NBA Draft 2012: How Anthony Davis Ranks Among Most Hyped Prospects Ever

Anthony Davis is receiving the most buzz of any prospect in the 2012 NBA draft—there is no argument there. But is it possible that Davis is the most hyped player in the lottery era?

To answer that question, one needn't look further than the first overall pick. It would be difficult to argue that a guy is one of the most highly regarded prospects of all time when he was passed over in his own draft. This is a reasonable stipulation, especially given the talents taken at the top of the draft.

Since the implementation of the lottery in 1985, the first overall pick has so far yielded two Hall of Famers, 13 Rookie of the Year award recipients and 18 All-Stars.

Naturally, some of the players selected first overall were better equipped than others (looking at you, Michael Olowokandi). But they were all faced with the same responsibility: no less than the future of their respective franchises.

Read on to see who were the hyped of the hyped, and where Anthony Davis fits in this exclusive club.

15. Yao Ming

Looking back at the hysteria surrounding Yao Ming after his accomplished career, it is easy to view things with rose-colored glasses. Yet while his arrival in 2002 was universally anticipated, not everyone bought his ability.

Yes, plenty of people expected Yao to dominate the league, using his massive 7'6" body to overwhelm opponents on the inside. However, that was all American fans knew about him. There were rumors of soft touch around the basket and good athleticism, but with little footage of Yao as a player, the size fueled the stateside speculation.

Some people were not accepting Yao's ability just at his word, though. ESPN's Dick Vitale compared him to some of the biggest busts in NBA history, while Charles Barkley famously told Kenny Smith, "If Yao Ming scores 19 points, I'll kiss your ass."

With his shroud of mystery and international appeal, Yao arguably garnered more attention than any other prospect. Much of it was positive, but other players have been met with even more hype.

14. Derrick Rose

Even at the 2008 draft, the hype surrounding Derrick Rose called him the point guard of the future.

Rose took the nation by storm at Memphis, gashing through the college basketball with unparalleled explosiveness at both ends of the court. He was regarded as the result of the point guard evolution, a guy who could harness his physical freakishness as an instrument to orchestrate an offense.

That said, Rose did not come to the pros without his flaws. As DraftExpress recounts, Rose entered the league with some questionable decision-making and a faulty jumper. After all, there had to be a reason that a debate brewed between Rose and another very flawed player in Michael Beasley.

He may not have been a perfect point guard prospect, but Rose was the next generation, and the league certainly took notice.

13. Allen Iverson

In 1996, before the cornrows, the practice and the time in Turkey, Allen Iverson was one of the most exciting guard prospects of all time.

At 6'0", he is the shortest player ever selected with the first overall pick. Even with two Big East Defensive Player of the Year awards and the Georgetown record for scoring average (22.9 points per game), what set Iverson apart was how he was hyped at every level.

He did not play his senior year of high school due to legal issues, yet he displayed such promise up until then that John Thompson offered him a scholarship nonetheless. After just two years at Georgetown, Iverson became the first player to enter the draft early during Thompson's tenure. Even more telling, no one outside the Hoya family doubted his decision.

Iverson may have taken a turbulent route to the pros, but he impressed through it all, the hype building from high school to the NBA.

12. Anthony Davis

It might seem rash to say Anthony Davis is more hyped than guys like Yao, Rose and Iverson, but there is a difference between Davis and those great players. Each of them entered the draft representing the pinnacle of their respective positions, while Davis' hype stems from how unique his talent is.

He plays with equal parts intensity and enthusiasm. He is the best center prospect in years, yet he was a 6'0" guard as a freshman in high school. He still has a guard's handle and a feathery mid-range jumper, but his length and his phenomenal shot-blocking ability are his bread and butter.

In short, Davis has such a diverse array of skills that he is expected to lead a revival in New Orleans with Eric Gordon as his only complementary weapon. Yao, Rose and Iverson were all great entering the draft; Davis is a savior.

As the 2012 draft approaches, Davis has emerged as more than just a unibrow. He is a prepackaged inside-out skill set, equipped with charisma to own his city for years following the draft.

11. Blake Griffin

While Davis is getting credit for his versatility, Blake Griffin made his living with on sheer force alone, dominating the draft boards one highlight at a time.

It was hard to look away from the guy who approached the rim with both a linebacker's strength and intent. Griffin played like a bull in a china shop for the Oklahoma Sooners. No one could say he averaged 22.7 points and 14.4 rebounds per game like it was nothing, as his effort and intensity were unavoidable.

What pushed Griffin's hype through the roof wasn't just that he was one of the most dominant prospects of all time, but that he would eventually bring that talent to the Los Angeles Clippers. After decades of losing, the Clippers were in desperate need of someone who could inspire a fanbase searching in vain for a reason to hope.

