Image via Complex Original
When your team has a bad season, the consolation prize is supposed to come in form of a lottery pick. And with this selection, there's the hope that you've landed the savior of your franchise, or even just that missing piece to help your team get to the next level. As we all know, though, things don't always go according to plan. For every LeBron or Michael Jordan, how many guys like Chris Washburn, Robert Swift, or Kwame Brown have there been, and who were they selected ahead of instead? Could your team have ended up with a guy like Paul Pierce instead of someone like Eddy Curry? There are too many dumb decisions to name, but out of all these memorable busts, we've chosen the 25 Worst NBA Draft Picks of All Time.
25. Kent Benson
Pick/Year: No. 1/1977
School: Indiana
Team: Milwaukee Bucks
Players passed over: Bernard King, Jack Sikma
Stats (years in the league): 9.1 PPG 5.7 RPG 1.8 APG (1977-1988)
To say that Kent Benson's career got started off on the wrong foot would be an understatement. Just two minutes into his first game in the league, Benson found himself playing the punching bag to Lakers center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The Laker great socked Benson in the eye after Benson had dealt Abdul-Jabbar an elbow straight to the jaw. That was the most exciting moment of Benson's career.
The Indiana product never lived up to his billing as the first overall pick, grinding in the league for 11 years before making a quiet exit in 1988. Jack Sikma, on the other hand—a fellow center that the Milwaukee Bucks passed on—would end up making seven All-Star teams and winning the title in 1979 with the Seattle SuperSonics.
24. Joe Smith
Pick/Year: No. 1/1995
School: Maryland
Team: Golden State Warriors
Players passed over: Kevin Garnett, Rasheed Wallace, Jerry Stackhouse
Stats (years in the league): 10.0 PPG 6.4 RPG 1.0 APG (1995-2011)
It's hard to begrudge a guy too much when he's able to last 16 seasons in the league, no matter how unspectacular they may have been. An accomplishment like that takes hard work, an awareness of your role as a player, and at least some amount of skill. However, it's a lot easier to fault him when he was No. 1 overall pick, and was selected ahead of other power forwards like KG and Sheed. Smith's game was as plain as his name, failing to ever display the grittiness or versatility of players like Garnett or Wallace. Smith would end up setting one notable record during his playing days, though: he played for 12 teams, tied for the most all-time with Chucky Brown, Jim Jackson, and Tony Massenburg. He was never able to dominate in the L like he did for Maryland.
23. Olden Polynice
Pick/Year: No. 8/1987
School: Virginia
Team: Seattle SuperSonics (via Chicago)
Players passed over: Reggie Miller, Mark Jackson, Horace Grant
Stats (years in the league): 7.8 PPG 6.7 RPG 0.6 BPG (1987-2001, 2003)
The SuperSonics had a future star right in their hands...and then they traded him away for Olden Polynice. With the fifth pick in the draft, Seattle selected Scottie Pippen out of the University of Central Arkansas, before giving him to the Bulls in exchange for Polynice. Olden would make his name around the league as a dependable rebounder, but his success would never even approach the levels that Pippen would reach with Michael Jordan and the Bulls. Even without MJ, Pippen had a pretty nice career in his own right. Polynice, on the other hand, was a lifetime journeyman who played for 19 years in the European leagues, NBA, ABA, CBA, and USBL. Guess which one ended up in the Hall of Fame?
22. Jonathan Bender
Pick/Year: No. 5/1999
School: Picayune Memorial (HS) (MS)
Team: Indiana Pacers (via Toronto)
Players passed over: Shawn Marion, Metta World Peace, Manu Ginobili
Stats (years in the league): 5.5 PPG 2.2 RPG 0.6 BPG (1999-2006, 2009-2010)
Aside from the 2002 season, when he'd play a career-high 78 games, Jonathan Bender would only manage to make 184 appearances during seven seasons with the Indiana Pacers, and one with the Knicks during an ill-fated comeback attempt in 2008. In terms of high school players who failed to make the leap to the NBA, Bender is a poster child. Even when he wasn't hurt, the center from Mississippi was just plain ineffective and quickly became stuck to the bench behind players like Jermaine O'Neal, Metta World Peace, and Brad Miller.
