NBA Draft: The 30 Worst Draft Picks of the Last Decade
With the 2011 NBA draft on June 23rd quickly approaching, it's time to remember that not every pick is a good one and look back upon the worst draft selections of the last decade.
Don't worry, whether we're talking about Greg Oden, Darko Milicic, Marcus Fizer or some other player, each team has had its fair share of mistakes on draft day.
Sometimes a good choice was made but unfortunate injuries shorten and dramatically alter the player's career. Other times, the player drafted just simply isn't any good.
In this time of optimism, it's important to remember that while the glass can be half full, it can't be three-quarters full. Be realistic with your expectations, because sometimes the draft picks can come back to burn you, assuming, of course, that the glass had hot water in it.
So, without further ado, read on for the 30 worst draft picks of the last decade.
Joe Alexander (2008)
1 of 30
Drafted: No. 8 in 2008 by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Stats: 4.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game over two seasons.
Why he was a bust: Alexander simply wasn't that good and didn't get many opportunities.
Rafael Araujo (2004)
2 of 30
Drafted: No. 8 in 2004 by the Toronto Raptors.
Stats: 2.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game over three seasons.
Why he was a bust: Araujo wasn't as good as advertised and went back overseas after three years.
Kedrick Brown (2001)
3 of 30
Drafted: No. 11 in 2001 by the Boston Celtics.
Stats: 3.6 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: Brown didn't translate well from junior college to the professional level.
Kwame Brown (2001)
4 of 30
Drafted: No. 1 in 2001 by the Washington Wizards.
Stats: 6.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game over 11 seasons.
Why he was a bust: First high school player drafted No. 1 simply didn't pan out in the end.
Eddy Curry (2001)
5 of 30
Drafted: No. 4 in 2001 by the Chicago Bulls.
Stats: 13.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game over nine seasons.
Why he was a bust: Overrated big man couldn't live up to the lofty expectations.
Marcus Fizer (2000)
6 of 30
Drafted: No. 4 in 2000 by the Chicago Bulls.
Stats: 9.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game over six seasons.
Why he was a bust: Labeled one of the "next Michael Jordans," Fizer most assuredly was not.
Eddie Griffin (2001)
7 of 30
Drafted: No. 7 in 2001 by the New Jersey Nets.
Stats: 7.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game over five seasons.
Why he was a bust: Alcohol ruined his career and eventually his life when he was tragically killed by a collision with a train.
Kirk Hinrich (2003)
8 of 30
Drafted: No. 7 in 2003 by the Chicago Bulls.
Stats: 13.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 5.6 assists per game over nine seasons.
Why he was a bust: Never lived up to the expectations he earned while at college.
Yi Jianlian (2007)
9 of 30
Drafted: No. 6 in 2007 by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Stats: 8.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: Didn't become the next Yao Ming as was expected when he was drafted.
DerMarr Johnson (2000)
10 of 30
Drafted: No. 6 in 2000 by the Atlanta Hawks.
Stats: 6.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game over seven seasons.
Why he was a bust: A car crash cut short what could have been a promising career, even though that was looking a bit unlikely at the time of the accident.
Yaroslav Korolev (2005)
11 of 30
Drafted: No. 12 in 2005 by the Los Angeles Clippers.
Stats: 1.1 points, 0.5 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game over two seasons.
Why he was a bust: Only played in 34 games before he went back to Russia.
Shaun Livingston (2004)
12 of 30
Drafted: No. 4 in 2004 by the Los Angeles Clippers.
Stats: 7.1 points, 2.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game over eight seasons.
Why he was a bust: A brutal and gruesome knee injury almost ended his promising career.
Chris Mihm (2000)
13 of 30
Drafted: No. 7 in 2000 by the Chicago Bulls.
Stats: 7.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game over nine seasons.
Why he was a bust: Injuries and a lack of everything but size hindered Mihm's development.
Darius Miles (2000)
14 of 30
Drafted: No. 3 in 2000 by the Los Angeles Clippers.
Stats: 10.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists over eight seasons.
Why he was a bust: Immaturity and strife with head coach Maurice Cheeks in Portland put a damper on the skills he brought to the table.
