page_title: NBA draft
section_title: Success from the NBA Draft
hierarchical_section_title: NBA draft / Success from the NBA Draft
caption_attribution_description: Photo of w:Tim Duncan.
context_page_description: The NBA draft happens every year in June. It is where teams in the National Basketball Association choose players who have never played in the NBA before. If a team chooses a player, that player cannot sign a contract to play for any teams other than that team.
context_section_description: Many star NBA players who helped their teams a lot were selected early in the NBA Draft. For example, with the first pick in the 1997 NBA draft, the San Antonio Spurs chose Tim Duncan. Duncan would help the San Antonio Spurs win several NBA Championships. Other star players who were chosen with the first pick are Shaquille O'Neal (chosen by the Orlando Magic in 1992), Dwight Howard (chosen by the Magic in 2004), and LeBron James (chosen by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003). However, not all players who have been chosen with the first pick have gone on to become star players. Some players have not had as much success as the teams who drafted them expected, and have been called "draft busts". A few players chosen with the first pick who have been called "draft busts" include Joe Smith (chosen by the Los Angeles Clippers in 1995), Michael Olowokandi (chosen by the Clippers in 1998), and Kwame Brown (chosen by the Washington Wizards in 2001.) On the other hand, some very successful players have been chosen very late in the draft, and have been called "draft steals". One such player is Manu Ginóbili, Duncan's longtime teammate with the Spurs, who was chosen with the next-to-last pick in the 1999 draft.
caption: Tim Duncan, the first pick in the 1997 NBA Draft.
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