NBA History: The 10 Best Foreign-Born NBA Players of All-Time

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Over the past decade, there has been a huge influx of foreign-born players who have made a huge impact in the NBA—which is a good thing.

While the United States has produced talents such as Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal, and LeBron James, NBA fans have also witnessed stars such as Hakeem Olajuwon, Rik Smits, Manu Ginobili, Yao Ming, and Dirk Nowitzki who were not born on American soil.

Each year, more and more international players make their way onto NBA rosters hoping to make a name for themselves in the country where basketball was born.

Past, present, and future, there is no denying the fact that international players have shown they have what it takes to compete with the best the United States has to offer.

So, whom among these foreign-born stars can consider himself among the greatest foreign-born basketball players in NBA history?

You will undoubtedly recognize every name on this list, but you may not have realized that a couple of them were not born in this country.

Who is No. 1?

The only way to figure that out is to eliminate the nine runners-up.

Let's start by recognizing five players that just missed the cut.

Honorable Mentions

Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images

Vlade Divac, Former Yugoslavia (Serbia)

If this was a list of the best flop artists in NBA history, he might have earned the top spot. In fairness, he was also one of the greatest passing centers to ever play in the NBA.

In 16 seasons, Divac scored 13,398 points, grabbed 9,326 rebounds, and blocked 1,631 shots.

His career highlights include a NBA All-Rookie First Team selection and an All-Star selection (2001).

He was the first international player ever drafted by the LA Lakers and his number was retired by the Sacramento Kings in 2009.

 

Hedo Turkoglu, Turkey

Hedo was drafted in 2000 by the Kings and was the first Turkish-born player to play in the NBA.

In his 11th NBA season, Turkoglu has 9,666 points, 3,406 rebounds, and 2,341 assists. he earned a spot on the All-Rookie Second Team in 2001 and was named the NBA's Most Improved Player in 2008.

 

Toni Kukoc, Former Yugoslavia (Croatia)

Kukoc, who was best known for his versatility on the court, was a key player in the Bulls' last three NBA Championships in the late 1990s, winning the Sixth Man of the Year Award in 1996.

In 13 NBA seasons, Kukoc scored 9,810 points, grabbed 3,555 rebounds, and compiled 3,119 assists.

He was the last active player from the Bulls dynasty to retire from the NBA.

 

Detlef Schrempf, Germany

In 16 NBA seasons, Schrempf scored 15,761 points, pulled down 7,083 rebounds, and dished out 3,833 assists on his way to three NBA All-Star selections and two Sixth Man of the Year Awards.

Together with Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton, and Sam Perkins, Schrempf's Sonics reached the 1996 NBA Finals where they lost in six games to Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and the Bulls.

 

Rik Smits, Netherlands

Smits was part of the Pacers team coached by Larry Bird that made it to the 2000 NBA Finals only to be dispatched by Kobe, Shaq, and the Lakers.

That Pacers team also featured Reggie Miller and Jalen Rose.

He played 12 seasons in the NBA and had a great mid-range jumper. He scored 12,871 points, tallied 5,277 rebounds, and recorded 1,111 blocks.

He was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team as well as the 1998 East All-Star Team.

10: Manu Ginobili, Argentina

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Drafted: 1999, San Antonio Spurs

NBA Debut: October 29, 2002

Career Statistics: 9,143 points, 2,406 rebounds, 2,300 assists, 918 steals

Awards/Honors: Three-time NBA Champion, 2005 All-Star, 2008 NBA Sixth Man, 2003 All-Rookie Second Team, two-time FIBA World Championship All-Tournament Team, 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist, 2008 Olympic Bronze Medalist, 2002 FIBA World Championship Gold Medalist.

 

Ginobili is a slasher and has been a clutch player for the Spurs in three of the franchise's NBA title seasons in the 2000s.

He is on pace to surpass 10,000 points, 2,500 rebounds, 2,500 assists, and 1,000 steals sometime this year or the 2011-2012 season.

