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The 2018 NBA Draft is riddled with some really talented players - particular in the frontcourt. The likes of DeAndre Ayton, Marvin Bagley III, Wendell Carter, Mo Bamba and Jaren Jackson Jr have lit up the college basketball scene over the past year, while Trae Young became the first and only player in college basketball history to lead the country in both scoring as well as assists - he achieved this amazing feat as a rookie moreover.
What makes it even better is the imminent arrival of Luka Doncic to American shores. The 19-year-old led Real Madrid to a Euroleague title this past summer and was named the Final Four MVP for his clutch, match-changing performances when it mattered the most. He is by far the most proven European prospect to enter the league - even more so than the likes of Dirk and Manu Ginobili, and he dominated a men's league as a 19-year-old.
The race for the #1 pick is slated to be a really exciting one this time around, and we could see a number of players from this draft class making their way into All-Star teams if they continue to put in the work and fulfill their potential as is. With the NBA draft slated to get underway in a few hours, we at Sportskeeda decided to look back on the most iconic #1 overall picks to grace the game.
The countdown goes as follows:
#10 James Worthy
James Worthy came into the league on the back of a legendary NCAA campaign for the North Carolina Tar Heels, with whom he won the title over rivals Georgetown. He was drafted by the Lakers with the #1 overall pick in 1982. He was given a chance as a starter in his second season as a starter, and he took up the role for good in the years to pass by.
Big Game James will be best remembered for dropping a triple-double in Game 7 of the 1988 NBA Finals, consequently winning Finals MVP honors for that performance. He was one of the crucial elements of the Showtime Lakers' offenses, and the foursome of Magic, Byron Scott, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were the strongest 4-man lineup in the league other than the Celtics' Big 3 combined with Dennis Johnson during their heyday.
Worthy made it to 7 All-Star games from 1986-1992 and was voted to 2 All-NBA teams in his career. The reason he makes it over Patrick Ewing on this list is that of his considerable role in the Lakers' success during Kareem's final years - without him playing the role of primary scorer, they couldn't have won 5 titles in the '80s.
#9 Allen Iverson
The Answer is one of the most iconic players to ever play the game. Regarded by many as pound-for-pound the greatest basketball player ever, Iverson left a lasting legacy on the sport in 14 years playing in the NBA.
After a stellar college career for Georgetown, Iverson was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the first pick of the 1996 NBA draft. He was an instant success, finishing his rookie season with per-game averages of 23.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 2.1 steals and winning the Rookie of the Year award. He won the MVP award for the 2000-01 season, willing the 76ers to the first seed in the Eastern Conference standings and taking a game off the Kobe-Shaq Lakers in the Finals.
Through the course of his career, Allen Iverson has won several personal accolades. He has 11 All-Star game selections in total, in addition to 7 All-NBA team selections, 4 scoring titles and 3 steals titles. He was voted as the All-Star game MVP in 2001 and 2005. He was voted in as a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 2016 along with Yao Ming and Shaquille O'Neal, and his #3 jersey was raised to the rafters by the Sixers in 2014.
#8 David Robinson
David Robinson, fondly known as The Admiral, was selected by the San Antonio Spurs with the #1 overall pick. After serving out his time in the Navy, Robinson made his debut as a 24-year-old in 1989-90 and was responsible for a 35-game turnaround in San Antonio's regular season record as they went from 21-61 to 56-26 in his rookie season. He made the All-Star game as a rookie and finished the season with averages of 24.3 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 3.9 blocks per game.
He was a fringe MVP candidate for most of his prime and won the award in the 1994-95 season. After an injury in 1996-97 and the drafting of Tim Duncan, Robinson's load was reduced. The Twin Towers combined to win 2 championships in 1999 and 2003, and The Admiral retired following the latter triumph to conclude a Hall of Fame career.
Robinson has several accolades to his name. He was named as an All-Star 10 times, made it to 10 All-NBA teams, won the DPOY award in 1992, the scoring title in 1994, the rebounding title in 1991 and led the league in blocks in 1992. He also has 8 All-Defensive Team selections to his credit and is recognized as one of the best two-way players in basketball history.
#7 Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson has gone down in history as the most complete guard to ever play the game. For a 5-year spell during his initial years in the league, Oscar averaged a triple-double; the next closest person with such statistical dominance is Russell Westbrook, who's done it over 2 seasons.
Oscar changed the way coaches and playing schemes treated guards. Not only was he a gifted scorer, he was one of the league's best playmakers and constantly set his teammates up in the best position to win. It took him some time, but Oscar eventually won the NBA championship he so richly deserved with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1971 after teaming up with Lew Alcindor.
Through 14 seasons in the league, Oscar was named an All-Star 12 teams, made 11 All-NBA teams and won the MVP award in 1964. He led the league in assists for 6 seasons, and has had his jersey numbers raised to the rafters by the Cincinnati Royals (now the Sacramento Kings) as well as the Milwaukee Bucks.
#6 Shaquille O'Neal
Shaq Diesel is best remembered as the single most dominant player over an extended period through the history of the game. He combined with Kobe Bryant to bring 3 successive NBA championships to the Lakers from 2000 till 2002. Drafted by the Orlando Magic with the #1 pick after a dominant college career with the LSU Tigers, Shaquille took to the NBA game like a duck takes to water, making the All-Star team in his very first year.
