Can You Name These NBA No. 1 Picks in High School?
The path to NBA stardom begins in high school for many players, including this one.Almost every No. 1 overall NBA draft pick has one thing in common. They are a bona fide prodigy. At least in the athletic sense. Having the basketball talent to become a No. 1 overall pick is that rare. There's no other way to look at it.
We've scrounged the internet for pictures of former No. 1 overall NBA draft picks when they were in high school and invite you to take our quiz to see how many you can recognize. And no, we didn't include LeBron James on the list.
Feel free to brag about your score. And for those of you who can correctly name all 15 picks (without cheating), just know that you've truly ascended to a state of basketball knowledge nirvana. So please act accordingly.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
One clue: He's from the Midwest.
Answer: Bob Boozer
Bob Boozer starred at Omaha's Tech High alongside future baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson.Born: April 26, 1937 (Omaha, Nebraska)
Died: May 19, 2012 (aged 75, Omaha, Nebraska)
High school: Technical High School (Omaha, Nebraska)
College: Kansas State
Position: Forward
Drafted by: Cincinnati Royals (1959, No. 1 overall)
NBA career: 11 seasons (1960-71)
Teams: Cincinnati Royals (1960-63), New York Knicks (1963-65), Los Angeles Lakers (1965-66), Chicago Bulls (1966-69), Seattle SuperSonics (1969-70), Milwaukee Bucks (1970-71)
Stats: 874 G, 14.8 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 1.4 APG, 46.2 FG%
NBA titles: 1 (1971)
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2010 as member of 1960 U.S. Olympics men's basketball team
Bottom line: Bob Boozer wasn't necessarily the best player on the team at Omaha Tech High, or even the best athlete at his school for that matter.
The future No. 1 overall pick had to take a backseat to future Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson on the court, and Gibson, obviously, ruled on the diamond.
Boozer was drafted in 1959 but didn't begin his career until the fall of 1960 so he could play for the U.S. in the 1960 Olympics, where he won a gold medal.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
One clue: He eventually led the NBA Players Association.
Answer: Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson won two state titles at Crispus Attucks High in Indianapolis, Indiana.Born: Nov. 24, 1938 (Charlotte, Tennessee)
High school: Crispus Attucks High School (Indianapolis, Indiana)
College: Cincinnati
Position: Guard/forward
Drafted by: Cincinnati Royals (No. 1 overall, 1960)
NBA career: 14 seasons (1960-74)
Teams: Cincinnati Royals (1960-70), Milwaukee Bucks (1970-74)
Stats: 1,040 G, 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG, 48.5 FG%
NBA titles: 1 (1971)
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1980 (individual), 2010 (member of U.S. Olympics men's basketball team)
Bottom line: Oscar Robertson's high school basketball career is legendary stuff. He led Crispus Attucks High to the 1955 Indiana state title, becoming the first all-Black high school in American to win a state title.
The finale of the movie "Hoosiers" is based on Crispus Attucks and Robertson losing to tiny Milan High in the state semifinals in 1954.
Robertson led Crispus Attucks to another state title in 1956, was an All-American at Cincinnati and won NBA MVP honors in 1964.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
One clue: He appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in high school.
Answer: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played at New York's Power Memorial Academy in high school.Born: April 16, 1947 (Manhattan, New York)
High school: Power Memorial Academy (Manhattan, New York)
College: UCLA
Position: Center
Drafted by: Milwaukee Bucks (No. 1 overall, 1969)
NBA career: 20 seasons (1969-89)
Teams: Milwaukee Bucks (1969-75), Los Angeles Lakers (1975-89)
Stats: 1,560 G, 24.6 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 3.6 APG, 55.9 FG%
NBA titles: 6 (1971, 1980, 1982, 1985 1987, 1988)
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1995
Bottom line: Few high school basketball players in American history have captured the public's imagination like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did in the early 1960s at New York's Power Memorial Academy.
When the future NBA career scoring leader and six-time NBA MVP appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" in 1963 with a group of other high school All-Americans, the country got its first glimpse of the player who would dominate basketball over the next 20 years.
Abdul-Jabbar chose UCLA over every other basketball-playing college in the country and won three national titles.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: His brother played in the NFL for three seasons.
Answer: Bill Walton
Bill Walton starred alongside his brother, Bruce Walton, at Helix High in Los Angeles.Born: Nov. 5, 1952 (La Mesa, California)
High school: Helix High School (San Diego, California)
College: UCLA
Position: Center
Drafted by: Portland Trail Blazers (No. 1 overall, 1974)
NBA career: 13 seasons (1974-87)
Teams: Portland Trail Blazers (1974-79), San Diego/Los Angeles Clippers (1979-85), Boston Celtics (1985-87)
Stats: 468 G, 13.3 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 3.4 APG, 52.1 FG%
NBA titles: 2 (1977, 1986)
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 1993
Bottom line: Bill Walton followed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's footsteps at UCLA and won two national titles before he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1974 NBA draft.
