In the 75-year history of the NBA, there have been several drafts. Several legends have entered the league through these drafts. There have also been some drafts that did not produce the same quality players as others. In this article, we will try to determine what class truly is the best NBA draft ever! We are going to look at the 1984, 1996, and 2003 draft classes. These three classes have produced names like Michael Jordan, LeBron James, and Kobe Bryant to name a few.
The 1984 Class
This draft was held June 19, 1984, in New York City. This was back when the NBA draft had 10 rounds. 228 selections were made over those 10 rounds. This class was highlighted by the number one pick, Akeem Olajuwon. Akeem, who later changed his name to Hakeem, is possibly the best center of all time. The third pick of that draft was none other than whom most people consider the greatest of all time, Michael Jordan. With the fifth pick, the 76ers chose one of the best rebounders ever in Charles Barkley. At 16th, the Jazz picked one of the best floor generals ever, John Stockton. These four have been deemed as four of the 50 greatest of all time.
The fascinating thing about this class is it goes deeper than those four. Other notables were four-time All-Star Alvin Robertson. Former All-Stars Otis Thorpe and Kevin Willis were in this draft too. Former Coach of the Year and NBA Champion coach Rick Carlisle was selected at 70th. This class produced five Hall of Fame players. Four were mentioned above. The last one may not be as known. Oscar Schmidt of Brazil was selected with the 131st pick by the Nets. He never played in the NBA, but had an amazing career in Italy and Brazil. He ended his career with 49,703 points. That is more than NBA all-time leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar‘s 38,387. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2013.
The 1996 Class
This draft is the epitome of loaded. It was held on June 26, 1996. This draft followed a more modern format with just two rounds, and 58 selections. It features as the first pick, Allen Iverson. Iverson changed the game on the floor with his scoring and pit bull mentality, and off the court with his fashion. Dress codes were shortly instituted after his arrival. At number five, we saw one of the best shooters ever picked, Ray Allen. At 13th, another player who is arguably regarded as the best ever was picked. That would be none other than Kobe Bean Bryant. At 15th, two-time MVP Steve Nash was selected. There was also an undrafted player named Ben Wallace that changed the league with his defense and hard play. That’s five Hall of Famers in one class.
What makes this class special is the other talented All-Stars and contributors it produced. This class also featured All-Stars like Shareef Abdur-Raheem, Stephon Marbury, Antoine Walker, Peja Stojakovic, Jermaine O’Neal (who may become a Hall of Famer soon), and Zydrunas Ilgauskas. This class had great contributors too. Names like Marcus Camby, Kerry Kittles, Derek Fisher, and Malik Rose.
The 2003 Class
This draft was held on June 26, 2003 in New York City. It had two rounds and 58 selections. This class is the toughest to grade because it has active players in it that aren’t Hall of Fame eligible yet. Four of the top five selections have made a huge impact on the game. The first overall selection is what this generation refers to as the GOAT, and others simply call KING, LeBron James. The third pick was one of the best scorers ever, Carmelo Anthony. At four is the only Hall of Famer, Chris Bosh. The fifth overall pick was the mayor of “Wade County”, Dwayne Wade.
This draft also produced All-Stars like Chris Kaman, David West, Josh Howard, Mo Williams, and Kyle Korver. It also produced players that are contributing to teams now on the sideline and front office. Those players are coach Luke Walton, analyst Kendrick Perkins, and Executive of the Year with the Suns, James Jones.
Conclusion
All three of these classes are spectacular, and produced several legends. They all have a special place in both fans and organizations hearts. With all that, let’s rank them. My pick for the best NBA draft class ever is, the 1996 class. They have more Hall of Famers and the overall class is so deep with iconic players. I have the 1984 class as second because they have four of the best players in the history of the NBA from that class. They’re not as deep after the big four that are in the hall. The 2003 class falls to third, simply because their stories aren’t fully written. They may never catch the other two, but they are loaded at the top.
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