He combined with Penny Hardaway to make their first NBA Finals in 1995, before signing with the Lakers as a free agent in 1996. After getting traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, he helped Dwyane Wade win his first title and the fourth of his own career in 2006. He made it to 14 straight All-Star games from 1993 till 2007, finishing with 15. He has 14 All-NBA team selections, 2 scoring titles, 3 All-Defensive Team selections and won the NBA MVP award in 2000.
Through 19 years in the league, O'Neal was heralded as a great player who was also a comic relief - a welcome change from a league dominated all too often by seriousness. Today, he's a part of the Emmy-winning Inside the NBA crew and continues to entertain millions of fans on screen.
#5 Hakeem Olajuwon
Olajuwon was recognized as the best center in the league during the most stacked era in terms of big men. None of David Robinson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (an aging one), Shaquille O'Neal, Patrick Ewing, Dikembe Mutombo or Arvydas Sabonis were able to do a damn thing when The Dream defended them or decided to score on them from the low post. For a big man, Olajuwon had extraordinary footwork and is one of the most graceful and skilled players to ever play the game.
Like the rest of the players on this countdown, Hakeem has every which accolade that one could possibly win. In the 1993-94 season, he became the only player to win MVP, Finals MVP and Defensive Player of the Year awards in the same season. In total, he had 12 All-Star game appearances, 12 All-NBA selections, 2 DPOYs, 9 All-Defensive Team selections while having led the league in rebounding twice and blocks thrice.
His title run in 1993-94 is the biggest case in NBA history of one player powering a championship run with no All-Star supporting cast while dominating on both ends of the floor. The Dream was in the league for a solid 18 seasons, and his jersey #34 has been raised to the Rockets' rafters at the Toyota Center.
#4 Magic Johnson
The Magic-Bird rivalry was the saving grace for a sports league with declining interest, spectator footfall and television viewership. More importantly, Magic Johnson turned the Lakers into the legendary ball club they are today - this is not an exaggeration in the least bit. Without Magic Johnson, there are no Showtime Lakers, and there is no dynasty to speak of in Los Angeles.
Drafted with the #1 overall pick in 1979, Johnson proceeded to become one of those rare players with an All-Star game appearance in their rookie season. He was even more impactful in the postseason, and remains the only rookie to ever win the Finals MVP - this came on the back of a game 6 in which he subbed in as a center in place of the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Magic has 5 championship wins, 3 regular season MVPs and 3 Finals MVPs. He led the league in assists 4 times, made it to 10 All-NBA teams in 12 years and was an All-Star for every single season of his career - except the one in which he made a short-lived comeback (1995-96). Above all, he is the prototype for the plethora of tall point guards that we see in the league today, and his impact on the game is indelible.
#3 Tim Duncan
Tim Duncan has possibly the greatest single-franchise career of any player in NBA history. The Spurs ended up with the #1 pick in the 1997 NBA draft, and they hit a home run with this selection. In 19 years with the franchise, Duncan has the best winning percentage for any player with over 1000 games played, winning 50+ games in every single regular season campaign of his career.
It is a travesty that the best rim protector of his era did not end up with a single Defensive Player of the Year award, but Tim Duncan has the most All-Defensive Team selections of all time at 15 - which sorta evens out the scale. He also has 2 MVPs, 3 Finals MVPs, 5 championships, 15 All-NBA selections and 15 All-Star game selections in a glittering career that defies superlatives.
Duncan was the definition of a model employee and took pay cuts later on in his career to facilitate the Spurs' title bids later in his career. Playing with any other franchise, his per-game numbers would be much better, but there's certainly no denying that his 2003 Finals MVP performance against the Nets is right up there with the greatest Finals performances of all time.
#2 LeBron James
Also read: LeBron James vs Michael Jordan - A Statistical Comparison
The 'Chosen One' from Akron Ohio has been a part of the basketball universe for over half of his life now. The only player in the history of school basketball to have all high school games nationally televised, James is definitely the most hyped prospect ever to enter the league. In 15 years since James has been the best player in the world for at least half of his basketball career and continues to be at stratospheric levels of excellence.
One could make an MVP case for any of his seasons starting from his 3rd, and he has indeed finished top 5 in the voting for every season since. James has 3 NBA titles, 4 regular season MVPs, 3 Finals MVPs, 14 All-Star game selections, 14 All-NBA selections and 6 All-Defensive Team selections in a storied career which has much room for growth still.
His postseason this year is as great as any in history, and he should end up at #1 on this list when all is said and done. With that being said, there's a certain 7'2" center who wraps up our countdown on the next slide.
#1 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Despite what other people might have to say, and they say it in recency bias, LeBron James' career accomplishments have not yet surpassed those of the great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the first overall pick of the 1969 NBA draft, Kareem is the most accomplished basketball player in the history of the game, if we count their accolades at every level.
It was apparent that he stepped onto an NBA court as the best player in the league, and he won the MVP award in only his sophomore season before adding a Larry O'Brien trophy and Finals MVP to that haul. For all that people say about the 70s and how players in that era were weaker than the eras thereafter, the Harlem-born Kareem won 6 MVP trophies, had 2 Finals MVPs and 6 championship rings.
In 20 years playing in the NBA, Abdul-Jabbar has 18 All-Star game appearances, 15 All-NBA selections, 11 All-Defensive Team selections and kept up a high scoring rate up until his age-38 season, after which he came off the bench in 2 championship runs for the Lakers. His is a legacy that has been burned into the annals of sports history forever, and he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Barack Obama in 2016.