With that in mind, this guy was not just a physical specimen. On draft day, Griffin was the Clipper messiah, come to assert the relevance of L.A.'s second team one thunderous dunk at a time.

10. John Wall

As incredible a talent as Griffin was, remember that John Wall was almost the first pick in the 2009 draft too.

As a fifth-year high school senior, Wall possessed a similar skill set to Rose, only with a slightly larger frame and somehow even more speed. If a petition to enter the 2009 draft had gone through, Wall was regarded highly enough that he was expected to take Griffin's place atop the draft board.

Before the league reached a decision in 2009, Wall decided to go to Kentucky instead. Once there, Wall captured the nation's attention with his skill and swagger alike, earning both the Adolph Rupp Trophy and a dance in his honor.

Not only was Wall a supreme talent when he was picked in 2010, but he was also an icon seemingly destined for the life of an NBA superstar.

9. Tim Duncan

Back in 1997, Tim Duncan did not have to be an icon; he was going to propel a future Hall of Famer to the mountaintop.

As high schoolers began to make their mark on the draft, Duncan stayed at Wake Forest for four years. Even after Jerry West said Duncan would likely be the first overall pick in 1995, he stayed. Duncan was subsequently named a first-team All-American in each of his final two seasons.

Certainly Duncan established his stellar draft stock with his impressive college career, but his draft hype came from the concept of pairing him with David Robinson.

The Spurs got the first overall pick after a Robinson injury sent them plummeting into the lottery. With a healthy Admiral alongside Duncan, no team in the league would be able to compete with San Antonio in the paint. Not only that, but every team in the league knew this to be true.

In becoming the second half of the Twin Towers, the reserved Duncan sent the league an emphatic message. Fifteen years ago, the NBA knew Duncan and the Spurs would be a force for a long time.

8. Danny Manning

For as good as Duncan was, Danny Manning was better. For as much as Griffin excited fans in 2009, Manning provided something more than hope in 1988.

In his time at Kansas, Manning put together one of the most dominant careers college basketball has ever witnessed. With 20.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game over four years, he set the Big Eight Conference scoring record.

In his senior season, Manning won both the Wooden and Naismith awards while carrying a team nicknamed "Danny and the Miracles" to the 1988 NCAA championship.

When Manning looked to the pros, he was truly a sure thing: unmatched in the post at both ends, with the ability to put a team on his back with his effective and efficient style of play. For a Clippers team already in the throes of long string of futility, there could be no other option.

Manning's hype differed from Griffin's in one fundamental way: Until an ACL injury derailed his career, the idea of Manning revitalizing the Clippers was not just an aspiration; it was a certainty.

7. Derrick Coleman

A disappointing NBA career may have sullied Derrick Coleman's reputation, but in 1990 he had the potential to be one of the best of all time.

As John Brennan of The Record (Bergen County) tells it, Coleman does not see his early comparisons to Karl Malone as accurate. The issue is not that Coleman doesn't think he was as good as Malone; he thinks he was more versatile on top of that.

That is a brash comment, no question about it. However, there is also a good amount of truth to it. In his senior year at Syracuse, Coleman's physical post game and three-point range earned him consensus first-team All-American honors. As the draft approached, it was clear Coleman had the ability to dominate the league.

His allure and notoriety came from the fact that everyone knew this, Coleman included. Looking back, Sports Illustrated lamented that "Coleman could have been the best power forward ever." In the lead-up to the 1990 draft, with a bright future ahead of him, it was clear to the league that the only man who could hold him back was Coleman himself.

6. David Robinson

The best measure of the hype surrounding David Robinson in 1987 isn't his four years at Navy, but the two years that followed.

Though he arrived at Annapolis at 6'9" and with just a year of organized basketball experience, Robinson used his burgeoning physical prowess to his advantage. Four years later and four inches taller, he had averaged a double-double for his career, including 28.2 points and 11.8 rebounds per game as a senior en route to receiving the Naismith and Wooden awards.

The Spurs knew who was on the table in the 1987 draft; Hall of Famers Scottie Pippen and Reggie Miller were both selected later in the first round. They knew Robinson had a two-year obligation to the Navy ahead of him. They even knew he could choose not to sign with San Antonio and become a free agent when he did come to the league.

That's how highly regarded Robinson's talent was. The Spurs took an enormous gamble using the first overall pick on him, but two years of uncertainty were well worth it for the Hall of Fame career that followed.

5. Patrick Ewing

Patrick Ewing was not only the greatest Knick of all time, but also one of the best players in college basketball history. However, his Georgetown pedigree was not the only thing that contributed to his hype in 1985.

