Top 10 Undrafted NBA Players Of All Time

#3 John Starks

John Starks #3

It's rare that a player and a team thank the injury gods for someone being sidelined for an extended period of time, but that happened with Starks and the Knicks. After going undrafted in 1988, Starks signed with the Warriors but was cut during the season. He got a try-out with the Knicks in 1990, when an injury meant they could not release him unless it healed before the end of December and it didn't.

Starks would go on to become a vital component of those great Knicks teams in the 90s, providing a solid scoring punch, good defense, and playmaking. They, unfortunately, had to go up against the Bulls and Jordan. With Jordan out of the way in 1994 though, the Knicks reached the NBA Finals. It was also the year, when he made his only All-Star appearance, averaging 19 points and 5.9 assists.

In Game 6 of the Finals, Starks scored 16 points in the 4th quarter, single-handedly keeping the Knicks in the game. Then, with 5 seconds remaining the Knicks were down 2, but had the ball and a shot at winning the title. Starks potential game-winner however, was blocked by Hakeem Olajuwon and the Rockets eventually won the series. It would be the only time Starks reached the Finals.