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 13 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 13th Overall NBA Draft Picks
| PLAYER | TEAM | AFFILIATION | YEAR | ||
| Chris Duarte | Indiana Pacers | Oregon | 2021 | ||
| Kira Lewis Jr. | New Orleans Pelicans | Alabama | 2020 | ||
| Tyler Herro | Miami Heat | Kentucky | 2019 | ||
| Jerome Robinson | LA Clippers | Boston College | 2018 | ||
| Donovan Mitchell | Denver Nuggets | Louisville | 2017 | ||
| Georgios Papagiannis | Sacramento Kings | Panathinaikos B.C. (Greece) | 2016 | ||
| Devin Booker | Phoenix Suns | Kentucky | 2015 | ||
| Zach LaVine | Minnesota Timberwolves | California-Los Angeles | 2014 | ||
| Kelly Olynyk | Dallas Mavericks | Gonzaga | 2013 | ||
| Kendall Marshall | Phoenix Suns | North Carolina | 2012 | ||
| Markieff Morris | Phoenix Suns | Kansas | 2011 | ||
| Ed Davis | Toronto Raptors | North Carolina | 2010 | ||
| Tyler Hansbrough | Indiana Pacers | North Carolina | 2009 | ||
| Brandon Rush | Portland Trail Blazers | Kansas | 2008 | ||
| Julian Wright | New Orleans Hornets | Kansas | 2007 | ||
| Thabo Sefolosha | Philadelphia 76ers | Pallacanestro Biella (Italy) | 2006 | ||
| Sean May | Charlotte Bobcats | North Carolina | 2005 | ||
| Sebastian Telfair | Portland Trail Blazers | Abraham Lincoln | 2004 | ||
| Marcus Banks | Memphis Grizzlies | Nevada-Las Vegas | 2003 | ||
| Marcus Haislip | Milwaukee Bucks | Tennessee | 2002 | ||
| Richard Jefferson | Houston Rockets | Arizona | 2001 | ||
| Courtney Alexander | Orlando Magic | Fresno State | 2000 | ||
| Corey Maggette | Seattle SuperSonics | Duke | 1999 | ||
| Keon Clark | Orlando Magic | Nevada-Las Vegas | 1998 | ||
| Derek Anderson | Cleveland Cavaliers | Kentucky | 1997 | ||
| Kobe Bryant | Charlotte Hornets | Lower Merion | 1996 | ||
| Corliss Williamson | Sacramento Kings | Arkansas | 1995 | ||
| Jalen Rose | Denver Nuggets | Michigan | 1994 | ||
| Terry Dehere | Los Angeles Clippers | Seton Hall | 1993 | ||
| Bryant Stith | Denver Nuggets | Virginia | 1992 | ||
| Dale Davis | Indiana Pacers | Clemson | 1991 | ||
| Loy Vaught | Los Angeles Clippers | Michigan | 1990 | ||
| Michael Smith | Boston Celtics | Brigham Young | 1989 | ||
| Jeff Grayer | Milwaukee Bucks | Iowa State | 1988 | ||
| Joe Wolf | Los Angeles Clippers | North Carolina | 1987 | ||
| Dwayne Washington | New Jersey Nets | Syracuse | 1986 | ||
| Karl Malone | Utah Jazz | Louisiana Tech | 1985 | ||
| Jay Humphries | Phoenix Suns | Colorado | 1984 | ||
| Ennis Whatley | Kansas City Kings | Alabama | 1983 | ||
| Sleepy Floyd | New Jersey Nets | Georgetown | 1982 | ||
| Dan Schayes | Utah Jazz | Syracuse | 1981 | ||
| Rickey Brown | Golden State Warriors | Mississippi State | 1980 | ||
| Dudley Bradley | Indiana Pacers | North Carolina | 1979 | ||
| Winford Boynes | New Jersey Nets | San Francisco | 1978 | ||
| Tate Armstrong | Chicago Bulls | Duke | 1977 | ||
| Mitch Kupchak | Washington Bullets | North Carolina | 1976 | ||
| Bob Bigelow | Kansas City Kings | Pennsylvania | 1975 | ||
| Len Elmore | Washington Bullets | Maryland | 1974 | ||
| Nick Weatherspoon | Capital Bullets | Illinois | 1973 | ||
| Travis Grant | Los Angeles Lakers | Kentucky State | 1972 | ||
| Jim Cleamons | Los Angeles Lakers | Ohio State | 1971 | ||
| Jim McMillian | Los Angeles Lakers | Columbia | 1970 | ||
| Carlos Ogden | Philadelphia 76ers | Santa Clara | 1969 | ||
| Skip Harlicka | Atlanta Hawks | South Carolina | 1968 | ||
| Jimmy Jones | Baltimore Bullets | Grambling | 1967 | ||
| Joe Ellis | San Francisco Warriors | San Francisco | 1966 | ||
| Jesse Branson | Philadelphia 76ers | Elon | 1965 | ||
| Howard Komives | New York Knicks | Bowling Green | 1964 | ||
| Jim King | Los Angeles Lakers | Tulsa | 1963 | ||
| Enoch Olsen | Cincinnati Royals | Louisville | 1962 | ||
| Fred Sawyer | Los Angeles Lakers | Louisville | 1961 | ||
| Wilbur Trosch | Syracuse Nationals | Saint Francis (PA) | 1960 | ||
| Cal Ramsey | St. Louis Hawks | New York University | 1959 | ||
| Hal Greer | Syracuse Nationals | Marshall | 1958 | ||
| Larry Friend | New York Knicks | California | 1957 | ||
| Jesse Arnelle | Ft. Wayne Zollner Pistons | Penn State | 1955 | ||
| Arnold Short | Ft. Wayne Zollner Pistons | Oklahoma City | 1954 | ||
| Jack Kiley | Ft. Wayne Zollner Pistons | Syracuse | 1951 |