9: Dikembe Mutombo, Democratic Republic of Congo

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Drafted: 1991, Denver Nuggets

NBA Debut: November 1, 1991

Career Statistics: 11,729 points, 12,359 rebounds, 3,289 blocks, 1,240 assists

Awards/Honors: Four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, eight-time All-Star, 2001 All-NBA Second Team, two-time All-NBA Third Team, three-time All-Defensive First-Team, three-time All-Defensive Second Team, 1992 All-Rookie First Team, two-time NBA Citizenship Award winner

 

Taken fourth overall in the 1991 NBA Draft, Mutombo became one of the greatest defensive big men ever to play in the NBA.

He led the league multiple times in both blocks and rebounds during his 19-year career. Though he was a very good player for a very long time, he never won an NBA Championship.

He ranks 19th all-time in total rebounds and trails only Hakeem Olajuwon in career blocks.

8: Yao Ming, China

Harry How/Getty Images

Drafted: 2002 Houston Rockets

NBA Debut: October 30, 2002

Career Statistics: 9,247 points, 4,494 rebounds, 769 assists, 920 blocks

Awards/Honors: 2003 All-Rookie First Team, eight-time All-Star, two-time All-NBA Second Team, three-time All-NBA Third Team, 2002 FIBA World Champoinship All-Tournament Team, three-time FIBA Asia Championship Gold Medalist

 

Yao was an instant sports icon when he was drafted first overall in the 2002 draft, and for three seasons, he lived up to the billing.

However, since then his career has been derailed by injuries and there has been serious speculation about whether he will retire from the NBA if he cannot stay healthy.

Even though he missed large chunks of the 2005-2007 seasons, the entire 2009 season, and has only played in five games this season.

Yao has remained immensly popular both in the United States and around the world both with fans and corporate partners.  

7: Tony Parker, France

Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

Drafted: 2001, San Antonio Spurs

NBA Debut: October 30, 2001

Career Statistics: 11,918 points, 2,188 rebounds, 4,091 assists, 699 steals

Awards/Honors: Three-time NBA Champion, three-time All-Star, 2002 All-Rookie First Team, 2007 Finals MVP

 

In his 10th season with the Spurs, it is hard to believe Tony Parker is just 28 years-old.

In a league of big-name point guards, Parker often gets overlooked more often than he should. He's already a three-time NBA Champion, and he will likely play for another eight or more years.

Of course, Parker is married to Eva Longoria-Parker—but has since filed for divorce in November.

6: Pau Gasol, Spain

Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

Drafted: 2001, Atlanta Hawks

NBA Debut: November 1, 2001

Career Statistics: 13,057 points, 6,317 rebounds, 1,202 blocks, 2,249 assists

Awards/Honors: 2002 Rookie of the Year, 2003 All-Rookie First Team, two-time NBA Champion, three-time All-Star, 2006 FIBA World Championship MVP, 2008 Olympic Silver Medalist, 2006 FIBA World Championship Gold Medalist, four-time FIBA European Championship Medalist (one gold; two silver; one bronze)

 

After the departure of Shaquille O'Neal from L.A., the knock on Kobe Bryant was that he could not win another NBA Championship, especially  without a dominant center.

So, the Lakers brought in Pau Gasol.

The rest, as they say, is history.

5: Dominique Wilkins, France*

Tim DeFrisco/Getty Images

Drafted: 1982, Utah Jazz

NBA Debut: October 29, 1982

Career Statistics: 26,668 points, 7,169 rebounds, 2,677 assists, 1,378 steals

Awards/Honors: 1983 All-Rookie Team, nine-time All-Star, 1986 Scoring Champion, 1986 All-NBA First Team, four-time All-NBA Second Team, two-time All-NBA Third Team, two Time Slam-Dunk Contest Champion, 1994 Olympic Gold Medalist (Dream Team II), 1994 FIBA World Championship Gold Medalist, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2006.

 

Wilkins was taken third overall by the Jazz and was later donned "The Human Highlight Film," for good reason.

He is 13th all-time in points scored in NBA history and was best known for his breath-taking dunks.

His iconic showdowns with Michael Jordan are the stuff of legends and are shown on constant loop on ESPN Classic during NBA All-Star weekend.

