5 biggest NBA Draft busts in history
By John Buhler
It hasn’t even been a decade since the most painful draft bust in NBA history occurred, but the Portland Trail Blazers’ decision to take freshman Greg Oden out of Ohio State at No. 1 is the biggest bust to date.
The three players taken immediately after Oden are all stars in the league today. Kevin Durant is a top five player with the Oklahoma City Thunder, going No. 2 to the then SuperSonics after a sensational year at the University of Texas.
Al Horford has been a centerpiece for the Atlanta Hawks since he went to Atlanta at No. 3 after winning back-to-back National Titles while with the Florida Gators. Many of Horford’s teammates have gone on to have great NBA careers like Joakim Noah and Corey Brewer. There was so much talent on Billy Donovan’s teams at Florida it was borderline ridiculous.
Had Portland even considered drafting Oden’s teammate at Ohio State in point guard Mike Conley who went No. 4 to the Memphis Grizzlies, the Trail Blazers would have been better off.
Oden had a forgettable, injury-riddled career in the NBA, playing in 105 games between the Blazers and the Miami Heat in three seasons since going No. 1 overall in 2007 to Portland. From Bill Walton to Sam Bowie to Oden to Brandon Roy, high-end talent routinely finds itself on the injured reserve with the Blazers for some reason, as the most injury-plagued franchise in NBA history.
Had Oden had his health in Portland, NBA history might have been different, but Durant, Horford, and Conley are all amazing players in the game today and Oden is playing in China with the Jiangsu Dragons in 2015-16.