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.
Antoine Devon Walker is an American former professional basketball player. He was drafted with the sixth overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft out of the University of Kentucky and played in the NBA from 1996 to 2008. Walker played for the Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, Atlanta Hawks, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, the BSN's Mets de Guaynabo and the NBA D-League's Idaho Stampede before retiring from basketball in 2012. Walker, a three-time NBA All-Star, won an NCAA championship with Kentucky in 1996 and an NBA championship with the Heat in 2006.
Kwame Hasani Brown is an American former professional basketball player who spent 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Selected by the Washington Wizards in the 2001 NBA draft, Brown was the first No. 1 overall pick to be chosen straight out of high school and the 16th player from high school to be drafted into the NBA. He also played for the Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Detroit Pistons, Charlotte Bobcats, Golden State Warriors, and Philadelphia 76ers. His performance as a first overall draft pick has led many analysts to label him as one of the biggest busts in NBA history.
Shawn Travis Kemp Sr. is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Portland Trail Blazers, and Orlando Magic in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Reign Man", he was a six-time NBA All-Star and a three-time All-NBA Second Team member.
Eddy Anthony Curry Jr. is an American former professional basketball player. Coming directly out of Thornwood High School in South Holland, Illinois, Curry was selected fourth overall in the 2001 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls. Curry played for the Bulls until 2005, then played for the New York Knicks from 2005 to 2010. Curry played for the Miami Heat in the 2011–12 season and was part of the Heat's 2012 championship team. Curry played for the Dallas Mavericks for the early part of the 2012–13 season before playing out the season for the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association.
Sebastian Telfair is an American former professional basketball player who played in the NBA and the Chinese Basketball Association. Telfair was picked thirteenth overall in the 2004 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers on the heels of an eminent high school career playing for Abraham Lincoln in Brooklyn. He had committed to the University of Louisville during his senior year, but decided to turn professional instead. Telfair is the cousin of former NBA player Stephon Marbury.
Robert Lee Parish is an American former professional basketball player. A 7'1" center, Parish played for four teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1976 to 1997. During his 14-year tenure with the Boston Celtics, Parish teamed with Hall-of-Fame forwards Larry Bird and Kevin McHale to form one of the greatest front lines in NBA history.
Ovinton J'Anthony Mayo is an American professional basketball player who plays for Zamalek SC of the Egyptian Basketball Super League and Egyptian Basketball Federation. He played a single season of college basketball for the USC Trojans while earning first-team All-Pac-10 honors. Mayo entered the 2008 NBA draft and was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the third overall pick. He was later traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, with whom he played four seasons. Mayo signed with the Dallas Mavericks in 2012, and then with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2013.
Nazr Tahiru Mohammed is an American former professional basketball player who had a journeyman career in the National Basketball Association (NBA), playing for eight different teams over 18 seasons. He is the current general manager of the Oklahoma City Blue and a pro scout for the Oklahoma City Thunder. He played college basketball for Kentucky.
David Terrell is an American former professional footbal player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). After playing college football for the Michigan Wolverines, he was selected as the eighth pick in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. He played five seasons, during which he caught nine touchdown passes.
Scott Allen Skiles Sr. is an American former basketball coach and player. He coached the Phoenix Suns, Chicago Bulls, Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic. A first-round draft pick out of Michigan State University, Skiles played ten seasons as a point guard in the NBA. He holds the NBA record for assists in one game with 30, set in his fifth season in the league and second with Orlando, in which he also earned the 1990–91 NBA Most Improved Player Award.
Frank Lowell Williams is an American former professional basketball player. As a point guard, Williams was drafted out of the University of Illinois with the 25th overall pick in the 2002 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets.
Robert Antawon Whaley is an American former professional basketball player.
Ruben Nathaniel Patterson is an American former professional basketball player. During his career, he played as a small forward and shooting guard. During his college career at the University of Cincinnati, Patterson earned third-team All-American honors and helped lead the Bearcats to Conference USA titles in both of his seasons there. Drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1998, Patterson began his career with the Greek team AEK Athens BC before joining the Lakers in his rookie season. Later, he played for the NBA teams Seattle SuperSonics, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, Milwaukee Bucks, and Los Angeles Clippers before ending his career with the Lebanese team Champville SC.
Travis Marquez "Bonesaw" Outlaw is an American former professional basketball player.
Christopher Bernard Porter is an American former professional basketball player. Known for his large afro hairstyle and giant vertical leap, he created excitement early in his career with his dunking and rebounding abilities. Largely seen as too undersized to play power forward at the NBA level, his style fit in perfectly with coach Cliff Ellis' style of full court pressure while playing at Auburn.
William Bedford is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the 1986 NBA draft after playing at Memphis State University. Bedford, a 7'0" center, played for the Suns, Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs in six NBA seasons, averaging 4.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game in his career.
Shawne Brian Williams is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Memphis before being selected 17th overall in the 2006 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers.
Javaris Cortez Crittenton is an American former professional basketball player. During his four year career, Crittenton played for the Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, and Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Zhejiang Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association, and the Dakota Wizards of the NBA D-League. He was previously the starting point guard for the Georgia Tech men's basketball team.
JamesOn Curry is an American former professional basketball player. He played for Oklahoma State University from 2004 to 2007, and after forgoing his senior season, left for the 2007 NBA draft. He was selected in the second round as the 51st overall pick by the Chicago Bulls. After stints in the NBA Development League and Europe, Curry made his NBA debut in January 2010, playing 3.9 seconds for the Los Angeles Clippers. It was Curry's only NBA regular-season appearance and set a record for the shortest NBA career of all time per in-game time spent on the court.
