NBA Finals: No. 1 Draft Picks That Have Won an NBA Championship

Tim Duncan: Last No. 1 Pick To Earn a Ring (Getty)

The 2011 NBA Playoffs are in full swing.  The NBA Draft is not too far away either – June 23rd.  Already the pundits are mocking it up. Who will be the No. 1 pick?

Does it matter?

I took a look back at all the No. 1 Draft picks in NBA history.  There have been a total of 61 NBA drafts beginning in 1950.  Only 16 first picks went on to win at least one NBA title.  That’s just over 26%.

1. 1950 Chuck Share, Bowling Green State  (St. Louis Hawks 1958)
2. 1959 Bob Boozer, Kansas State (Milwaukee Bucks 1971)
3. 1960 Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati (Milwaukee Bucks 1971)
4. 1966 Cazzie Russell, Michigan (New York Knicks 1970)
5. 1968 Elvin Hayes, Houston (Washington Bullets 1978)
6. 1969 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, UCLA (Milwaukee Bucks 1971; Los Angeles Lakers 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988)
7. 1974 Bill Walton, UCLA (Portland Trail Blazers 1977, Boston Celtics 1986)
8. 1978 Mychal Thompson, Minnesota (Los Angeles Lakers 1987, 1988)
9. 1979 Magic Johnson, Michigan State (Los Angeles Lakers 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988)
10. 1981 Mark Aguirre, DePaul (Detroit Pistons 1989, 1990)
11. 1982 James Worthy, North Carolina (Los Angeles Lakers 1985, 1987, 1988)
12. 1984 Hakeem Olajuwon, Houston (Houston Rockets 1994, 1995)
13. 1987 David Robinson, USNA (San Antonio Spurs 1999, 2003)
14. 1992 Shaquille O’Neal, Louisiana State (Los Angeles Lakes 2000, 2001, 2002; Miami Heat 2006)
15. 1994 Glenn Robinson, Purdue (San Antonio Spurs 2005)
16. 1997 Tim Duncan, Wake Forest (San Antonio Spurs 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007)