The 2004 NBA draft was held on June 24, 2004, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, and was broadcast live on ESPN at 7:00 pm (EDT). In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur college basketball players and other first-time eligible players. The NBA announced that 56 college and high school players and 38 international players had filed as early-entry candidates for the 2004 draft. On May 26, the NBA draft lottery was conducted for the teams that did not make the NBA playoffs in the 2003–04 NBA season. The Orlando Magic, who had a 25 percent chance of obtaining the first selection, won the lottery, while the Los Angeles Clippers and the Chicago Bulls were second and third respectively. As an expansion team, the Charlotte Bobcats had been assigned the fourth selection in the draft and did not participate in the lottery. The Minnesota Timberwolves forfeited their first-round pick due to salary cap violations.
The 2003 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2003, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The NBA announced that 41 college and high school players and a record 31 international players had filed as early-entry candidates for the 2003 NBA draft. The Cleveland Cavaliers, who had a 22.50 percent probability of obtaining the first selection, won the NBA draft lottery on May 22, and Cleveland chairman Gordon Gund said afterward his team would select LeBron James. The Detroit Pistons and the Denver Nuggets were second and third, respectively. This draft was the first draft to be aired on ESPN after they picked up the license from TNT.
The 2002 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2002, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden. In this draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting 57 amateur college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players from non-North American leagues. This was the last draft that was broadcast on TNT, as ESPN obtained the rights for the 2003 draft via its incoming deal. The NBA announced that about 42 college and high school players, and five international players, had filed as early-entry candidates for the draft. The Chicago Bulls and the Golden State Warriors each had a 22.5% chance of acquiring the first pick, but the Houston Rockets, with just an 8.9% probability, won the NBA draft lottery on May 19. The Bulls and Warriors were second and third, respectively. As punishment for salary-cap violations during the 2000–01 season, the Minnesota Timberwolves forfeited their first-round draft pick.
The 2001 NBA draft took place on June 27, 2001 in New York City, New York. Kwame Brown became the first high school player to be drafted with the first overall pick in the history of the NBA. The selection of Kwame Brown by the Washington Wizards, over players that have gone on to have more successful NBA careers, has been a source of great criticism by numerous media outlets. Several international players from this draft, Pau Gasol (Spain), Tony Parker (France) and Mehmet Okur (Turkey), became NBA All-Stars.
The 2000 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2000 at the Target Center in Minneapolis. It was the last draft held at the home arena of an NBA team until 2011; the following and subsequent drafts all took place at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. As of 2022, it is also the last NBA draft where a college senior was the number-one overall selection.
The 1999 NBA draft was held on June 30, 1999, at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C. It was the first draft in which four players from the same college were picked in the first round, with Elton Brand, Trajan Langdon (11th), Corey Maggette (13th) and William Avery (14th) being selected out of Duke University. It is widely viewed as one of the best draft classes, with a total of nine future NBA All-Stars being chosen, as well as three winners of the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award—Manu Ginóbili, Jason Terry, and Lamar Odom. Six of the top nine picks were NBA All-Stars. Pablo Prigioni, who was eligible for selection but went undrafted, eventually debuted in the 2012–2013 season as the oldest rookie in NBA history at age 35.
The 1998 NBA draft took place on June 24, 1998, at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This draft helped turn around four struggling franchises: the Dallas Mavericks, the Sacramento Kings, the Boston Celtics, and the Toronto Raptors.
The 1989 NBA draft took place on June 27, 1989, in New York City. Despite eight of the top ten picks being considered busts, including the first two picks Pervis Ellison and Danny Ferry, the draft produced many talented players such as Shawn Kemp, Glen Rice, Sean Elliott, Nick Anderson, Dana Barros, Tim Hardaway, Vlade Divac, Clifford Robinson, B. J. Armstrong and Mookie Blaylock.
The 2005 NBA draft took place on June 28, 2005, in the Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting amateur college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players from high schools and non-North American leagues. The NBA announced that 49 college and high school players and 11 international players had filed as early-entry candidates for the draft.
The 1985 NBA draft took place on June 18, 1985. It was also the first NBA draft of the "lottery" era. It was also around this time where the league decreased the amount of rounds the draft spent, with the previous few years lasting up to 10 rounds total. A total of 162 players were selected over seven rounds by the league's 23 teams.
The 1988 NBA draft took place on June 28, 1988, in New York City, New York. The length was reduced from seven rounds in the previous year to three rounds. This was also the first draft for the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat, prior to their inaugural season.
