

The Cavaliers took him with the top pick in the 2011 NBA Draft and he became a legit star in two seasons as a modern, scoring point guard. Love him or hate him, there's no denying Kyrie Irving's ability on a basketball court. Had he been on the court more he'd likely be higher on this list. He's played more than 70 games twice in his 11-year career. Again, when he's been healthy, he's lived up to his lofty billing. For his career he's averaging 24.0 points, 10.4 rebounds, 2.3 blocks and 1.3 steals in 34.4 minutes per game. Davis is an eight-time All-Star, a four-time First Team All-NBA pick, has been on four All-Defensive teams, has led the NBA in blocks three times and led the Lakers to a title in 2020. A lock to be the first pick coming out of Kentucky in 2012, the New Orleans Hornets selected him over Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Bradley Beal. Mostly because when he's healthy he's likely the best two-way guy going right now. If not for injuries, Anthony Davis would be widely considered one of the best players on the planet. Anthony Davis, New Orleans Hornets (2012) He peaked during the 2007-08 season when he averaged 22.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2.0 blocks in a career-best 37.2 minutes per game. For his career, Yao averaged 19.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of fame in 2016. He retired from basketball in 2011 when he was only 31.

Yao was named to eight All-Star teams and was selected for five All-NBA teams before his career was derailed by ankle and foot injuries. He quickly became a star for the Rockets. He started his first NBA game at 22 years old after dominating the Chinese Basketball Association for three seasons. Not only did Yao set a new standard for players of his size, he became one of the most recognizable athletes in the world.

There wasn't a great track record for 7-foot-6 players in the league. No one knew quite what to expect when the Rockets selected Yao Ming with the first pick back in 2002. The Magic got a star with their pick, which is the best outcome possible. Injuries derailed that some and he became a useful role player. From 2007 through 2014, Howard was one of the NBA's best players. He led the league in rebounding five times, is 10th all-time in rebounds (fourth in defensive rebounds), led the NBA in blocks twice, made the All-Defensive First Team four times, and second once, while being named an All-Star eight times and winning a dunk contest. Howard won a title with the Lakers in 2020, was a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, All-NBA First Team five times, Second Team once and Third Team twice. The best big man of his generation - and maybe the last great pure center - Howard has racked up a ton of career accolades. This is where things get a bit tricky, but Howard got the nod in our informal poll. He's also the league's all-time leading scorer, is fourth in assists, ninth in steals and ninth in 3-pointers made. He's also been on the NBA All-Defensive First Team five times and the second team once.
Blake griffin stats game by game plus#
James has won four NBA titles (with three different franchises), is a four-time MVP, a 19-time All-Star has been First Team All-NBA 13 times, plus three selections for both the second and third teams. Possibly the greatest prospect of all-time turned into one of the two greatest players in the game's history. LeBron James has been everything he was advertised as and more since entering the NBA. Here is our ranking of the top overall NBA draft picks since the 21st century. 1 overall since 2000 and see how they fared. Given that Wembanyama is being hyped as the best NBA prospect since LeBron James, we decided to take a look back at the rest of the players selected No. The 2023 NBA Draft is officially upon us and the San Antonio Spurs are set to select Victor Wembanyama with the No.
