The 2025 NBA Draft will be here in short order, and we'll find out sooner rather than later where Duke Blue Devils phenom Cooper Flagg is going to play in the NBA. All signs point to the Dallas Mavericks taking him with the No. 1 overall pick. Whoever ended up with the first pick was going to take Flagg anyway, but we have to see how the event will unfold here soon.
In the lead-up to the draft, I was tasked with taking a look at every No. 1 overall pick dating way back to 1947. While it has really come into vogue since the 1985 NBA Draft saw former Georgetown center Patrick Ewing go No. 1 overall to the New York Knicks, it was interesting to see how many schools had multiple No. 1 overall picks in their history, but not quite three. The results were quite intriguing to see.
Here is a list of every college basketball program that has had at least two players go No. 1 overall.
College | No. 1 Draft Picks | Players |
|---|---|---|
Duke Blue Devils | 5 | Art Heyman (1963), Elton Brand (1999), Kyrie Irving (2011), Zion Williamson (2019), Paolo Banchero (2022) |
Kentucky Wildcats | 3 | John Wall (2010), Anthony Davis (2012), Karl-Anthony Towns (2015) |
Cincinnati Bearcats | 2 | Oscar Robertson (1960), Kenyon Martin (2000) |
Duquesne Dukes | 2 | Dick Ricketts (1955), Sihugo Green (1956) |
Georgetown Hoyas | 2 | Patrick Ewing (1985), Allen Iverson (1996) |
Houston Cougars | 2 | Elvin Hayes (1968), Akeem Olajuwon (1984) |
Indiana Hoosiers | 2 | Walt Bellamy (1961), Kent Benson (1977) |
Kansas Jayhawks | 2 | Danny Manning (1988), Andrew Wiggins (2014) |
Kansas State Wildcats | 2 | Howie Shannon (1949), Bob Boozer (1959) |
LSU Tigers | 2 | Shaquille O'Neal (1992), Ben Simmons (2016) |
Maryland Terrapins | 2 | John Lucas (1976), Joe Smith (1995) |
Michigan Wolverines | 2 | Cazzie Russell (1966), Chris Webber (1993) |
North Carolina Tar Heels | 2 | James Worthy (1982), Brad Daugherty (1986) |
Purdue Boilermakers | 2 | Joe Barry Carroll (1980), Glenn Robinson (1984) |
UCLA Bruins | 2 | Lew Alcindor (1969), Bill Walton (1974) |
UNLV Runnin' Rebels | 2 | Larry Johnson (1991), Anthony Bennett (2013) |
West Virginia Mountaineers | 2 | Mark Workman (1952), Rod Hundley (1957) |
Duke leads the way with five players taken No. 1 overall in program history. If Flagg does go No. 1 overall to Dallas, that would make it six. Art Heyman was the first Duke player to go No. 1 overall, way back in 1963. Elton Brand became the first of three Mike Krzyzewski players to go first. The most recent Blue Devils star to go No. 1 overall was Paolo Banchero only a few summers ago, back in 2022.
As shocking as it sounds, the only other program to have three players go No. 1 overall is Kentucky.
Why does Duke have such a massive lead over everyone with No. 1 picks?
I am not that shocked that Duke is the program leading the way. Coach K was an institution on the hardwood in Durham for 40 years. He took a good ACC program and turned it into a bona-fide powerhouse. He pivoted into the one-and-done era, allowing guys like Kyrie Irving and Zion Williamson to join the ranks of Brand and Heyman. I knew a blue-blood would be leading the way.
Where I am somewhat speechless is the only other program with three first-round picks is Kentucky, and that all three came in a six-year window. Nobody epitomized the one-and-done era of college basketball quite like John Calipari. John Wall, Anthony Davis and Karl-Anthony Towns all starred for him at Kentucky. The fact that other blue-bloods of note have only had two have me totally stunned.
You would think that schools such as Indiana, Kansas and North Carolina would have more than two apiece. The Hoosiers have Walt Bellamy and Kent Benson, while the Jayhawks have Danny Manning and Andrew Wiggins. As for North Carolina, their two No. 1 overall picks of note came within a few years of each other in James Worthy in 1982 and Brad Daugherty a few summers later back in 1986.
Although Duke is expected to extend its lead over Kentucky on Wednesday, who could catch them?