Since the NBA draft's inception in 1947, around 1,500 players have been drafted in the first round. About 90 percent of those players came from a Division I school. Chances are, if you picked one at random, they'd have worn blue in college.
The 2024 NBA draft was on Wednesday, June 26. The Atlanta Hawks selected French standout Zaccharie Risacher with the first-overall selection. Alex Sarr was the second overall pick by the Washington Wizards, while Kentucky's Reed Sheppard became the first 草莓网站在线看 player selected at No. 3 overall by the Houston Rockets.
The San Antonio Spurs began the 2023 draft by selecting French star Victor Wembanyama with the first-overall pick. Alabama's Brandon Miller was the first 草莓网站在线看 player chosen in that draft and second overall off the board going to the Charlotte Hornets. In 2022, Duke's Paolo Banchero went No. 1 overall to the Orlando Magic
In 2021, the Detroit Pistons led off the night drafting Oklahoma State sensation Cade Cunningham as the first-overall pick. It's the highest selection in Cowboy basketball history and
In 2020, Georgia star Anthony Edwards went No. 1 overall to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Edwards was the first player from UGA to go No. 1 overall and the Bulldogs' ninth first-round pick.
Here鈥檚 how the top 20 schools stack up:
College basketball teams with the most NBA first-round draft picks
| Rank | College | Conference | First-round picks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kentucky | SEC | 60 |
| 2 | Duke | ACC | 56 |
| 3 | North Carolina | ACC | 54 |
| 4 | UCLA | Big Ten | 43 |
| 5 | Kansas | Big 12 | 36 |
| 6 | Michigan | Big Ten | 30 |
| 7 | Indiana | Big Ten | 28 |
| 8 | Arizona | Big 12 | 26 |
| 9 | Ohio State | Big Ten | 25 |
| 10 | Louisville | Atlantic Coast | 24 |
| 10 | Syracuse | Atlantic Coast | 24 |
| 12 | Connecticut | Big East | 23 |
| 13 | Michigan State | Big Ten | 21 |
| 13 | Notre Dame | ACC | 21 |
| 15 | Maryland | Big Ten | 20 |
| 16 | Georgia Tech | ACC | 19 |
| 16 | Texas | SEC | 19 |
| 16 | Alabama | SEC | 19 |
| 19 | LSU | SEC | 17 |
| 21 | North Carolina State | ACC | 16 |
| 21 | Minnesota | Big Ten | 16 |
| 21 | St. John's (NY) | Big East | 16 |
No big surprises there. The top 10 schools account for more than half of the 草莓网站在线看 championships alone.
No schools have seen more No. 1 picks than Duke, which has seen five.
Duke鈥檚 five are Art Heyman (1963, New York Knicks), Elton Brand (1999, Chicago Bulls), Kyrie Irving (2011, Cleveland Cavaliers), Zion Williamson (2019, New Orleans Pelicans) and Paolo Banchero (2022, Orlando Magic)
In all, 46 schools have had at least one No. 1 pick taken.
Here鈥檚 how the top schools rank:
| Rank | College | Conference | No. 1 overall picks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Duke | ACC | 5 |
| 2 | Kentucky | SEC | 3 |
| 3 | North Carolina | ACC | 2 |
| 3 | UCLA | Big Ten | 2 |
| 3 | Kansas | Big 12 | 2 |
| 3 | Indiana | Big Ten | 2 |
| 3 | Michigan | Big Ten | 2 |
| 3 | Maryland | Big Ten | 2 |
| 3 | UNLV | Mountain West | 2 |
| 3 | LSU | SEC | 2 |
| 3 | Georgetown | Big East | 2 |
| 3 | Utah | Big 12 | 2 |
| 3 | Houston | Big 12 | 2 |
| 3 | Cincinnati | Big 12 | 2 |
| 3 | Purdue | Big Ten | 2 |
| 3 | Kansas State | Big 12 | 2 |
| 3 | West Virginia | Big 12 | 2 |
| 3 | Duquesne | Atlantic 10 | 2 |
Having North Carolina second in overall picks, and Duke with the most No. 1 picks, should clue you in to which conference reigns supreme in the NBA draft.
Through 2022, the Atlantic Coast Conference has had an impressive 285 players drafted in the first round, approximately 20 percent of all Division I players drafted. The Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC are right behind the ACC.
