Top 5 international players selected in the 2021 NBA Draft

International players have been part of the NBA Draft since the late 1970s, and the 2021 edition brought us, again, a solid group of non-American talent. Nine international players were drafted in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft and nine others came in the second round.

Top five international talents selected in the 2021 NBA Draft

In recent decades, international stars like Dirk Nowitzki, Manu Ginóbili, or Tony Parker were able to build Hall-of-Fame careers in the NBA, and the international talent seems to be growing by the dribble.

Look at men's basketball at the 2021 Olympics and you'll see how many other attractive talents are on teams different from the US, like Slovenian Luka Doncic, for example.

The three most recent NBA MVP awards have been won by non-American players (Giannis Antetokounmpo from Greece and Nikola Jokic from Serbia), and the reigning Finals MVP is also an international superstar (Antetokounmpo).

NBA franchises understand that talent is not reserved to only American prospects, and the NBA Draft shows it. While some of the foreign players in the NBA Draft came from the collegiate level or the G League Ignite, there were eight coming from professional basketball teams from all over the world.

In this article, we will give you a quick look at the Top five international players selected in the 2021 NBA Draft.

Without further ado, let us start.

#5 Chris Duarte (Dominican Republic)

Chris Duarte #5 of the Oregon Ducks takes a shot.

Dominican guard Chris Duarte was selected by the Indiana Pacers with the 13th pick of the 2021 NBA Draft. Coming from Oregon, the 24-year-old is coming off two great seasons at Oregon, where he showed off his great shooting skills.

In the 2020-21 season, Duarte averaged 17.1 points per game on 53/42/81 shooting splits. He was named to the All-Pac-12 first team, Pac-12 All-Defense team and also featured in the third All-American team and won the Pac-12 Player of the Year award.

#4 Joshua Primo (Canada)

Joshua Primo #11 of the Alabama Crimson Tide drives toward the hoop.

The San Antonio Spurs took Canadian Joshua Primo with the 12th pick of the 2021 NBA Draft. The Canadian guard is coming off a year in Alabama and is ready to show his shooting skills at the highest level.

Primo is an 18-year-old, 6' 6'' guard who put up 8.1 points per game at Alabama in 30 appearances (19 starts). He made 43% of his field goals, 38% from the three-point line and shot 75% from the free-throw line.

#3 Franz Wagner (Germany)

Franz Wagner poses for photos on the red carpet during the 2021 NBA Draft at the Barclays Center on July 29, 2021 in New York City.

German forward Franz Wagner was selected by the Orlando Magic for eighth spot in the first round of the 2021 NBA Draft. The former Michigan player was the third non-American player selected on draft night.

Wagner is the brother of Moritz Wagner, an NBA center who also plays for the Orlando Magic.

In his collegiate career, Franz averaged 12 points and six rebounds per game in two campaigns, and he also showed a little bit of range in his second year at college, making 34.3% of his three-pointers (3.6 attempts per game.)

#2 Jonathan Kuminga (Democratic Republic of the Congo)

Jalen Green (L) and Jonathan Kuminga celebrate after Green was drafted by the Houston Rockets during the 2021 NBA Draft.

Jonathan Kuminga was mentioned by many as the best foreign player in the 2021 NBA Draft class. Eventually, the Golden State Warriors took him with the seventh pick of the first round, making him the second international talent to be chosen.

Kuminga spent his pre-NBA development years with the G League Ignite team and it paid off for him. The 6' 7'' forward averaged 15 points and seven rebounds per game in 13 appearances for the Ignite team. Though his efficiency was not there with Ignite, Kuminga's athleticism can help him in the NBA.

#1 Josh Giddey (Australia)

Josh Giddey poses during a portrait session in Brighton on May 23, 2021 in Adelaide, Australia.

Josh Giddey was the first non-American player to be selected in the 2021 NBA Draft, thus headlining the new crew of international talent in the league.

He was picked by the Oklahoma City Thunder with the sixth overall pick in the draft and the Australian guard's potential probably deserved to be a top pick.

Giddey is coming off playing for the Adelaide 36ers in the Australian National Basketball League. He is a solid passer, and the 18-year-old, 6' 8'' guard put up 10 points, seven rebounds and seven assists per game in 28 appearances for the 36ers in the 2020-21 season.