright astonishing. Maybe the most underappreciated defender in history, Pippen added 10 All-Defensive appearances to his six championship rings and seven All-Star trips. In 2016, Chris Bosh told ESPN he believes Pippen is the league's all-time most underrated player.
4: Dikembe Mutombo
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Chris Paul is one of the best two-way players the Association has ever seen, and Chris Bosh is also worthy of recognition. The fourth pick of the 1991 NBA Draft nevertheless wins out here. An eight-time All-Star with six All-Defensive nods, Dikembe Mutombo sits second all time in career rejections, and he won Defensive Player of the Year on four occasions. Per NBA.com, he was the first four-time winner of that award.
3: Michael Jordan
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In between Hakeem Olajuwon and Michael Jordan, the Portland Trail Blazers acquired Sam Bowie second overall in the 1984 NBA Draft. There may never be a bigger draft mistake to occur in North American pro sports. Whether or not His Airness is the GOAT will be debated for generations and, eventually, by those who never saw him play a live game, but the six-time champion with 10 scoring titles to his name left a mark on the sport unlike any basketball star before or since. In December 2017, Forbes' Kurt Badenhausenreported M.J. had become the highest-paid athlete in history.
2: Bill Russell
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The all-time greatest Russell in league history is also the NBA's best second-overall draft pick. Bill Russell went to the St. Louis Hawks in 1956, but that franchise traded him to the Boston Celtics before he played a game. From there, Russell merely won 11 championships, more thanany other player, and the five-time MVP may, all things considered, still be the greatest playoff performer to ever feature on the court. The Rochester Royals grabbed Si Green first back in '56, a decision that worked out well for Russell and Boston.
1: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
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Instead of choosing a personal favorite such as LeBron James, Tim Duncan or Shaq, we went with the man who literally scored more points than anyone else in history. The first selection of the 1969 draft, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , a 19-time All-Star, six-time MVP and six-time champion, was once called the "greatest player ever" by Pat Riley, per NBA.com. Riley isn't alone in believing that to be true.
Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink.
