Not many players can claim they were the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft .
The exclusive club doesn't include all-time greats like Michael Jordan , Kobe Bryant , Kevin Durant , Giannis Antetokounmpo or 2024 NBA champion and Finals MVP Jaylen Brown .
The list of colleges who have produced a first-overall NBA draft pick is even shorter. Here's a look at the college programs that have churned out the most No. 1 overall picks in the history of the NBA draft; a history that dates back to 1947.
Duke: 5
The Duke Blue Devils have produced five top NBA draft picks in Art Heyman (1963), Elton Brand (1999), Kyrie Irving (2011), Zion Williamson (2019) and Paolo Banchero (2022).
Duke's first-overall picks have combined for three NBA Rookie of the Year awards and 13 NBA All-Star selections. While all five earned NBA All-Rookie first-team nods, Irving is the only one who eventually led his team to an NBA championship.
Kentucky: 3
Kentucky has produced three No. 1 overall NBA draft picks in John Wall (2010), Anthony Davis (2012) and Karl-Anthony Towns (2015). All three former Wildcats earned NBA All-Rookie first-team selections, while Towns was named the 2015-16 NBA Rookie of the Year.
Davis, who was drafted by New Orleans, won an NBA title with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020.
16 schools tied with 2
Cincinnati ( Oscar Robertson , 1960; Kenyon Martin , 2000)
Duquesne (Dick Ricketts, 1955; Si Green, 1956)
Georgetown ( Patrick Ewing , 1985; Allen Iverson , 1996)
Houston ( Elvin Hayes , 1968; Hakeem Olajuwon , 1984)
Indiana ( Walt Bellamy , 1961; Kent Benson, 1977)
Kansas ( Danny Manning , 1988; Andrew Wiggins , 2014)
Kansas State (Howie Shannon, 1949; Bob Boozer, 1959)
LSU ( Shaquille O'Neal , 1992; Ben Simmons , 2016)
Maryland ( John Lucas , 1976; Joe Smith , 1995)
Michigan (Cazzie Russell, 1966; Chris Webber , 1993)
North Carolina ( James Worthy , 1982; Brad Daugherty , 1986)
Purdue ( Joe Barry Carroll , 1980; Glenn Robinson , 1994)
UCLA ( Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , 1969; Bill Walton , 1974)
UNLV ( Larry Johnson , 1991; Anthony Bennett , 2013)
Utah (Bill McGill, 1962; Andrew Bogut , 2005)
West Virginia (Mark Workman, 1952; Hot Rod Hundley , 1957)
31 schools tied with 1
Arizona ( Deandre Ayton , 2018)
Bowling Green (Chuck Share, 1950)
Bradley (Gene Melchiorre, 1951)
Davidson (Fred Hetzel, 1965)
DePaul ( Mark Aguirre , 1981)
Furman (Frank Selvy, 1954)
Georgia ( Anthony Edwards , 2020)
Illinois State ( Doug Collins , 1973)
LIU Brooklyn (Ray Felix, 1953)
Louisville ( Pervis Ellison , 1989)
Loyola Chicago (LaRue Martin, 1972)
Marshall (Andy Tonkovich, 1948)
Memphis ( Derrick Rose , 2008)
Michigan State ( Earvin Magic Johnson , 1979)
Minnesota ( Mychal Thompson , 1978)
Navy ( David Robinson , 1987)
NC State ( David Thompson , 1975)
Notre Dame ( Austin Carr , 1971)
Ohio State ( Greg Oden , 2007)
Oklahoma ( Blake Griffin , 2009)
Oklahoma State ( Cade Cunningham , 2021)
Pacific ( Michael Olowokandi , 1998)
Providence (Jimmy Walker, 1967)
Seattle ( Elgin Baylor , 1958)
St. Bonaventure ( Bob Lanier , 1970)
Syracuse ( Derrick Coleman , 1990)
Texas Wesleyan (Clifton McNeely, 1947)
Texas Western (Jim Barnes, 1964)
Virginia ( Ralph Sampson , 1983)
Wake Forest ( Tim Duncan , 1997)
Washington ( Markelle Fultz , 2017)
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