Every year at the NBA draft, some players end up being steals, and some come short of expectations. The 2023 NBA draft featured Victor Wembanyama, one of the most hyped prospects of all time. However, like any draft, the 2023 draft will feature players who fall short of expectations. Throughout the league’s history, there have always been draft busts, but who are the biggest busts of the last ten NBA drafts? This list is from 2013-2023, as it is too early to tell who will be a bust in this year’s draft.
Biggest NBA Draft Busts of the Decade
The Biggest Draft Bust Ever?
In 2013, the Clevland Cavaliers shocked the NBA world by selecting Anthony Bennett first overall. Bennett had an outstanding freshman season in college but was still considered a mid-lottery pick rather than a first-overall selection. Bennett, unfortunately, proved his doubters right by being horrible in the NBA. During his rookie season, Bennett struggled to do anything well at an NBA level, finishing his rookie campaign shooting 35% from the field despite being 6-foot-8. Following a horrible rookie year, Bennett got packaged and moved alongside Andrew Wiggins in a deal for Kevin Love. Bennett played his sophomore season with the Timberwolves before being waived before the start of his third season.
Following his dismissal from the Timberwolves, Bennett signed a contract with his hometown team of Toronto. Like his previous stops, Bennett struggled and was waived by the Raptors during the same season. From there, Bennett bounced from the Nets to the Suns, then finally to the Rockets before his NBA career ended. Bennett played in just 151 games for his career, starting in just four. He posted career averages of 4.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, and .5 assists while shooting below 40 percent from the field. He is just one of three first-overall picks not to earn a second contract.
Could have Been Great
The 2015 NBA draft was one of giants, with Karl Anthony-Towns going first overall and five other centers going top 11. One of those bigs many people thought would be a star was Jahlil Okafor. Okafor was coming off a dominant college season, leading Duke to a national title and being named a consensus All-American. Okafor had a great start to his NBA career, putting up big numbers and making the All-Rookie team. Following his rookie season, Okafor regressed, putting up worse numbers across the board and struggling to stay healthy.
This regression trend in his play continued for Okafor’s career, with him bouncing around a few teams before ending up out of the league after just six seasons. Okafor was the third pick in his draft and finished his career with no accolades outside of a rookie team selection, having played just 247 games, starting less than half. He posted career averages of 10.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, and .9 assists.
Another Euro Flop
The 2016 draft is one of the best drafts of the last decade, with six All-Stars and four All-NBA players selected in the first round. The top three picks from this draft have all made an All-Star team, and two were chosen for All-NBA teams. So how does Dragan Bender, the fourth overall pick in a star-studded draft matchup with his peers? Bender’s rookie season was awful. He averaged just 3.4 points and 2.4 rebounds as a seven-footer and got outperformed by another rookie the Suns picked after him. Coming off a disastrous rookie season, Bender tried to establish himself in year two but struggled to have any positive impact. By his third season, the Suns had already moved on from Bender, selecting Deandre Ayton as his replacement with their first pick in the 2018 draft.
Bender fell out of the rotation in his third season, and the Suns made it clear they didn’t want him back in year four, declining his team option. Bender would sign a deal with the Bucks in 2019 before being waived by them the same season. From there, Bender would sign a couple of 10-day contracts but never returned to the league full-time. He finished his career with zero accolades, having played just 187 regular season games and zero playoff games. Bender’s career averages were 5.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.3 assists while shooting below 40 percent from the field.
Honorable mentions
Over the last ten years, there have been a plethora of draft busts. Not everyone could make the list. Here are some honorable or dishonorable mentions that didn’t cut. Killian Hayes would have made the list if he had been selected higher than seventh. Johnny Davis is just at the start of his career but has not even looked close to an NBA player. More dishonorable mentions exist, but those two stand out as especially bad.
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