Before all of that, Walton was a shy teenage basketball star at San Diego prep powerhouse Helix High. At Helix, while Bill Walton was the star, it was his older brother and future NFL offensive lineman Bruce Walton who was the enforcer at 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: No clues on this one. It's too easy.
Answer: Magic Johnson
Sportswriter Fred Stabley Jr. gave Earvin Johnson his nickname, "Magic," when Johnson was at Everett High School in the 1970s.Born: Aug. 14, 1959 (Lansing, Michigan)
High school: Everett High School (Lansing, Michigan)
College: Michigan State
Position: Point guard
Drafted by: Los Angeles Lakers (No. 1 overall, 1979)
NBA career: 13 seasons (1979-1991, 1996)
Teams: Los Angeles Lakers
Stats: 906 G, 19.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 11.2 APG, 52.0 FG%
NBA titles: 5 (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988)
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2002 (individual), 2010 (U.S. Olympics "Dream Team")
Bottom line: Earvin "Magic" Johnson's path to becoming the greatest point guard of all time began at Everett High, where he was first given the nickname of Magic by Lansing State Journal sportswriter Fred Stabley Jr.
After Magic led Everett High to the 1977 state championship, he dedicated the victory and his performance to best friend Reggie Chastine, who died the previous summer in a car accident.
Two years later, Magic led Michigan State to the 1979 national title over Indiana State and Larry Bird in the title game. It was the start of one of the greatest rivalries — and friendships — in NBA history.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: This player shared the same hometown with the No. 2 pick in the same draft.
Answer: Mark Aguirre
Mark Aguirre was a three-time All-Star with the Dallas Mavericks.Born: Dec. 10, 1959 (Chicago, Illinois)
High school: Westinghouse High School (Chicago, Illinois)
College: DePaul
Position: Forward
Drafted by: Dallas Mavericks (No. 1 overall, 1981)
NBA career: 13 seasons (1981-94)
Teams: Dallas Mavericks (1981-89), Detroit Pistons (1989-93), Los Angeles Clippers (1993-94)
Stats: 923 G, 20.0 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 3.1 APG, 48.4 FG%
NBA titles: 2 (1989, 1990)
Hall of Fame: Not enshrined
Bottom Line: Future No. 1 overall pick Mark Aguirre's nickname was "Ziggy" during his days as a star player for Westinghouse High in Chicago.
Aguirre wasn't the only future NBA star in Chicago at the time, competing for headlines with Isiah Thomas, who was selected No. 2 behind Aguirre in 1981.
And it was Thomas who pushed for the trade to get Aguirre from the Dallas Mavericks to the Detroit Pistons, where the two helped lead the Pistons to back-to-back NBA titles in 1989 and 1990.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: Another future No. 1 pick, Sam Bowie, beat out this pick, on the left, for National High School Player of the Year.
Answer: Ralph Sampson
Ralph Sampson went from Harrisonburg High to Maryland to the NBA draft.Born: July 7, 1960 (Harrisonburg, Virginia)
High school: Harrisonburg High School (Harrisonburg, Virginia)
College: Maryland
Position: Center
Drafted by: Houston Rockets (No. 1 overall, 1983)
College/prep: University of Maryland
NBA career: 9 seasons (1983-92)
Teams: Houston Rockets (1983-87), Golden State Warriors (1987-89), Sacramento Kings (1989-91), Washington Bullets (1991-92)
Stats: 456 G, 15.4 PPG, 8.8 RPG, 2.3 APG, 48.6 FG%
NBA titles: None
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2012
Bottom line: Ralph Sampson had the weight of the world on his shoulders when it came to expectations coming out of Harrisonburg High after winning back-to-back state titles in 1978 and 1979.
Sampson's hype only grew during his time playing college basketball at Maryland. He was the three-time national player of the year and on the cover of Sports Illustrated six times in a four-year span from 1979 to his NBA debut in 1983.
Sampson teamed with Hakeem Olajuwon and led the Houston Rockets to the 1986 NBA Finals. That was as close as Sampson ever got to winning a ring.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: He transferred schools for his final year of high school.
