The Darko Side of the Draft: All 30 NBA Teams' Biggest Busts

The "bust" is perhaps the harshest label in sports.

Nobody wants to be blamed for wasting millions of dollars or for never reaching expectations. Every year there is at least one NBA player who lets down the franchise that drafted him. Every team has had its busts.

Some teams know how to avoid busts better than others. For example the San Antonio Spurs and the Utah Jazz have had very few busts in their history. Why? They have very experienced personnel who have keen eyes for talent.

Does drafting busts have more to do with the player, the coach, or the general manager? Whoever is most to blame, here is a look at the worst picks in the history of each NBA team.

Atlanta Hawks: Shelden Williams (fifth overall in 2004)

The Hawks thought they were getting a shot-blocking machine in Williams. He had the body of an NBA player but had one major issue: His hands were awful.

This prevented him from being a real threat on offense, thus his bust label.

Boston Celtics: Mike Smith (13th overall in 1989)

When people hear 6'10" small forward, they think of Kevin Durant.

The Celtics hoped Smith could become a mismatch-type player and eventually replace Larry Bird. These beliefs were simply foolish, and Smith was waived two years after being picked.

Charlotte Bobcats: Adam Morrison (third overall in 2004)

Michael Jordan and everyone else envisioned Larry Bird when they saw Morrison play.

He had a good rookie year but suffered knee problems later on. If it weren't for injuries, we could be talking about Morrison as the face of the Charlotte Bobcats franchise right now, instead of as a benchwarmer for the L.A. Lakers.

Chicago Bulls: Marcus Fizer (fourth overall in 2000)

Fizer is one of players who have given general managers a phobia when it comes to ACL issues.

After four years in the league, Fizer tore his ACL and was never the same. He'd been a decent player, but struggled to live up to the lofty expectations that come with being picked fourth.

Cleveland Cavaliers: DeSagana Diop (eighth overall in 2001)

There was a point when Diop looked like a nice defensive specialist, but this high school kid was not ready for the league.

He barely got minutes in Cleveland. While he did have a significant role on Dallas, it did not last long. Currently, Diop is simply a number on the Bobcats' salary sheet rather than the defensive monster the Cavaliers thought he could be.

Dallas Mavericks: Samaki Walker (ninth overall in 1996)

Walker is best known for his good year on the Lakers' 2001-02 championship squad. Unfortunately, he never found a true home in the league.

He could have been a double-double threat on a nightly basis, but nobody wanted to take a chance on him. He currently plays in Korea.

Denver Nuggets: Nikoloz Tskitishvili (fifth overall in 2002)

At a dinner discussion, when someone brings up the question of "Who is the biggest bust of the decade," Tskitishvili's name is never brought up. Why?

He lasted in the league only four years and never had even moderate success. Plus, who would want that last name on a jersey?

Detroit Pistons: Darko Milicic (second overall in 2003)

He was picked before Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Bosh. He won a title in his rookie year and is still in the league.

If you did not know who I was describing, you might have thought the mystery player was a superstar in the NBA.

Unfortunately, this was not the case for Milicic.

The kid who was supposed to be a center with guard skills never proved to be the player that ESPN writer Chad Ford or the Pistons imagined him to be.

Golden State Warriors: Cyril Baptiste (third overall in 1971 Hardship Draft)

The Hardship Draft allowed underclassmen to enter the NBA during this period. Unfortunately for Baptiste, a former star at Creighton, he never made it past training camp with the Warriors, who were at that time based in San Francisco.

Houston Rockets: Bryce Drew (16th overall in 1998)

Drew is responsible for one of the best shots in NCAA tournament history (see below). This got the Houston Rockets very excited and they decided to take him at No. 16.

After six NBA seasons, and realizing that his potential had been reached, Drew decided to test his game in Europe. He is currently an assistant coach for Valparaiso.

Indiana Pacers: Clark Kellogg (eighth overall in 1982)

Kellogg is well known for his broadcasting nowadays, but not many remember him for being an NBA bust.

He had a great rookie season in which he made the All-Rookie Team. Knee problems prevented poor Kellogg from ever playing in the NBA three years later. Can this be the same problem with Greg Oden?

Los Angeles Clippers: Michael Olowokandi (first overall in 1998)

When you're picking first at the playground, wouldn't you want to pick the best person available?

The Los Angeles Clippers did not think to do this, and Olowokandi became a huge mistake.

There were many red flags, like his lack of experience and the fact that he played at University of the Pacific, but the Clippers disregarded the warnings and drafted one of the biggest busts of all time, though he lasted nine seasons.

Los Angeles Lakers: Brad Holland (14th overall in 1979)

Hey, Holland had something that neither Charles Barkley nor Patrick Ewing had: a championship ring.

However, after a couple of seasons, including the 1980 title season with L.A., this 6'3" former UCLA guard realized he could not hang in the league and decided to pursue coaching. He was a two-time West Coast Conference Coach of the Year at the University of San Diego.

You know what they say, "Those who can't do, teach."

Memphis Grizzlies: Stromile Swift (second overall in 2000)

Swift was great athlete at LSU. He had the perfect body for a big man and could jump out of the gym.

The one flaw in his game was his lack of instincts. He was never the type of guy to take over a game.

Swift lasted nine seasons in the NBA and currently plays in China.

Miami Heat: Harold Miner (12th overall in 1992)

Miner may be one of the most successful busts on this list—he won two dunk contests.