21. Robert Swift
Pick/Year: No. 12/2004
School: Bakersfield (HS) (Bakersfield, CA)
Team: Seattle SuperSonics
Players passed over: Josh Smith, Al Jefferson, Anderson Varajao
Stats (years in the league): 4.3 PPG 3.9 RPG 0.9 BPG (2004-2009)
Last seen being forced out of his rat hole of a home back in February, Robert Swift lived up to his last name in the sense that he was quick to exit the league. While his tattoos and hairstyle might say, "Birdman," his game was slightly more pedestrian than that. Swift's collapse as a player came about in a matter of just a few seasons with poor play and knee problems putting him out of the league by 2009. He tried to catch on with his hometown D-League team, the Bakersfield Jam, shortly thereafter, but only lasted two games before leaving the team altogether.
20. Glenn Robinson
Pick/Year: No. 1/1994
School: Purdue
Team: Milwaukee Bucks
Players passed over: Grant Hill, Jason Kidd
Stats (years in the league): 20.7 PPG 6.1 RPG 2.7 APG (1994-2005)
The Big Dog had some bite during his career, but never as much as guys like Jason Kidd or, when he was in his prime, Grant Hill. Both were selected after Robinson, the 1994 Naismith College Player of the Year. What's even worse about this selection is that the Bucks signed Robinson to a 10-year/$68M contract, a deal that still stands today as the most lucrative rookie contract in the history of league. Milwaukee was probably hoping for a little more bang for their buck on that one.
19. Jonny Flynn
Pick/Year: No.6/2009
School: Syracuse
Team: Minnesota Timberwolves
Players passed over: Stephen Curry, Jrue Holiday, Ty Lawson
Stats (years in the league): 9.2 PPG 1.9 RPG 3.9 APG (2009-2012)
Timberwolves fans: your nightmare has finally come to an end. Oft-criticized GM David Kahn finally stepped down this offseason, leaving only his legacy of terrible first round draft picks like Jonny Flynn behind. To be fair, everyone loved Flynn after the showing he put on during the 2009 Big East Tournament. The Syracuse Orange PG played more minutes than any other player in tournament history, leading his team to the finals, where they'd ultimately fall to Louisville. Despite the loss, scouts saw a player who was a gamer; a charismatic point guard who knew how to distribute the rock and score at the same time.
Unfortunately, the perception would never live up to its potential. Flynn fell out of the league in 2012 after being waived by the Detroit Pistons, having spent only two seasons with Minnesota. And they passed up on Steph Curry to take Flynn! How's that looking now, Kaaahhnnnnn?!?!?
18. Jon Koncak
Pick/Year: No. 5/1985
School: SMU
Team: Atlanta Hawks
Players passed over: Karl Malone, Joe Dumars, Chris Mullin
Stats (years in the league): 4.5 PPG 4.9 RPG 1.0 BPG (1985-1996)
Jon Koncak may have been a formidable defensive presence during his 11-year career in the league, but it certainly paled in comparison to the other post presence who was selected after him, Karl Malone. The Mailman's exploits are well-recorded in the NBA record books, but Koncak's contributions to the game were largely forgettable. If anything, he's probably best known for the six-year/$13M contract the Atlanta Hawks signed him to in 1989, despite the fact that he was coming off the bench for them. At the time, this made him more highly paid than Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson. Need we say more?
17. Pervis Ellison
Pick/Year: No. 1/1989
School: Louisville
Team: Sacramento Kings
Players passed over: Shawn Kemp, Tim Hardaway, Glen Rice
Stats (years in the league): 9.5 PPG 6.7 RPG 1.6 BPG (1989-2000)
In college, Ellison earned the nickname "Never Nervous Pervis" for his ability to come up big in clutch situations, having led the Louisville Cardinals to a national title in just his freshmen year. However, when he took his game to the NBA, he was soon referred to as "Out of Service Pervis" instead—a name given to him by Danny Ainge—due to his repeated trips to the disabled list. During the 1992 season, though, Ellison would average 20 and 11, with 2.68 BPG, to earn the honor of Most Improved Player, seemingly making good on his potential. However, that season would end up being his best by a mile.
Knee problems would hinder Ellison for much of his career, as well as a toe injury that kept him out for the better part of three seasons. The Kings ended up only having Ellison for 46 games before trading him after one season. We're tempted to ask how a team can give up that quickly on a No. 1 overall pick, but it's hard to say that they made the wrong decision on this one.
16. Shawn Bradley
Pick/Year: No. 2/1993
School: BYU
Team: Philadelphia 76ers
Players passed over: Penny Hardaway, Allan Houston, Jamal Mashburn
Stats (years in the league): 8.1 PPG 6.3 RPG 2.5 BPG (1993-2005)
When it's all said and done, Bradley's only lasting contribution to the game of basketball will likely be his appearance in the 1996 classic, Space Jam and getting dunked on. Funnily enough, in the film, Bradley plays one of the NBA stars whose talent is stolen from him by the Monstars, which sort've begs the question: what talent?
