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The 2008 NBA draft should see a host of freshman get chosen in the first round, so who will it be, Derrick Rose or Michael Beasley as the first pick? But most importantly who will be that late ...

The 15 Best Late NBA Draft Picks In The Past 20 Years!

by John Lewis (Senior Writer)

5

4,485 reads

Rankings/List

June 23, 2008


The 2008 NBA draft should see a host of freshman get chosen in the first round, so who will it be, Derrick Rose or Michael Beasley as the first pick?

But most importantly who will be that late first or second round pick that proves to be the gem of the draft?  Over the years there have been many great late picks taken that had NBA executives shaking their heads.

So in the spirit of Thursday night's NBA draft here's my all-time best late picks.  Just to clarify, a late pick in my opinion should be someone taken 28th or later.

Monta Ellis - He was drafted in 2005 out of High School by Golden State with the 40th overall pick.  This season Ellis averaged 20.2 points per game for the Warriors.

Carlos Boozer - He was in 2002 out of Duke by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the 35th overall pick.  This season Boozer averaged 21.1 points and 10.4 rebounds per game for the Utah Jazz.

Gilbert Arenas - He was drafted in 2001 out of Arizona by the Golden State Warriors with the 31st overall pick.  He wears the number 0 because a high school coach once told him he would play 0 minutes in college at Arizona.  This season he averaged 19.3 points per game but was limited to just 13 games.  He'll be back and ready to score.

Mehmet Okur - He was drafted in 2001 out of Turkey by the Detroit Pistons with the 38th overall pick.  Now with the Utah Jazz, Okur is a mainstay in the lineup and this season he averaged 14.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game.

Michael Redd - He was draft in 2000 out of Ohio St. by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 43rd overall pick.  This season he averaged 22.6 points per game and is expected to be named to the Dream Team for this year's summer Olympics.   

Rashard Lewis - He was drafted in 1998 out of high school by the Seattle Super Sonics with the 32nd overall pick.  In 2007 Lewis signed a six year deal with the Orlando Magic worth $118 million.  This season he averaged 18.2 points per game.

Cuttino Mobley - He was drafted in 1998 out of Rhode Island by the Houston Rockets with the 41st overall pick.  Now with the Los Angeles Clippers he averaged 12.8 points per game.

Stephen Jackson - He was drafted in 1997 out of Community College by the Phoenix Suns with the 43rd overall pick.  Jackson bounced around from team-to-team as he played for four teams in his first five seasons.  Now a scorer he averaged 20.1 points per game for the Golden State Warriors.

Voshon Lenard - He was drafted in 1994 out of Minnesota by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 46th overall pick.  He played in the CBA and signed a free agent contract with the Miami Heat in 1995.  He ended is career with an average of 11.9 points per game.

Nick Van Exel

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5 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment

  1. sam the fact checker about 1 year ago

    i stoopped reading when tony parker and manu ginobili were not on this list...please tell me that i just accidently glanced over there names or "control+f" on my computer was broken and could not find there names either...

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  2. sam the fact checker about 1 year ago

    ok so i gave ur article another chance and read the whole thing...its pretty good...just leaving some big names off...but thats ok...suggestion...make like a first team, 2nd team thing...it would enhance the article a lot...

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  3. Joe Regan about 1 year ago

    Josh Howard would have also been a good addition to this list. 29th pick in 2003, is now good for near 20 PPG.

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  4. John Lewis about 1 year ago

    You guys are right...I did leave those names out. I didn't do it on purpose but absolutely they deserve to be on the list.

    Thanks for the comments.

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  5. JC K about 1 year ago

    I know this is based on the last 20 years but here are a few names going a little farther back. It's hard to believe that at one time the NBA draft went 10 rounds. Imagine a team getting 10 new players a year for a 12-man team. In the sixties, there were even more rounds. Anyhoo, great post.

    Dennis Johnson - 1976 - 29th pick overall, 2nd round
    Michael Cooper - 1978 - 60th, 3rd rd
    Bill Laimbeer - 1979 - 65th, 3rd rd
    Mark Eaton - 1982 - 72nd - 3rd rd
    Mario Elie - 1985 - 160th, 7th
    Jeff Hornacek - 1986 - 46th, 2nd rd

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