Illinois has the most No. 1 overall NBA draft picks. Here’s the list

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Illinois has a long history of high school basketball success. Plenty in the college and pros, too.

As for the NBA Draft, no other state has more players picked No. 1 overall than the Land of Lincoln. According to MaxPreps, Illinois and Texas lead the way with seven players each selected No. 1 overall by the NBA since the draft began in 1947.

Those two lead a total of 27 states that have produced top picks through the 2023 draft. New York is next with six, followed by Texas with five. Georgia, Indiana, Virginia and West Virginia have four each.

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Here is a look at each of the Illinois top picks, along with their high school, college, year drafted and a few notable facts and figures:

High school: Chicago Perspectives

College: Kentucky

Drafted: 2012, New Orleans Hornets

Notable: One of two top picks from Illinois still active, the 30-year-old just ended his fourth season with the Los Angeles Lakers and 11th overall. The eight-time NBA all-star and four-time NBA first-teamer won an Olympic gold medal in 2012 and an NBA championship in 2020.

High school: Chicago Simeon

College: Memphis

Drafted: 2008, Chicago Bulls

Notable: The two-time Illinois state champ just finished his 14th NBA season, over which he has averaged about 18 points in 700 games while battling multiple injuries. He won the 2011 NBA MVP award while averaging 25 points, 7.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds. The 32-year-old is a free agent.

High school: Chicago Westinghouse

College: DePaul

Drafted: 1981, Dallas Mavericks

Notable: The hall of famer averaged 20-plus points during his 13-season NBA career that began in Dallas and ended as a two-time NBA champ with the Detroit Pistons. He went on to a short career as an NBA assistant before becoming president of basketball operations at Champions League, Inc.

High school: Benton

College: Illinois State

Drafted: 1973, Philadelphia 76ers

Notable: The hall of famer was one of the top college players also part of the 1972 U.S. Olympic team before an eight-season career in the NBA was cut short by knee injuries. He went on to coach…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/illinois-most-no-1-overall-092109097.html?src=rss

Author : Journal Star

Publish date : 2023-06-30 09:21:09

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