Sure, Bradley was a fairly prolific shot-blocker during his days in the league, but the Sixers' 7'6" big man would struggle to pan out on the offensive end and was quickly traded to the New Jersey Nets in 1997. His career was plagued by inconsistency, at times exhibiting the flashes of potential that tempted teams to take a chance on him, and at other times disappearing from the stat sheet altogether when he got bullied by tougher centers.
15. Luke Jackson
Pick/Year: No. 10/2004
School: Oregon
Team: Cleveland Cavaliers
Players passed over: Josh Smith, Al Jefferson, J.R. Smith
Stats (years in the league): 3.5 PPG 1.2 RPG 0.8 APG (2004-2008)
We present to you Exhibit A of the Cleveland Cavaliers' failures to build a solid team around LeBron: Luke Jackson. A small forward/shooting guard out of Oregon, Jackson would only see action in 46 games during his two seasons with Cleveland. Sort of makes sense, though, given that he played basically the same position as LeBron. It's hard to know what Cleveland was thinking with this pick. Why not take Josh Smith or Al Jefferson to give LeBron some help in the post? At least J.R. Smith would've given them a more traditional shooting guard. In the years to follow, Cleveland would use their first round picks on Shannon Brown, Christian Eyenga, and J.J. Hickson. Not exactly what we'd call a murderer's row. Can you really fault LBJ for leaving?
14. Raef LaFrentz
Pick/Year: No. 3/1998
School: Kansas
Team: Denver Nuggets
Players passed over: Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Pierce, Vince Carter
Stats (years in the league): 10.1 PPG 6.1 RPG 1.6 BPG (1998-2009)
After a spectacular four-year career at Kansas where he was twice named a first team All-American, LaFrentz seemed like a sure thing to the Denver Nuggets. Not only was he a reliable rebounder and shot-blocker in college, but he also had a nice stroke from behind the arc that helped to stretch out any opposing defense. Some of those qualities would shine in the NBA, but they never looked as good as one particular power forward who was selected after him, Dirk Nowitzki. Everything that LaFrentz could do, Dirk could do better and then some. And while LaFrentz bounced around the league before retiring in 2009, Dirk has gone on to become arguably one of the top 25 players of all-time.
13. Frederic Weis
Pick/Year: No. 15/1999
School: Limoges (France)
Team: New York Knicks
Players passed over: Metta World Peace
Stats (years in the league): N/A (N/A)
You've probably heard the name Frederic Weis before, and it probably had something to do with the fact that his face once made intimate relations with Vince Carter's balls during the 2000 Summer Olympics. That's really the only thing that American basketball fans will remember the French big man for, having never decided to come over to the NBA, even after being drafted by the Knicks in 1999.
Oddly enough, his draft rights were traded to the Houston Rockets in 2008 for Patrick Ewing Jr. So basically what the Knicks ended up with here was Patrick Ewing's less-talented son, a center too soft to even attempt playing in the league, and no Metta World Peace. Pat yourselves on the back there, New York.
12. Lancaster Gordon
Pick/Year: No. 8/1984
School: Louisville
Team: Los Angeles Clippers
Players passed over: John Stockton, Otis Thorpe, Kevin Willis
Stats (years in the league): 5.6 PPG 1.3 RPG 1.5 APG (1984-1988)
A player chosen by the Los Angeles Clippers couldn't have not made this list. The welcome mat of the league for decades, the Clippers have always suffered from a combination of poor management and just plain unluckiness. The devastating injuries to Danny Manning and Shaun Livingston's knees fall under the latter category, but when it comes to Lancaster Gordon, all you can do is wonder what L.A.'s front office was thinking.
In a draft absolutely loaded with talent, the Clippers managed to select one of the worst of the whole bunch, passing on Gonzaga guard John Stockton to take Gordon out of Louisville. Strangely, for as much success they've had in the NCAA, Louisville's players have rarely become anything special in the NBA. Gordon certainly was no exception, finding himself out of a job after just four seasons.
