# 1954 NBA draft

The 1954 NBA draft was the eighth annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on April 24, 1954, before the 1954–55 season. In this draft, nine NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players. In each round, the teams select in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. The draft consisted of 13 rounds comprising 100 players selected.

## Draft selections and draftee career notes

Frank Selvy from Furman University was selected first overall by the Baltimore Bullets. Second pick of the draft, Bob Pettit from Louisiana State University, has been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Pettit also won the Rookie of the Year Award in his first season.

## Key

| Pos. | G | F | C |
| Position | Guard | Forward | Center |
| ^ | Denotes player who has been inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
| * | Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game and All-NBA Team |
| $^+$ | Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game |
| $^#$ | Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game |

## Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | Team | College |
| 1 | 1 | Frank Selvy$^+$ | G/F | United States | Baltimore Bullets | Furman |
| 1 | 2 | Bob Pettit^ | F/C | United States | Milwaukee Hawks | LSU |
| 1 | 3 | Gene Shue* | G | United States | Philadelphia Warriors | Maryland |
| 1 | 4 | Dick Rosenthal | G/F | United States | Fort Wayne Pistons | Notre Dame |
| 1 | 5 | Togo Palazzi | G/F | United States | Boston Celtics | Holy Cross |
| 1 | 6 | Johnny Kerr$^+$ | F/C | United States | Syracuse Nationals | Illinois |
| 1 | 7 | Tom Marshall | G/F | United States | Rochester Royals | Western Kentucky |
| 1 | 8 | Jack Turner | G/F | United States | New York Knicks | Western Kentucky |
| 1 | 9 | Ed Kalafat | F/C | United States | Minneapolis Lakers | Minnesota |
| 2 | 10 | Bobby Leonard | G | United States | Baltimore Bullets | Indiana |
| 2 | 11 | Bob Mattick$^#$ | C | United States | Milwaukee Hawks | Oklahoma A&M |
| 2 | 12 | Larry Costello^ | G | United States | Philadelphia Warriors | Niagara |
| 2 | 13 | Arnold Short$^#$ | G | United States | Fort Wayne Pistons | Oklahoma City |
| 2 | 14 | Red Morrison | F/C | United States | Boston Celtics | Idaho |
| 2 | 15 | Dick Farley | G/F | United States | Syracuse Nationals | Indiana |
| 2 | 16 | Boris Nachamkin | F | United States | Rochester Royals | NYU |
| 2 | 17 | Richie Guerin^ | G | United States | New York Knicks | Iona |
| 2 | 18 | Al Bianchi | G | United States | Minneapolis Lakers | Bowling Green |

## Other picks

The following list includes other draft picks who have appeared in at least one NBA game.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | Team | College |
| 3 | 24 | Jim Tucker | F | United States | Syracuse Nationals | Duquesne |
| 3 | 26 | Don Anielak | F | United States | New York Knicks | SW Missouri State |
| 4 | 29 | Phil Martin | G | United States | Milwaukee Hawks | Toledo |
| 4 | 30 | Chuck Noble$^+$ | G | United States | Philadelphia Warriors | Louisville |
| 4 | 34 | Art Spoelstra | C | United States | Rochester Royals | Western Kentucky |
| 5 | 43 | Bo Erias | F | United States | Rochester Royals | Niagara |
| 6 | 47 | Bob Carney | G | United States | Milwaukee Hawks | Bradley |
| 6 | 52 | Red Davis | F/C | United States | Rochester Royals | St. John's |
| 8 | 67 | Don Bielke | C | United States | Fort Wayne Pistons | Valparaíso |
| 9 | 80 | Dick Garmaker* | G/F | United States | Minneapolis Lakers | Minnesota |
| 11 | 95 | Jim Paxson | G/F | United States | Rochester Royals | Dayton |
| 13 | 100 | Joe Holup | F | United States | Philadelphia Warriors | George Washington |

## Notable undrafted players

These players were not selected in the 1954 draft but played at least one game in the NBA.
| Player | Pos. | Nationality | School/club team |
| McCoy Ingram | F | United States | Jackson State |
| Dan King | F | United States | Western Kentucky |
| Worthy Patterson | G | United States | UConn |