Of course, that was back when the Slam-Dunk Contest actually meant something. The Atlanta Hawks retired Wilkins' #21 in 2001.

* Wilkins was born in France to American parents. Since he was born overseas, he makes the list.

4: Steve Nash, Canada*

Nick Laham/Getty Images

Drafted: 1996, Phoenix Suns

NBA Debut: November 1, 1996

Career Statistics: 15,509 points, 3,180 rebounds, 8,868 assists, 803 steals

Awards/Honors: Two-time NBA MVP, seven-time All-Star, three-tine All-NBA First Team, two-time All-NBA Second Team, two-time All-NBA Third Team, 2007 NBA Citizenship Award Winner, 2004 Lou Marsh Trophy winner, three-time Lionel Conacher Award winner (Canadian Male Athlete of the Year)

 

Can I confess something? I have one favorite active athlete in every major professional sports league, and they're sort of like my man-crushes. 

In the NFL, it (was) Brett Favre (and I'm not picking a new one until I'm 100 percent sure he's not coming back), in MLB it's Chipper Jones, and in the NBA it's Steve Nash.

I say that because he might be a spot or two high on this list, but I think he's definitely top five or six—man-crush notwithstanding.

*Though Nash is Canadian, he was born in South Africa.

3: Patrick Ewing, Jamaca

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Drafted: 1985, New York Knicks

NBA Debut: October 26, 1985

Career Statistics: 24,815 points, 11,607 rebounds, 2,894 blocks, 2,215 assists

Awards/Honors: 1986 Rookie of the Year, 1986 All-Rookie First Team, 11-time All-Star, 1990 All-NBA First Team, six-time All-NBA Second Team, three-time All-Defensive Second Team, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2008

 

Writing this slide is reminding me about the sad end to Ewing's NBA career. He was one of those franchise players who should have retired with the same team that drafted him.

After playing his entire career in New York, he sputtered around for two seasons in Seattle and Orlando—it just wasn't right.

In 1999 Ewing became one of 10 players in NBA History to reach 22,000 points and 10,000 rebounds in a career.

Ewing was named as one of the "50 Greatest Players in NBA History" and his jersey was retired by the Knicks in 2003.

2: Dirk Nowitzki, Germany

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Drafted: 1999, Dallas Mavericks

NBA Debut: February 5, 1999

Career Statistics: 21,944 points, 8,052 rebounds, 2,553 assists, 870 steals, 962 blocks

Awards/Honors: 2007 NBA MVP, nine-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA First Team, four-time All-NBA Second Team, two-time All-NBA Third Team, 2002 FIBA World Championship MVP, 2005 FIBA Europe Player of the Year

 

Many people would argue that Dirk is the best international player ever to set foot on an NBA court, and they may be right when all is said and done. At 32, he has a few more seasons in him.

He's extremely versatile, a prolific scorer from anywhere on the court, and the face of the Mavericks franchise.

Even now, he's a lock for the Hall of Fame, and I would have no problem if someone ranked him No. 1 on a similar list.

However, unless his fortunes change, he will join the list of all-time greats who never won an NBA Championship.

1: Hakeem Olajuwon, Nigeria

Brian Bahr/Getty Images

Drafted: 1984, Houston Rockets

NBA Debut: October 27, 1984

Career Statistics: 26,964 points, 13,748 rebounds, 3,830 blocks, 2,162 steals, 3,058 assists

Awards/Honors: 1985 All-Rookie Team, 12-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA First Team, three-time All-NBA Second Team, three-time All-NBA Third Team, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, five-time All-Defensive First Team, four-time All-Defensive Second Team, two-time NBA Champion, 1994 NBA MVP, 1996 Olympic Gold Medalist, Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame Class of 2008

 

Hakeem was named as one of the "50 Greatest Players in NBA History," joining Patrick Ewing as the only players on this list to achieve that status.

He is the NBA's all-time leader in blocks. He also ranks third in blocks per game, 11th in total rebounds, and ninth in total points in NBA history.

He retired from basketball in 2002, and his No. 34 jersey was retired by the Rockets shortly after.