However, his great dunking was not enough to keep him in the league. After four years of playing, Miner could not make an NBA roster and retired.

Michael Jordan's ability to dunk may have influenced the Heat to take Miner a little higher than he should have been taken.

Milwaukee Bucks: Marcus Haislip (13th overall in 2002)

Haislip, similar to Stromile Swift, had the ideal body for a power forward.

He always had a tough time dealing with a lack of playing time. After being a star at Tennessee, he could not handle being a role player.

Realizing one's potential is hard enough, but when a team selects a player 13th overall, he could have a high opinion of himself for a very long time.

However, this season Haislip returned to the NBA for the first time since the 2004-05 season.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Felton Spencer (sixth overall in 1990)

When a team drafts a 7-foot center in top 10, naturally there will be high expectations.

Spencer never seemed to fit the role of a starting center and usually played backup. It also did not help that he had Achilles injuries that often put him on the bench.

There were seasons in which Spencer averaged close to a double-double, but the expectations of him becoming a great center never were realized.

New Jersey Nets: Ed O'Bannon (ninth overall in 1995)

In the NBA, some players can get away with being skinny, like Kevin Durant, and some get get away with being slow, like Zydrunas Ilgauskas.

However, being both is simply unacceptable.

Not to mention being injury-prone. Who knows what the Nets were thinking when they drafted the former UCLA star O'Bannon? He lasted two years in the NBA.

New Orleans Hornets: J.R Reid (fifth overall in 1989)

Reid was supposed to be a rare player coming out of college. His flashy career at UNC made for good numbers, but no championships.

Reid had a deadly arsenal of post moves and could kill anyone with them in college. This skill did not translate in the NBA since he could never find a team that could fit his "talent." He played for six teams in 11 years.

New York Knicks: Mike Sweetney (ninth overall in 2003)

Shaquille O'Neal is one of the most influential players of all time. Unfortunately, he has not always been influential in a good way.

Teams became less concerned about players' weight problems as they saw Shaq tear it up each night. This led to players like Sweetney being drafted.

The Knicks have had many horrible picks, but this one "outweighs" them all. He lasted four seasons in the NBA.

Oklahoma City Thunder: N/A

The Thunder are on pace to be a bust-free team...

Orlando Magic: Fran Vazquez (11th overall in 2005)

There were high expectations for Vazquez to pair with Dwight Howard and form a monster front court.

Vazquez has had a successful basketball career, but it was never with the Magic. This European center never even came over to the NBA.

It will always be a mystery why this guy did not want to play with one of the best athletes on earth. Who knows, maybe he's planning to come over when Howard reaches his prime...

Philadelphia 76ers: Shawn Bradley (second overall in 1993)

Standing at 7'6", Bradley should have been an unstoppable defensive force. Instead, he often found himself in foul trouble and on the bench.

Despite playing 12 seasons, Bradley is best known for being dunked on numerous times. This video mix speaks for itself.

Phoenix Suns: William Bedford (sixth overall in 1986)

Bedford was a seven-footer who simply could not hang in the league. He lasted six seasons.

Just like everyone else on this list, he did not live up to the high expectations. Unlike most everyone else on this list, Bedford developed serious drug addictions. After not being able to handle the NBA life, Bedford found himself in prison too often.

Portland Trail Blazers: Sam Bowie (second overall in 1984)

Bowie was not an awful player in his 10 seasons, but did suffer from injuries. He also was most notable for being picked before Michael Jordan.

After that pick, general managers have never wanted to draft for need ever again. At least, not until the Pistons drafted Darko.

Sacramento Kings: Pervis Ellison (first overall in 1989)

"Never Nervous Pervis" had one star-caliber season in the NBA. He won Most Improved Player of the Year and averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds in 1991-92.

Aside from this great one year, Ellison never lived up to the hype of being a No. 1 pick. While his college nickname was cool, the most accurate nickname given to him was by Danny Ainge, who called him "Out-of-service Pervis."

San Antonio Spurs: Alfredrick Hughes (14th overall in 1985)

The Spurs organization has always been known for having great eyes for talent. This was the one blunder in their draft history.

This small forward looked like an elite scorer in college but never got the chance in the NBA. He barely lasted a season in the league.

Toronto Raptors: Rafael Araujo (eighth overall in 2004)

Araujo arrived from BYU but never turned out to be the double-double machine everyone was expecting.

The 6’11” Brazilian never seemed to live up to the expectations of being a great fundamental big man in his three seasons. His lack of athleticism hurt him and he just could not score.

Having a liability like Araujo is unacceptable, and the Raptors decided to tank to get Andrea Bargnani a few years later.

Utah Jazz: Quincy Lewis (19th overall in 1999)

Not many fans have heard of him, because Lewis did essentially nothing in the league for four years.

Luckily the Jazz drafted Andrei Kirilenko in the same year to hide the fact that Lewis should never have been drafted in the first place.

Washington Wizards: Kwame Brown (first overall in 2001)

In terms of basketball management, this was Michael Jordan's biggest mistake.

People were comparing Brown to Kevin Garnett, which is reasonable if you watch his high school clips.

Think about this: If Brown had not been picked first, would we still consider him a bust? He's been in the league for nine years and somehow managed to find a bench role on numerous teams.

Is it possible Brown is not as bad as we often believe?