The 1990 NBA draft took place on June 27, 1990, in New York City, New York. One of the standouts of this draft is Basketball Hall of Famer Gary Payton. He became a nine-time All-Star, achieved the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award in 1996, won an NBA Championship with the Miami Heat in 2006, holds many statistical records during his tenure with the since rebranded and relocated Seattle SuperSonics, and was inducted in the Hall of Fame in 2013.
The 1991 NBA draft took place on June 26, 1991, in New York City, New York. Larry Johnson was selected first overall; he won the 1992 NBA Rookie of the Year award and as a two-time All-Star, was the first player to represent the Charlotte Hornets franchise at an All-Star game.
The 1992 NBA draft took place on June 24, 1992, at Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Oregon. The draft is considered to be one of the deepest in NBA history. The top three picks were considered can't-miss prospects. All three are Hall of Famers; O'Neal and Mourning are (individual) player-inducted, whereas Laettner is team-inducted. Laettner made one All-Star game in his career and was an Olympic Gold Medalist on the 1992 Dream Team, but did not live up to the lofty expectations set for him. The trio would end up playing together on the 2005 Miami Heat. Two other players went on to become All-Stars and several others had solid careers. Harold Miner, who was given the nickname "Baby Jordan" because of his similarities to Michael Jordan, slipped to number 12 and, other than winning two slam dunk contests, only had a brief, uneventful, and injury prone four-year career.
The 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Penny Hardaway, Allan Houston, and Jamal Mashburn were All-Stars whose careers were cut short by injuries. Isaiah Rider and Vin Baker showed great potential but were plagued by personal problems. Bobby Hurley's career was derailed by a car wreck in December of his rookie year. The mid-to-late first round was littered with players that failed to make any significant impact, with the exception of three-time NBA champion Sam Cassell. One of the NBA best all-time wing defensive players, three-time champion Bruce Bowen, went undrafted.
The 1994 NBA draft took place on June 29, 1994, at Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis. Two NBA rookies of the year were picked in the first round, as Jason Kidd and Grant Hill were co-winners of the award for the 1994–95 NBA season. Kidd and Hill would end up as perennial All-Stars, though Hill's career was marred by severe injuries.
The 1995 NBA draft took place on June 28, 1995, at SkyDome in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It marked the first NBA draft to be held outside the United States and was the first draft for the two Canadian expansion teams, Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies. Kevin Garnett, who was taken fifth in this draft, is notable for being the first player in two decades to be selected straight out of high school. Garnett ultimately gathered fifteen All Star selections, nine All-NBA selections, one NBA MVP award, and multiple other accolades. Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse also had successful careers, being four-time and two-time All-Stars respectively. Wallace won an NBA championship in 2004 with the Detroit Pistons, while Stackhouse scored the most total points in the league in 2000, also with the Pistons.
The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996 at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns selecting college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, such as players from high schools and non-North American leagues. The Vancouver Grizzlies had the highest probability to win the NBA draft lottery, but since they were an expansion team along with the Toronto Raptors, they were not allowed to select first in this draft. The team with the second-highest probability, the Philadelphia 76ers, won the lottery and obtained the first selection. The Toronto Raptors and the Vancouver Grizzlies were second and third, respectively.
The 2008 NBA Draft was held on June 26, 2008, at the Washington Mutual Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur college basketball players and other first-time eligible players, including international players from non-North American professional leagues. According to the NBA, 44 players, 39 collegiate players and five international players, filed as early-entry candidates for the 2008 NBA Draft. These numbers do not include players who are automatically eligible for the draft. The Chicago Bulls, who had a 1.7 percent probability of obtaining the first selection, won the NBA draft lottery on May 22. The Bulls' winning of the lottery was the second-largest upset in NBA Draft Lottery history behind the Orlando Magic, who won it in 1993 with just a 1.5% chance. The Miami Heat and the Minnesota Timberwolves obtained the second and third picks respectively.
The 2016 NBA draft was held on June 23, 2016, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN, and was live streamed for the first time in NBA draft history by The Vertical. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The draft lottery took place during the playoffs, on May 17, 2016. This was the first time since the lottery system was introduced in 1985 that all NBA teams that missed out on the playoffs remained in the exact spots they were designated, meaning the 10-win/72-loss Philadelphia 76ers received the No. 1 pick, the Los Angeles Lakers kept the No. 2 pick, the Boston Celtics via the Brooklyn Nets got the No. 3 pick, and everyone else stayed in their same spots based on the regular season standings from the 2015–16 season.
