Looking at top 5 French players who were drafted in NBA as Victor Wembanyama declares for the 2023 draft

Victor Wembanyama declared for the NBA draft on Friday and is projected to be the No. 1 pick.

If he goes first, he will be the highest player drafted from France in league history. Thirty-four players from French teams have been drafted in NBA history. Eighteen went in the first round, and 16 were taken in the second. Six French players were drafted in the past 10 years.

Let’s take a look at which of Wenbanyama’s countrymen were also taken high in the draft.

The five highest-drafted French players since 2010

Killian Hayes (No. 7, 2020)

Hayes was born in the United States but raised in France where he played youth basketball. He was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the seventh pick in 2020. He averaged 10.3 points per game for the Pistons this season, his third in the league.

Frank Ntilikina (No. 8, 2017)

Ntilikina was drafted from France by the New York Knicks in 2017. Ntiliina spent four years with the Knicks before signing with the Dallas Mavericks in 2021. He won a silver medal with Team France at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. His highest NBA scoring average came in 2019-20, when he scored 6.3 ppg.

Sekou Doumboya (No. 15, 2019)

The Pistons selected another young French prospect with Doumboya. He spent some time with the Pistons' G League team in 2019-20. He played in 94 games from 2020-22 with Detroit. He was then traded to the LA Lakers where he appeared in two games, spending most of his time in the G League.

Guerschon Yabusele (No. 16, 2016)

Yabusele was taken by the Boston Celtics in 2016. He played with Boston for two seasons, playing in 74 games. He was waived by the Celtics and subsequently played in China and France. He is now on Real Madrid in Spain.

Kevin Seraphin (No. 17, 2010)

Seraphin was selected by the Chicago Bulls. He was then traded to the Washington Wizards before his rookie season began. He played for the Wizards from 2010-15. He played one season with the New York Knicks and one with the Indiana Pacers following his time in Washington. Seraphin left the NBA for Barcelona, playing for two seasons before retiring with a knee injury.

French players in the NBA

Six active players have been drafted from France in the league, including Ntilikina. The others are Rudy Gobert, Nicolas Batum, Evan Fournier and Theo Maledon. Clint Capela is Swiss but was drafted out of France.