10 Worst No. 1 Draft Picks in NBA History

#7 Sihugo Green 1956

Sihugo Green (Image Courtesy: Ranker)

One of the lesser-known busts in NBA history, Sihugo Green has somehow gotten lost when it comes to this topic and that is very surprising, considering who else was in that draft. Green had a solid college career, averaging 24 Points a game his final year, which led to the Rochester Royals drafting him Number 1 Overall in 1956, a move which seems acceptable on paper, but dive a bit deeper, and it's baffling.

The Royals passed on Bill Russell to draft Green and one can only imagine how different NBA history would have been, had the Royals drafted Russell. Russell was the greatest college basketball player in history by the time he joined the NBA and there was no way Green should have gone ahead of him.

For his career, Green averaged 9.2 Points and 4.3 Rebounds, while I don't really need to say anything about Russell. The Royals missed out on another Celtic great in that draft, in K.C.Jones.

#6 Kwame Brown 2001

Kwame Brown

It's safe to say that Kwame Brown is the most popular player on this list. The poster child of draft busts, Brown came out of High School with a lot of expectations. Consistently rated as the best high school player of his draft class, his performances convinced the Washington Wizards to pick him Number 1 in 2001.

He underwhelmed in his rookie season, but that was expected from a guy who was that young. Brown improved in the following years, but injuries and feuds with teammates and coaches meant he was shipped out soon enough to the Lakers.

Brown became somewhat of a laughing stock with the team and was traded away in 2008 for Pau Gasol, a move which would propel the Lakers back to Championship contention. Brown would bounce around the league for a few more years before ending his career with averages of 6.6 Points and 5.5 Rebounds. As for the guys the Wizards missed out on, Pau Gasol ironically went 3rd while Tony Parker went 28th.