Not many players can claim they were the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft.
The exclusive club doesn’t include all-time greats like Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo or 2024 NBA champion and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown.
The list of colleges who have produced a first-overall NBA draft pick is even shorter. Here’s a look at the college programs that have churned out the most No. 1 overall picks in the history of the NBA draft; a history that dates back to 1947.
Duke: 5
The Duke Blue Devils have produced five top NBA draft picks in Art Heyman (1963), Elton Brand (1999), Kyrie Irving (2011), Zion Williamson (2019) and Paolo Banchero (2022).
Duke’s first-overall picks have combined for three NBA Rookie of the Year awards and 13 NBA All-Star selections. While all five earned NBA All-Rookie first-team nods, Irving is the only one who eventually led his team to an NBA championship.
Duke phenom Cooper Flagg is widely projected to take the No. 1 overall pick ahead of the 2025 NBA draft.
Kentucky: 3
Kentucky has produced three No. 1 overall NBA draft picks in John Wall (2010), Anthony Davis (2012) and Karl-Anthony Towns (2015). All three former Wildcats earned NBA All-Rookie first-team selections, while Towns was named the 2015-16 NBA Rookie of the Year.
Davis, who was drafted by New Orleans, won an NBA title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.
16 schools tied with 2
Cincinnati (Oscar Robertson, 1960; Kenyon Martin, 2000)
Duquesne (Dick Ricketts, 1955; Si Green, 1956)
Georgetown (Patrick Ewing, 1985; Allen Iverson, 1996)
Houston (Elvin Hayes, 1968; Hakeem Olajuwon, 1984)
Indiana (Walt Bellamy, 1961; Kent Benson, 1977)
Kansas (Danny Manning, 1988; Andrew Wiggins, 2014)
Kansas State (Howie Shannon, 1949; Bob Boozer, 1959)
LSU (Shaquille O’Neal, 1992; Ben Simmons, 2016)
Maryland (John Lucas, 1976; Joe Smith, 1995)
Michigan (Cazzie Russell, 1966; Chris Webber, 1993)
North Carolina (James Worthy, 1982; Brad Daugherty, 1986)
Purdue (Joe Barry Carroll, 1980; Glenn Robinson, 1994)
UCLA (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 1969; Bill Walton, 1974)
UNLV (Larry Johnson, 1991; Anthony Bennett, 2013)
Utah (Bill McGill, 1962; Andrew Bogut, 2005)
West Virginia (Mark Workman, 1952; Hot Rod Hundley, 1957)
31 schools tied with 1
Arizona (Deandre Ayton, 2018)
Bowling Green (Chuck Share, 1950)
Bradley (Gene Melchiorre, 1951)
Davidson (Fred Hetzel, 1965)
DePaul (Mark Aguirre, 1981)
Furman (Frank Selvy, 1954)
Georgia (Anthony Edwards, 2020)
Illinois State (Doug Collins, 1973)
LIU Brooklyn (Ray Felix, 1953)
Louisville (Pervis Ellison, 1989)
Loyola Chicago (LaRue Martin, 1972)
Marshall (Andy Tonkovich, 1948)
Memphis (Derrick Rose, 2008)
Michigan State (Earvin Magic Johnson, 1979)
Minnesota (Mychal Thompson, 1978)
Navy (David Robinson, 1987)
NC State (David Thompson, 1975)
Notre Dame (Austin Carr, 1971)
Ohio State (Greg Oden, 2007)
Oklahoma (Blake Griffin, 2009)
Oklahoma State (Cade Cunningham, 2021)
Pacific (Michael Olowokandi, 1998)
Providence (Jimmy Walker, 1967)
Seattle (Elgin Baylor, 1958)
St. Bonaventure (Bob Lanier, 1970)
Syracuse (Derrick Coleman, 1990)
Texas Wesleyan (Clifton McNeely, 1947)
Texas Western (Jim Barnes, 1964)
Virginia (Ralph Sampson, 1983)
Wake Forest (Tim Duncan, 1997)
Washington (Markelle Fultz, 2017)
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