1974 NBA Draft

The 1974 NBA Draft produced one of the deepest collections of talent of the decade. Bill Walton, Bobby Jones, Jamaal Wilkes and George Gervin were eventually inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, while a total of 12 players from the draft became NBA All-Stars.

Portland won a coin flip with Philadelphia for the first overall selection and used it on UCLA star Bill Walton. The 76ers selected Providence forward Marvin Barnes second, while Seattle used the third pick on NC State center Tom Burleson.

The draft also produced major talent outside the first round. Billy Knight, Truck Robinson, John Drew, Phil Smith and George Gervin were all selected after the opening round and later became NBA All-Stars.

The expansion New Orleans Jazz participated in the NBA Draft for the first time and were assigned the 10th selection in each round. Washington also entered the draft under the Washington Bullets name after previously playing as the Capital Bullets.

Bill Walton: Portland selected UCLA center Bill Walton first overall after winning the pre-draft coin flip with Philadelphia. Walton led Portland to the 1977 NBA championship and won Finals MVP, then won the 1977-78 NBA MVP Award. He later won another championship with Boston in 1986 and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

The coin flip: Portland and Philadelphia held the first two selections after finishing last in their respective conferences. Portland won the March 27 coin flip and chose first, leaving Philadelphia with the second selection.

Marvin Barnes: Philadelphia selected Providence star Marvin Barnes second overall. Barnes instead began his professional career with the Spirits of St. Louis in the ABA and was named ABA Rookie of the Year for the 1974-75 season.

Bobby Jones: Houston selected North Carolina forward Bobby Jones fifth overall. Jones instead joined the ABA's Denver Nuggets before entering the NBA with Denver after the merger. He became a five-time NBA All-Star, an eight-time NBA All-Defensive First Team selection and the league's first Sixth Man of the Year in 1982-83. Jones was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.

Jamaal Wilkes: Golden State selected UCLA star Keith Wilkes 11th overall. He later became known as Jamaal Wilkes and won the 1974-75 NBA Rookie of the Year Award. Wilkes won four NBA championships and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.

George Gervin: Phoenix selected George Gervin 40th overall in the third round even though Gervin was already playing professionally in the ABA. He never played for Phoenix. Gervin joined the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs after the 1976 merger and became one of the greatest scorers in league history, winning four NBA scoring titles and earning induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Maurice Lucas: Chicago selected Marquette forward Maurice Lucas 14th overall. Lucas instead continued his career in the ABA before joining Portland after the merger. He became a central figure on the Trail Blazers' 1977 championship team and was a four-time NBA All-Star.

Billy Knight: The Lakers selected Pittsburgh forward Billy Knight 21st overall in the second round. Knight initially played in the ABA and later became an NBA All-Star after the leagues merged.

Truck Robinson: Washington selected Tennessee State forward Leonard "Truck" Robinson 22nd overall. Robinson became a two-time NBA All-Star and led the league in rebounding during the 1977-78 season.

John Drew: Atlanta selected Gardner-Webb forward John Drew 25th overall in the second round. Drew became a two-time NBA All-Star and averaged more than 20 points per game in five different seasons.

Phil Smith: Golden State selected San Francisco guard Phil Smith 29th overall. Smith became a two-time NBA All-Star and helped the Warriors win the 1975 NBA championship during his rookie season.

New Orleans Jazz: The expansion New Orleans Jazz participated in the NBA Draft for the first time. The Jazz were assigned the 10th selection in each round, although trades meant they did not necessarily exercise every one of those original selections. Their first actual draft selection was Aaron James with the 28th overall pick in the second round.

Washington Bullets: The franchise had played the 1973-74 season as the Capital Bullets but changed its name to the Washington Bullets before the 1974 draft. The Washington name is therefore used throughout this page.

Kansas City-Omaha Kings: The Kings were still officially known as the Kansas City-Omaha Kings at the time of the 1974 draft. The franchise did not become simply the Kansas City Kings until the following year.

Deep draft class: Twelve players from the 1974 draft eventually became NBA All-Stars: Bill Walton, Bobby Jones, Scott Wedman, Campy Russell, Jamaal Wilkes, Brian Winters, Billy Knight, Truck Robinson, John Drew, Phil Smith, George Gervin and Maurice Lucas.

Hall of Fame class: Bill Walton, Bobby Jones, Jamaal Wilkes and George Gervin were eventually inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as players.

178 selections: The 1974 NBA Draft contained 178 official selections over 10 rounds. Basketball-Reference records 62 members of the draft class as eventually appearing in an NBA regular-season or playoff game.