11. Eddy Curry
Pick/Year: No. 4/2001
School: Thornwood (HS) (South Holland, IL)
Team: Chicago Bulls
Players passed over: Zach Randolph, Tony Parker, Joe Johnson,
Stats (years in the league): 12.9 PPG 5.2 RPG 0.7 BPG (2001-2012)
Much hype surrounded Eddy Curry after he was named MVP of the 2001 McDonald's All-American Game, but, if you look a bit more closely at his competition, you'll see that the honor doesn't really mean much. Sure, he had to go up against Tyson Chandler, but the game also featured DeSagana Diop (bust), Kwame Brown (all-time bust), and a whole host of players who have long been out of the league (or failed to even make it at all). Curry was frequently maligned for his failure to stay in shape and his lack of work ethic during his 11 seasons in the NBA. In fact, he was so lazy that during Curry's stint with the Bulls, when then-coach Scott Skiles was asked what Curry could do to be a better rebounder, Skiles simply replied, "Jump." That's not usually something you want to hear about your team's starting center.
10. Joe Alexander
Pick/Year: No. 8/2008
School: West Virginia
Team: Milwaukee Bucks
Players passed over: Roy Hibbert, DeAndre Jordan, Serge Ibaka
Stats (years in the league): 4.2 PPG 1.8 RPG 0.7 APG (2008-2010)
2008 wasn't that long ago, so you may be wondering why the name Joe Alexander doesn't sound too familiar. It may have something to do with the fact that his career ended up totalling only a whopping 67 games before he fell out of the league in 2010. Before the draft, the forward out of West Virginia turned heads with his eye-popping athleticism, finishing near the top of the list for most of the speed, jumping and strength tests in the NBA Combine that year. Unfortunately, while white men can sometimes jump, it doesn't always mean that they can play. Alexander's game never made the transition to the pro level, and he quickly went bust.
9. Adam Morrison
Pick/Year: No. 3/2006
School: Gonzaga
Team: Charlotte Bobcats
Players passed over: Rajon Rondo, Rudy Gay, J.J. Redick
Stats (years in the league): 7.5 PPG 2.1 RPG 1.4 APG (2006-2010)
Look, we all should've seen this one coming. Look at this man. What about him says, "Professional basketball player?" Is it his height? Because it definitely isn't the trash 'stache or greasy locks he's sporting (seriously, even an awkward, middle-school teenager would tell him to get a haircut). Morrison was a force during his junior year at Gonzaga, but his reliable jumpshot wasn't enough in the NBA. Morrison failed to develop any other aspects of his game, and became just another name on the long list of failures for the Charlotte Bobcats.
8. Chris Washburn
Pick/Year: No. 3/1986
School: NC State
Team: Golden State Warriors
Players passed over: Ron Harper, Mark Price, Dennis Rodman
Stats (years in the league): 3.1 PPG 2.4 RPG 0.2 BPG (1986-1988)
It's hard to find any positives in Washburn's basketball career, with adjectives like overrated, lazy, and immature hounding him from high school to the NBA. He'd go on to prove all his critics correct when he received a lifetime ban from the league in 1989 after he failed three drug tests in three years. The 6'11" center lasted only two seasons in the league before trying—and failing—to reinvigorate his career in the lesser pro basketball leagues during the '90s.
7. Dennis Hopson
Pick/Year: No. 3/1987
School: Ohio State
Team: New Jersey Nets
Players passed over: Scottie Pippen, Reggie Miller, Kevin Johnson
Stats (years in the league): 10.9 PPG 2.8 RPG 1.6 APG (1987-1992)
Dennis Hopson was one of six guards selected by the New Jersey Nets in the 1987 Draft. Yes, SIX (this was back when the draft had seven rounds). That's ridiculous. Who was the GM for this team? Isiah Thomas? How do you draft six guards, and not one of them is either Reggie Miller or Kevin Johnson? It defies explanation. As we all know, Miller would go on to have a Hall of Fame career, while Johnson would submit multiple All-Star campaigns and help guide the Phoenix Suns to the NBA Finals in 1993. Meanwhile, Hopson barely lasted it five years in the league.
6. Michael Olowokandi
Pick/Year: No. 1/1998
School: Pacific
Team: Los Angeles Clippers
Players passed over: Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Pierce, Vince Carter
Stats (years in the league): 8.3 PPG 6.8 RPG 1.4 BPG (1998-2007)
We're sure that there have been at least a few successful NBA players who didn't start playing ball until they were in college, but Michael Olowokandi certainly isn't one of them. After walking on to the team at the University of the Pacific, the Nigerian center was looked at as a talented prospect with still-untapped potential. If that potential was ever there, though, it remains untapped. Olowokandi played in stints for the Clippers, Timberwolves, and Celtics, each one more unsuccessful than the last, with injuries and unsteady play ultimately defining his career.
