The NBA draft is a player’s best opportunity to be drafted into the league. Since 1947, the NBA has drafted eligible players, typically from college to the league. Below, we are going to review the history of the number 11 draft pick in the NBA.
What is the NBA Draft?
The NBA draft is an annual ceremony, in which NBA teams, through a lottery system, select eligible players from college and the international stage to join their teams. College players who have completed all four years of their education are automatically eligible for the draft.
However, college players who have not completed all four years of their education, but are one-year removed from high school, must declare their eligibility for the draft. In declaring their eligibility, these underclassmen will effectively give up their remaining college eligibility.
For international players, any player older than 22 years old are automatically eligible for the draft. However, any international player younger than 22 years old must declare their eligibility.
How Does the Lottery System Work?
The NBA draft lottery system was revamped for the 2018 season. Looking at these new rules, the 14 NBA teams which did not make the playoffs will be eligible for the first 14 picks in the draft. Under the new system, the NBA Draft Lottery will ensure that the team with the worst overall record in the league will receive no worse than the fifth overall pick.
Similarly, in the new system, the three NBA teams with the worst regular-season records will each have a 14% chance of winning the lottery and the first overall pick. Once the first four teams with the worst records have been selected, the remaining ten teams will continue to pick in inverse order of their regular-season record.
How Does the NBA Draft Work?
Going a bit deeper, and speaking only of the new system, the NBA draft will be televised on ESPN, who will air the results live. Drawings will be conducted to determine the first four picks, with the remaining ten picks being doled out in inverse order of an NBA teams regular-season record.
The actual lottery procedure, however, takes place in a separate room before ESPN announces the results. In this room, a member of the media, an NBA official, and a representative of the accounting firm Ernst & Young are present to ensure no foul play or tampering with the machine.
In this separate room, fourteen ping-pong balls numbered 1-14 will be placed in the lottery machine. The lottery machine used by the NBA is manufactured by Smart Play Company. This company also weighs, measures, and certifies the ping-pong balls before the drawing.
There are 1,001 possible combinations when four balls are drawn out of 14, without regard to their order of selection. Before the lottery, 1,000 of those 1,001 combinations will be assigned to the 14 participating NBA teams.
Once all 14 balls have been placed into the machine, they will be mixed for 20-seconds before the first ball is removed. Similarly, the balls will be mixed for another 10-seconds before the second ball is drawn. Again, the machine will be mixed for another 10-seconds for both the third and fourth picks.
Full History of all 11th Overall NBA Draft Picks
| PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATION | YEAR | ||
| James Bouknight | Charlotte Hornets | Connecticut | 2021 | ||
| Devin Vassell | San Antonio Spurs | Florida State | 2020 | ||
| Cameron Johnson | Minnesota Timberwolves | North Carolina | 2019 | ||
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | Charlotte Hornets | Kentucky | 2018 | ||
| Malik Monk | Charlotte Hornets | Kentucky | 2017 | ||
| Domantas Sabonis | Oklahoma City Thunder | Gonzaga | 2016 | ||
| Myles Turner | Indiana Pacers | Texas | 2015 | ||
| Doug McDermott | Denver Nuggets | Creighton | 2014 | ||
| Michael Carter-Williams | Philadelphia 76ers | Syracuse | 2013 | ||
