All of these players were selected #1 overall - these are my personal rankings from best to worst: 1) LeBron James (2003) 2) Kyrie Irving (2011) 3) Anthony Davis (2012) 4) Dwight Howard (2004) 5) Anthony Edwards (2020) 6) Blake Griffin (2009) 7) Yao Ming (2002) 8) Karl-Anthony Towns (2015) 9) Victor Wembanyama (2023) 10) Cade Cunningham (2021) 11) Paolo Banchero (2022) 12) Andrew Wiggins (2014) 13) Zion Williamson (2019) 14) Derrick Rose (2008) 15) John Wall (2010) 16) Andrea Bargnani (2006) 17) Kenyon Martin (2000) 18) Ben Simmons (2016) 19) DeAndre Ayton (2018) 20) Andrew Bogut (2005) 21) Zaccharie Risacher (2024) 22) Markelle Fultz (2017) 23) Greg Oden (2007) 24) Kwame Brown (2001) 25) Anthony Bennett (2013) Individual comments on each follows in next post…
LeBron - one of the greatest of all-time, has won championships with 3 different franchises Kyrie - won a championship with LeBron, one of the most gifted players ever - could have been even better if he could keep his head screwed on straight AD - very talented skilled big man who has also won a championship with LeBron - will be in HoF - too injury prone Howard - HoFer who went from being the man to a great role player off the bench, one of the best defensive players ever Antman - still ascending - may challenge for the 2 spot before long - the next truly great superstar in the game Blake Griffin - solid scorer and rebounder who will be in the HoF someday Yao - his importance cannot be undersold - one of the first great international players - could have been higher if it hadn’t been foot injuries - easy choice for the HoF KAT - very talented skilled big man who is similar to AD but without a championship
Wemby - it has only been 2 years but the sky is the limit for him - look for him to move up in these rankings - only injuries can derail his career Cunningham - led the Pistons to the playoffs for first time in years - another guy who can possibly rise in these rankings Banchero - Has had 3 solid seasons in Orlando - we’ll see if he can get the Magic out of the first round of the playoffs Wiggins - solid role player vet who won some championships at GS - never materialized into the predicted superstar but still solid career Williamson - I have him ranked this high due to his tremendous potential but injuries are going to continue to push him down the list - this next season will be critical, IMO Rose - injuries killed his career - still had a solid career but what might have been Wall - see Derrick Rose plus played on some really bad teams - a shame because he was a special player when healthy Bargnani - the forgotten Italian - had a quiet career and averaged double figures in points but never did make all NBA
Martin - solid role player like Wiggins but without a ring Simmons - headcase who could not shoot nor ever figure out to unlock his great potential Ayton - he’s been OK but has been underwhelming for a #1 overall pick Bogut - solid journeyman but never lived up to being a #1 overall pick Risacher - too soon to tell about him but he did have an OK rookie season Fultz - his career never got going due to a slew of injuries Oden - one of the biggest draft busts ever - not only did he look 40 but moved like it too and just think Portland could have had KD instead Brown - a complete disaster only surpassed by the last guy which was… Bennett - played about 4 seasons and averaged a little over 4 points per game