5. Marvin Williams
Pick/Year: No. 2/2005
School: North Carolina
Team: Atlanta Hawks
Players passed over: Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Monta Ellis
Stats (years in the league): 11.0 PPG 5.1 RPG 1.3 APG (2005-present)
At the time, the Hawks' starting point guard was Tyronn Lue. Yes, this Tyronn Lue. Atlanta had gone 13-69 in the previous season and was clearly in need of a boost. Instead of going with Chris Paul, though, they went with Marvin Williams, a guy who didn't even start in college. Granted, Williams came from the defending champion North Carolina Tar Heels, but something still doesn't add up about using the second pick to take a sixth man. Williams would have an unspectacular career with the Hawks before being traded to the Jazz in 2012. Meanwhile, Chris Paul is busy making your favorite team's PG look silly with L.A.'s other team.
4. LaRue Martin
Pick/Year: No.1/1972
School: Loyola University-Chicago
Team: Portland Trail Blazers
Players passed over: Bob McAdoo, Julius Erving, Paul Westphal
Stats (years in the league): 5.3 PPG 4.6 RPG 0.5 BPG (1972-1976)
There are bad draft picks, and then there's LaRue Martin. After having gained attention for his strong play against Bill Walton during a game between Martin's Loyola-Chicago team and Walton's UCLA, the Trail Blazers decided to use the No. 1 overall pick on Martin instead of future legends like Bob McAdoo and Dr. J. The Trail Blazers have a checkered past with highly-drafted centers (see: Sam Bowie, Greg Oden) and Martin was probably the worst of any of them. After two lackluster seasons, the Blazers ended up drafting Bill Walton to replace Martin. Two seasons later LaRue's career was over.
3. Darko Milicic
Pick/year: No. 2/2003
School: Hemofarm (Serbia)
Team: Detroit Pistons
Players passed over: Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh
Stats (years in the league): 6.0 PPG 4.2 RPG 1.3 BPG (2003-2012)
The Detroit Pistons had just come off of a season where they'd fallen to the New Jersey Nets in the Eastern Conference Finals, and the only reason that they had the No. 2 pick was a trade they'd made years earlier with the Memphis Grizzlies. This was supposed to be a case of the rich getting richer. And in the 2003 NBA Draft, that shouldn't have been too difficult. With LeBron already off the board (duh), Joe Dumars had Carmelo, Wade, and Bosh to choose from. It was a tough decision for Detroit. They already had Richard Hamilton and Tayshaun Prince on the team, so Melo and Wade seemed superfluous, and the gripe against Bosh was that he wasn't tough enough.
But as we'd see, they were all at least 10x the player that Darko ended up being and each could've easily been the first man of the bench. Milicic would never see much playing time during his stint in Detroit, and by the time he was on another team, his confidence was too shattered for him to make much of an impact. Milicic was last seen with the Celtics this past season, before popping up later in the year on the Serbian club, KK Red Star Belgrade.
2. Sam Bowie
Pick/Year: No. 2/1984
School: Kentucky
Team: Portland Trail Blazer
Players passed over: Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, John Stockton
Stats (years in the league): 10.9 PPG 7.5 RPG 1.8 BPG (1984-1995)
Hindsight is 20/20, but how badly do you think the Trail Blazers want this pick back? The reasoning for Bowie's selection goes that because Portland had just drafted Clyde Drexler the year before, they didn't need to crowd their backcourt by drafting Jordan. But while Drexler would have a pretty nice career of his own, his success never translated to the multiple titles that Jordan would one day earn. On top of that, Bowie could never stay on the court long enough to make the impact that Portland had been hoping for. Injuries plagued him for his entire career, including a fractured tibia in 1988 that happened as a result of Bowie walking around the court during pregame warm-ups. Your guess is as good as ours on that one.
1. Kwame Brown
Pick/Year: No. 1/2001
School: Glynn Academy (HS) (Brunswick, GA)
Team: Washington Wizards
Players passed over: Pau Gasol, Tony Parker, Zach Randolph
Stats (years in the league): 6.6 PPG 5.5. RPG 0.6 BPG (2001-present)
Michael Jordan may be the greatest to ever do it on the court, but he needs to stay the hell out of the front office. Because before Adam Morrison, Jordan drafted Kwame Brown. The first high schooler to ever be drafted No. 1 overall, Brown has been a historical flop, failing to latch on or make an impact with any club during his 11-year career. Why do teams keep signing this guy? Do they really think they can get anything out of him? Brown has been unspectacular for years, and the most memorable moment of his career probably came before it even started, when he told then-Wizards coach Doug Collins during a pre-draft workout that, "If you draft me, you'll never regret it." We're going to go ahead and say that you were a little off on that one, Kwame.