Darko Milicic (2003)
15 of 30
Drafted: No. 2 in 2003 by the Detroit Pistons.
Stats: 6.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game over 10 seasons.
Why he was a bust: The other players drafted in the top five of the 2003 draft were LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. Oh, and he's not very good.
Adam Morrison (2006)
16 of 30
Drafted: No. 3 in 2006 by the Charlotte Bobcats.
Stats: 7.5 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: Called the next Larry Bird, Adam Morrison simply wasn't as good as advertised and didn't get played enough to develop.
Patrick O'Bryant (2006)
17 of 30
Drafted: No. 9 in 2006 by the Golden State Warriors.
Stats: 2.1 points, 1.4 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game over five seasons.
Why he was a bust: An early injury and overall lack of improvement killed his career.
Greg Oden (2007)
18 of 30
Drafted: No. 1 in 2007 by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Stats: 9.4 points, 7.3 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game over two seasons.
Why he was a bust: Knee injuries have limited him to just 82 games since he was drafted. Over that same time frame, No. 2 pick Kevin Durant has two scoring titles.
Mouhamed Sene (2006)
19 of 30
Drafted: No. 10 in 2006 by the Seattle SuperSonics.
Stats: 2.2 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.0 assists per game over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: Except for his size and wingspan, he's just not good at basketball.
Stromile Swift (2000)
20 of 30
Drafted: No. 2 in 2000 by the Vancouver Grizzlies.
Stats: 8.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game over 11 seasons.
Why he was a bust: The headlining bust of the worst draft class ever, Stromile Swift never lived up to his potential.
Sebastian Telfair (2004)
21 of 30
Drafted: No. 13 in 2004 by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Stats: 7.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game over eight seasons.
Why he was a bust: Ridiculously hyped by ESPN among others, Telfair could never live up to the lofty expectations.
Hasheem Thabeet (2009)
22 of 30
Drafted: No. 2 in 2009 by the Memphis Grizzlies.
Stats: 2.3 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game over two seasons.
Why he was a bust: Thabeet was the highest-drafted player to ever be sent down to the D-League.
Tyrus Thomas (2006)
23 of 30
Drafted: No. 4 in 2006 by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Stats: 8.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game over six seasons.
Why he was a bust: Very athletic and good at defense, Thomas hasn't received enough consistent playing time to develop into anything more than an end-of-rotation guy.
Nikoloz Tskitishvili (2002)
24 of 30
Drafted: No. 5 in 2002 by the Denver Nuggets.
Stats: 2.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: ESPN's Bill Simmons referred to Tskitishvili as the "worst case scenario for any foreign pick." Enough said.
Fran Vazquez (2005)
25 of 30
Drafted: No. 11 in 2005 by the Orlando Magic.
Stats: Has yet to play in the NBA.
Why he was a bust: See the line above this one.
Dajuan Wagner (2002)
26 of 30
Drafted: No. 6 in 2002 by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Stats: 9.4 points, 1.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: Injuries and health problems resulted in the end of his basketball career and the removal of his entire colon.
Rodney White (2001)
27 of 30
Drafted: No. 9 in 2001 by the Detroit Pistons.
Stats: 7.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists over four seasons.
Why he was a bust: Inconsistent playing time and feuds with coaches led to White's downfall.
Jay Williams (2002)
28 of 30
Drafted: No. 2 in 2002 by the Chicago Bulls.
Stats: 9.5 points, 2.6 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game over one seasons.
Why he was a bust: Not to be confused with Jason Williams or Jayson Williams, Jay Williams was involved in a motorcycle accident that wrecked his career after his promising rookie season.
Marvin Williams (2005)
29 of 30
Drafted: No. 2 in 2005 by the Atlanta Hawks.
Stats: 11.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game over six seasons.
Why he was a bust: He was drafted directly ahead of Chris Paul and Deron Williams at a time when the Atlanta Hawks needed a point guard.
Shelden Williams (2006)
30 of 30
Drafted: No. 5 in 2006 by the Atlanta Hawks.
Stats: 4.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game over five seasons.
Why he was a bust: He just really isn't good at all.