Answer: Danny Manning
Danny Manning played his final year of high school basketball at Lawrence High in Lawrence, Kansas, then played college basketball in the same town.Born: May 17, 1966 (Hattiesburg, Mississippi)
High school: Lawrence High School (Lawrence, Kansas)
College: Kansas
Position: Forward
Drafted by: Los Angeles Clippers (No. 1 overall, 1988)
NBA career: 15 seasons (1988-2003)
Teams: Los Angeles Clippers (1988-94), Atlanta Hawks (1994), Phoenix Suns (1994-99), Milwaukee Bucks (1999-2000), Utah Jazz (2000-01), Dallas Mavericks (2001-02), Detroit Pistons (2003)
Stats: 883 G, 14.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 2.3 APG, 51.1 FG%
NBA titles: None
Hall of Fame: Not inducted
Bottom line: Danny Manning was an elite recruit at Page High in Greensboro, North Carolina, but transferred to Lawrence High in Lawrence, Kansas, for his final high school season before, big surprise, playing for the University of Kansas.
Manning became the Jayhawks' all-time leading scorer and guided the school to the 1988 national championship.
Injuries decimated Manning's career after he was picked No. 1 overall in 1988 by the Clippers, which was as much of an NBA death sentence as any injury.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: He spent his childhood on an Army base in Germany.
Answer: Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille O'Neal won championships in high school and the NBA but not in college.Born: March 6, 1972 (Newark, New Jersey)
High school: Cole High School (San Antonio, Texas)
College: LSU
Position: Center
Drafted by: Orlando Magic (No. 1 overall, 1992)
NBA career: 19 seasons (1992-2011)
Teams: Orlando Magic (1992-96), Los Angeles Lakers (1996-2004), Miami Heat (2004-08), Phoenix Suns (2008-09), Cleveland Cavaliers (2009-10), Boston Celtics (2010-11)
Stats: 1,207 G, 23.7 PPG, 10.9 RPG, 2.5 APG, 58.2 FG%
NBA titles: 4 (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006)
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2016
Bottom line: Shaquille O'Neal's stepfather was a career Army officer who moved the family from an Army base in Germany to San Antonio for O'Neal's final two years of high school.
At Cole High, O'Neal led his team to a 68-1 record and the state championship as a senior. An old connection led O'Neal to his college choice.
Legendary LSU head coach Dale Brown had a relationship with O'Neal's family from doing basketball camps on U.S. military bases in the summers, where he'd first connected with the future Hall of Famer.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: His college career was wiped off the record books.
Answer: Chris Webber
Chris Webber played for two national titles at Michigan and never played in the NBA Finals.Born: March 1, 1973 (Detroit, Michigan)
High school: Country Day School (Beverly Hills, Michigan)
College: Michigan
Position: Power forward
Drafted by: Orlando Magic (No. 1 overall, 1993)
NBA career: 15 seasons (1993-2008)
Teams: Golden State Warriors (1993-94, 2008), Washington Bullets/Wizards (1994-98), Sacramento Kings (1998-2005), Philadelphia 76ers (2005-07), Detroit Pistons (2007)
Stats: 831 G, 20.7 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 4.2 APG, 47.9 FG%
NBA titles: None
Hall of Fame: Not inducted
Bottom line: Chris Webber was the most coveted basketball recruit in Michigan since Magic Johnson in the 1970s, and the Country Day star led his school to three consecutive state titles before picking Michigan.
Webber played two seasons for the Wolverines, losing in the national title game both years. All of Webber and his team's records were eventually struck from the record books for multiple NCAA violations during his time there.
Webber never won another championship on any level after his time at Country Day.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: He grew up in the same area as Michael Vick.
Answer: Allen Iverson
Allen Iverson's career was cut short at Bethel High because of legal issues.Born: June 7, 1975 (Hampton, Virginia)
High School: Bethel High School (Hampton, Virginia)
College: Georgetown
Position: Guard
Drafted by: Philadelphia 76ers (No. 1 overall, 1996)
NBA career: 14 seasons (1996-2010)
Teams: Philadelphia 76ers (1996-2006, 2009-2010), Denver Nuggets (2006-2008), Detroit Pistons (2008-2009), Memphis Grizzlies (2009)
Stats: 914 G, 26.7 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 6.2 APG, 42.5 FG%
Hall of Fame: Inducted in 2016
Bottom Line: Allen Iverson was one of the most sought-after football and basketball recruits in the country at Bethel High School before legal problems derailed his prep career.
Iverson received conditional clemency from Virginia Gov. Doug WIlder and played two seasons for John Thompson at Georgetown. Iverson played his way to the No. 1 overall pick in the 1996 NBA draft — a draft that included fellow Hall of Famers Ray Allen, Steve Nash and the late Kobe Bryant.