It was practically unheard of for a freshman to star on a varsity squad, but Ewing immediately made a name for himself with his imposing presence.

The prime example of his physical impact on the game came in the 1982 NCAA championship game. At coach John Thompson's orders, Ewing goaltended the first five Tar Heel shot attempts, setting the tone that the Hoyas would impose their will in the game.

Ewing went on to have a storied college career, but it was the way he did it that made kids copy his signature T-shirt under his uniform.

At the 1985 lottery, Pat O'Brien quoted a scouting director as saying, "We've had the Mikan era, the Russell era, the Kareem era...now we'll have the Ewing era." But that wasn't the only lottery news, as rumors of a fix to send Ewing to the Knicks only heightened the intrigue.

Ewing would have been a compelling prospect on the power of his statistics alone. It is the way he played and the path he took to become the first overall pick that really fueled his hype.

4. Chris Webber

In 1993, Chris Webber was not just the most talented player in the draft; he embodied a culture the NBA was just beginning to embrace.

As a part of the Fab Five at Michigan, Webber played as much with his attitude as he did with his ability. Webber and his teammates talked trash, wore black and embraced a "hip hop flavor" that had not yet become a big part of the game.

It helped that Webber and company could walk the walk as well. As a sophomore, he was a first-team All-American, averaging 19.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. Though he became most famous for his technical foul in the 1993 championship game, there was no disputing Webber's potential as a pro prospect due to his impressive track record.

Come draft day, Webber was so highly regarded that after the Orlando Magic selected him first overall, it took the Golden State Warriors Penny Hardaway and three future first-round picks to trade for him.

This proves that none of the distractions hurt Webber's stock. Rather, the notoriety fueled the hype. Webber had proven time and time again that he could play; all the talk about his style would eventually work back around to his incredible ability.

3. Greg Oden

Just how much hype did Greg Oden receive in 2007?

Well, he had already become the second high school junior to be named National Boys Basketball Player of the Year. He was then named Indiana's Mr. Basketball as a senior and a consensus first-team All-American as a freshman at Ohio State.

It was no shock that Steve Kerr lauded Oden as a "once-in-a-decade type player" after he had played just his second collegiate game. Oden possessed great instincts for shot-blocking and rebounding and was a very good athlete for his size at 7'0", 250 pounds.

Though Kevin Durant eventually gave him a competition for the first overall pick, it is a testament to Oden's ability that the Texas product fell to No. 2.

The only greater honor for Oden is the best example of his hype. In his prospect profile, nbadraft.net says Oden's closest NBA comparison is a cross between David Robinson and Bill Russell.

So to answer the question, Oden was hyped so much that he was considered a hybrid of two of the greatest centers of all time. That about sums it up.

2. Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille O'Neal didn't receive any Bill Russell comparisons back in 1992, but that was because no one had ever seen a player with his skill set before.

When Shaq came out of LSU after his junior year, that he was a two-time All-American and the reigning Rupp Trophy winner was beside the point. All that mattered was that this charismatic young man was 7'0", 300 pounds, yet still a fantastic athlete.

Before he even got to tearing down backboards, Shaq was already doing things no big man had done before. With his strength and leaping ability, he was both unstoppable force on offense and immovable object on defense.

With his infectious personality, Shaq was also a celebrity before he was even a pro. So it came as no surprise when he played a mock-bashful "What, me?" routine when selected first overall in 1992. An unparalleled prospect, he was picked ahead of Alonzo Mourning and Christian Laettner, two guys thought of as sure things.

Shaq wasn't just a sure thing. His hype was elevated to such a level that no one had a name to adequately describe his dominance. Perhaps that is why he spent his career trying to find the words.

1. LeBron James

Not only was LeBron James a singular talent as a high schooler, but he fundamentally changed the way we look at player evaluation.

James burst onto the national scene when he graced the cover of SLAM magazine. The article about him said, "He just finished his sophomore season, and yet he might just be the best high school basketball player in America."

With that, a media firestorm was ignited. As James compiled national honors, petitioned to enter the 2002 draft and continued his dominance at St. Vincent-St. Mary, the nation followed him every step of the way.

Soon enough, we all knew LeBron's uncanny court vision, his explosive leaping ability, his charming smile, and the list goes on. Only a special player and person could have made high school hoops a national event. Looking back, it had to be him.

There were no nationally televised high school basketball games before LeBron. Before then, high school players got no more exposure than Yao did when he came from China. We might have heard rumors about their game, but very few people had ever gotten a chance to see it before they stepped foot in the NBA.

High schoolers may now be banned from going directly to the NBA, but their games remain on TV. It is a throwback to a still-fresh memory. We were all witnesses to LeBron and the greatest hype the league has ever seen, and we have not looked at prospects the same way since.