| Meyers Leonard | Portland Trail Blazers | Illinois | 2012 | ||
| Klay Thompson | Golden State Warriors | Washington State | 2011 | ||
| Cole Aldrich | New Orleans Hornets | Kansas | 2010 | ||
| Terrence Williams | New Jersey Nets | Louisville | 2009 | ||
| Jerryd Bayless | Indiana Pacers | Arizona | 2008 | ||
| Acie Law | Atlanta Hawks | Texas A&M | 2007 | ||
| JJ Redick | Orlando Magic | Duke | 2006 | ||
| Fran Vazquez | Orlando Magic | Baloncesto Malaga (Spain) | 2005 | ||
| Andris Biedrins | Golden State Warriors | BK Skonto (Latvia) | 2004 | ||
| Mickael Pietrus | Golden State Warriors | Elan Bearnais Pau-Orthez (France) | 2003 | ||
| Jared Jeffries | Washington Wizards | Indiana | 2002 | ||
| Kedrick Brown | Boston Celtics | Northwest Florida State | 2001 | ||
| Jerome Moiso | Boston Celtics | California-Los Angeles | 2000 | ||
| Trajan Langdon | Cleveland Cavaliers | Duke | 1999 | ||
| Bonzi Wells | Detroit Pistons | Ball State | 1998 | ||
| Tariq Abdul-Wahad | Sacramento Kings | San Jose State | 1997 | ||
| Todd Fuller | Golden State Warriors | North Carolina State | 1996 | ||
| Gary Trent | Milwaukee Bucks | Ohio | 1995 | ||
| Carlos Rogers | Seattle SuperSonics | Tennessee State | 1994 | ||
| Allan Houston | Detroit Pistons | Tennessee | 1993 | ||
| Robert Horry | Houston Rockets | Alabama | 1992 | ||
| Terrell Brandon | Cleveland Cavaliers | Oregon | 1991 | ||
| Tyrone Hill | Golden State Warriors | Xavier | 1990 | ||
| Nick Anderson | Orlando Magic | Illinois | 1989 | ||
| Will Perdue | Chicago Bulls | Vanderbilt | 1988 | ||
| Reggie Miller | Indiana Pacers | California-Los Angeles | 1987 | ||
| John Salley | Detroit Pistons | Georgia Tech | 1986 | ||
| Keith Lee | Chicago Bulls | Memphis | 1985 | ||
| Kevin Willis | Atlanta Hawks | Michigan State | 1984 | ||
| Derek Harper | Dallas Mavericks | Illinois | 1983 | ||
| Lafayette Lever | Portland Trail Blazers | Arizona State | 1982 | ||
| Frank Johnson | Washington Bullets | Wake Forest | 1981 | ||
| Kiki Vandeweghe | Dallas Mavericks | California-Los Angeles | 1980 | ||
| Cliff T. Robinson | New Jersey Nets | Southern California | 1979 | ||
| James Hardy | New Orleans Jazz | San Francisco | 1978 | ||
| Ernie Grunfeld | Milwaukee Bucks | Tennessee | 1977 | ||
| Bob Wilkerson | Seattle SuperSonics | Indiana | 1976 | ||
| Joe Meriweather | Houston Rockets | Southern Illinois | 1975 | ||
| Jamaal Wilkes | Golden State Warriors | California-Los Angeles | 1974 | ||
| Kevin Joyce | Golden State Warriors | South Carolina | 1973 | ||
| Ralph Simpson | Chicago Bulls | Michigan State | 1972 | ||
| Curtis Rowe | Detroit Pistons | California-Los Angeles | 1971 | ||
| Jimmy Collins | Chicago Bulls | New Mexico State | 1970 | ||
| Johnny Warren | New York Knicks | St. John’s (NY) | 1969 | ||
| Bill Hewitt | Los Angeles Lakers | Southern California | 1968 | ||
| Mal Graham | Boston Celtics | New York University | 1967 | ||
| Henry Akin | New York Knicks | Morehead State | 1966 | ||
| Tom Van Arsdale | Detroit Pistons | Indiana | 1965 | ||
| Ira Harge | Philadelphia 76ers | New Mexico | 1964 | ||
| Gary Hill | San Francisco Warriors | Oklahoma City | 1963 | ||
| Kevin Loughery | Detroit Pistons | St. John’s (NY) | 1962 | ||
| Bob Wiesenhahn | Cincinnati Royals | Cincinnati | 1961 | ||
| Kelly Coleman | New York Knicks | Kentucky Wesleyan | 1960 | ||
| Gene Tormohlen | Syracuse Nationals | Tennessee | 1959 | ||
| Joe Quigg | New York Knicks | North Carolina | 1958 | ||
| Harvey Schmidt | Minneapolis Lakers | Illinois | 1957 | ||
| Jerry Mullen | New York Knicks | San Francisco | 1955 | ||
| Bob Mattick | Milwaukee Hawks | Oklahoma State | 1954 | ||
| Bill Gossett | Milwaukee Hawks | Colorado State | 1951 | ||
| Don Lofgran | Syracuse Nationals | San Francisco | 1950 | ||
| Don Ray | Philadelphia Warriors | Western Kentucky | 1948 |