Iverson was one of three players in the first round, alongside Nash and Bryant, to earn NBA MVP honors.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: He went directly from high school to the NBA.
Answer: Dwight Howard
Dwight Howard won an NBA title in 2020 alongside another former No. 1 pick, LeBron James.Born: Dec. 8, 1985 (Atlanta, Georgia)
High school: Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy
College: None
Position: Center
Drafted by: Orlando Magic (No. 1 overall, 2004)
NBA career: 16 seasons (2004-present)
Teams: Orlando Magic (2004-12), Los Angeles Lakers (2012-13, 2019-present), Houston Rockets (2013-16), Atlanta Hawks (2016-17), Charlotte Hornets (2017-18), Washington Wizards (2018-19)
Stats: 1,106 G, 16.8 PPG, 12.3 RPG, 1.4 APG, 58.6 FG%
NBA titles: 1 (2020)
Hall of Fame: Not eligible yet
Bottom line: Dwight Howard skipped college entirely out of Atlanta's Southwest Christian Academy and went directly to the NBA, where he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft.
Howard was the league's dominant defensive player for his first decade in the league, when he won NBA Defensive Player of the Year three times and led the Orlando Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals.
Howard won his first NBA title in 2020 as a role player with the Los Angeles Lakers.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: He won three Indiana state titles in high school.
Answer: Greg Oden
Greg Oden won an Eastern Conference title with the 2014 Miami Heat but never won an NBA crown.Born: Jan. 22, 1988 (Buffalo, New York)
High school: Lawrence North High School (Indianapolis, Indiana)
College: Ohio State
Position: Center
Drafted by: Portland Trail Blazers (No. 1 overall, 2007)
NBA career: 7 seasons (2007-14)
Teams: Portland Trail Blazers (2007-12), Miami Heat (2013-14)
Stats: 105 G, 8.9 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 0.5 APG, 57.4 FG%
NBA titles: None
Hall of Fame: Not inducted
Bottom line: Greg Oden led Lawrence North High to three consecutive Indiana state titles and would have been the No. 1 overall pick in the 2006 NBA draft if not for a rule change in 2005 that prevented players from going directly to the NBA from high school.
Oden did nothing to impact his draft stock in his one year at Ohio State, leading the Buckeyes all the way to the national championship game.
Oden was famously taken No. 1 overall in the 2007 NBA draft over Kevin Durant and is considered one of the biggest draft busts of all time.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: His father played in the NBA.
Answer: Andrew Wiggins
Andrew Wiggins left his native Canada to play his final two years of high school basketball in the United States.Born: Feb. 23, 1995 (Toronto, Ontario)
High school: Huntington Prep (Huntington, West Virginia)
College: Kansas
Position: Forward
Drafted by: Minnesota Timberwolves (No. 1 overall, 2014)
NBA career: 6 seasons (2014-present)
Teams: Minnesota Timberwolves (2014-20), Golden State Warriors (2020-present)
Stats: 454 G, 19.7 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 2.3 APG, 44.1 FG%
NBA titles: None
Hall of Fame: Not eligible yet
Bottom line: Andrew Wiggins left his native Canada to play basketball for Huntington Prep with the original idea he would reclassify to the Class of 2012, graduate early and make it to the NBA one year early.
He eventually changed his mind, went back to the Class of 2013 and spent one lackluster year at Kansas before declaring himself eligible for the 2014 NBA draft.
Wiggins was still the No. 1 pick in the draft and has spent six lackluster seasons in the NBA.
Who Is This NBA No. 1 Draft Pick?
Clue: He lived in the Bahamas until he was a freshman in high school.
Answer: Deandre Ayton
Deandre Ayton has called Arizona home since his last year of high school.Born: July 23, 1998 (Nassau, Bahama)
High school: Hillcrest Prep Academy (Phoenix, Arizona)
College: Arizona
Position: Center
Drafted by: Phoenix Suns (No. 1 overall, 2018)
NBA career: 2 seasons (2018-present)
Teams: Phoenix Suns
Stats: 101 G, 17.1 PG, 10.8 RPG, 1.8 APG, 57.2 FG%
NBA titles: None
Hall of Fame: Not eligible yet
Bottom line: Scouts first saw Deandre Ayton as a 6-foot-5 eighth grader in the Bahamas and convinced him to move to the United States to pursue a basketball career.
Ayton spent his first two seasons at Balboa City School in San Diego before transferring to basketball factory Hillcrest Prep in Phoenix, Arizona, for his final two seasons.
Ayton played one college season at Arizona and lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament before declaring himself eligible for the 2018 NBA draft.