1974 NBA draft

1974 NBA draft
General information
Sport	Basketball
Date(s)	May 28, 1974
Location	New York City, New York
Overview
178 total selections in 10 rounds
League	NBA
First selection	Bill Walton, Portland Trail Blazers

The 1974 NBA draft was the 28th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 28, 1974, before the 1974–75 season. In this draft, 18 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Portland Trail Blazers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Philadelphia 76ers were awarded the second pick. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. Prior to the draft, the Capital Bullets were renamed the Washington Bullets. An expansion franchise, the New Orleans Jazz, took part in the NBA Draft for the first time and were assigned the tenth pick in each round. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. Before the draft, 20 college underclassmen were declared eligible for selection under the "hardship" rule. These players had applied and gave evidence of financial hardship to the league, which granted them the right to start earning their living by starting their professional careers earlier. The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 178 players.

Draft selections and draftee career notes

Bill Walton was selected first overall by the Portland Trail Blazers.

Bill Walton, from the University of California Los Angeles, was selected first overall by the Portland Trail Blazers. Jamaal Wilkes, (then known as Keith Wilkes) from UCLA, was selected 11th by the Golden State Warriors and went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award. Walton, Wilkes, and 40th pick George Gervin have been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame. Both Walton and Gervin were also named to the list of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996. Walton won the NBA championship, along with the Finals Most Valuable Player Award, with the Blazers in 1977. Later in his career, he won another NBA title with the Boston Celtics in 1986. During that season, he also won the Sixth Man of the Year Award. Walton's other achievements include one Most Valuable Player Award in 1978, two All-NBA Team selections and two All-Star Game selections. Gervin had left college in 1972 to play professionally in the American Basketball Association (ABA) with the Virginia Squires. He later joined the NBA in 1976 after both leagues merged. His achievements include two All-ABA Team selections, seven All-NBA Team selections, three ABA All-Star Game selections and nine NBA All-Star Game selections.

Jamaal Wilkes won four NBA championships, one with the Golden State Warriors and three with the Los Angeles Lakers, and was selected to three All-Star Games. Maurice Lucas, the 14th pick, was selected to one All-NBA Team and four All-Star Games. He also won the NBA championship in 1977 with the Trail Blazers. Truck Robinson, the 22nd pick, and Phil Smith, the 29th pick, were selected to one All-NBA Team and two All-Star Games each. Bobby Jones, the 5th pick, initially opted to play in the ABA. He played two seasons in the ABA before finally joined the NBA with the Denver Nuggets when both leagues merged. His achievements include an NBA championship with the 76ers in 1983, one All-ABA Team selection, one ABA All-Star Game selection, four NBA All-Star Game selections, nine NBA All-Defensive Team selections and one Sixth Man of The Year Award. Five other players from this draft, 6th pick Scott Wedman, 8th pick Campy Russell, 12th pick Brian Winters, 21st pick Billy Knight and 25th pick John Drew, were also selected to at least one All-Star Game. Two players drafted went on to have coaching careers in the NBA: Brian Winters and 45th pick Kim Hughes.

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

Tom McMillen was selected 9th overall by the Buffalo Braves.

Len Elmore was selected 13th overall by the Washington Bullets.

Billy Knight (center) was selected 21st overall by the Los Angeles Lakers.

Round	Pick	Player	Pos.	Nationality	Team	School/club team
1	1	Bill Walton^	F/C	United States	Portland Trail Blazers	UCLA (Sr.)
1	2	Marvin Barnes	F/C	United States	Philadelphia 76ers	Providence (Sr.)
1	3	Tommy Burleson	C	United States	Seattle SuperSonics (from Cleveland)[a]	North Carolina State (Sr.)
1	4	John Shumate	F/C	United States	Phoenix Suns	Notre Dame (Sr.)
1	5	Bobby Jones^	F	United States	Houston Rockets	North Carolina (Sr.)
1	6	Scott Wedman+	G/F	United States	Kansas City-Omaha Kings	Colorado (Sr.)
1	7	Tom Henderson	G	United States	Atlanta Hawks	Hawaii (Sr.)
1	8	Campy Russell+	F	United States	Cleveland Cavaliers (from Seattle)[a]	Michigan (Jr.)
1	9	Tom McMillen	F/C	United States	Buffalo Braves	Maryland (Sr.)
1	10	Mike Sojourner	F/C	United States	Atlanta Hawks (from New Orleans)[b]	Utah (So.)
1	11	Keith Wilkes^	G/F	United States	Golden State Warriors	UCLA (Sr.)
1	12	Brian Winters+	G/F	United States	Los Angeles Lakers	South Carolina (Sr.)
1	13	Len Elmore	F/C	United States	Washington Bullets	Maryland (Sr.)
1	14	Maurice Lucas*	F/C	United States	Chicago Bulls (from New York)[c]	Marquette (Jr.)
1	15	Al Eberhard	F	United States	Detroit Pistons	Missouri (Sr.)
1	16	Cliff Pondexter	F/C	United States	Chicago Bulls	Long Beach State (So.)
1	17	Glenn McDonald	G/F	United States	Boston Celtics	Long Beach State (Sr.)
1	18	Gary Brokaw	G	United States	Milwaukee Bucks	Notre Dame (Jr.)
2	19	Don Smith	G	United States	Philadelphia 76ers	Dayton (Sr.)
2	20	Jan van Breda Kolff	G/F	United States	Portland Trail Blazers	Vanderbilt (Sr.)
2	21	Billy Knight+	G/F	United States	Los Angeles Lakers (from Cleveland)[d]	Pittsburgh (Sr.)
2	22	Truck Robinson*	F/C	United States	Washington Bullets (from Phoenix via Los Angeles)[e]	Tennessee State (Sr.)
2	23	Gus Bailey	G/F	United States	Houston Rockets	Texas-El Paso (Sr.)
2	24	Len Kosmalski	C	United States	Kansas City-Omaha Kings	Tennessee (Sr.)
2	25	John Drew+	G/F	United States	Atlanta Hawks	Gardner–Webb (Jr.)
2	26	Leonard Gray	F	United States	Seattle SuperSonics	Long Beach State (Sr.)
2	27	Leon Benbow	G	United States	Chicago Bulls (from Buffalo)[f]	Jacksonville (Sr.)
2	28	Aaron James	F	United States	New Orleans Jazz	Grambling (Sr.)
2	29	Phil Smith*	G	United States	Golden State Warriors	San Francisco (Sr.)
2	30	Dennis DuVal	G	United States	Washington Bullets	Syracuse (Sr.)
2	31	Fred Saunders	F	United States	Phoenix Suns (from Los Angeles)[g]	Syracuse (Sr.)
2	32	Jesse Dark	G	United States	New York Knicks	Virginia Commonwealth (Sr.)
2	33	Eric Money	G	United States	Detroit Pistons	Arizona (Jr.)
2	34	Phil Lumpkin	G	United States	Portland Trail Blazers (from Chicago)[h]	Miami (Ohio) (Sr.)
2	35	Kevin Stacom	G	United States	Boston Celtics	Providence (Sr.)
2	36	Rubin Collins#	G	United States	Portland Trail Blazers (from Milwaukee via Philadelphia)[i]	Maryland-Eastern Shore (Jr.)

Other picks

The following list includes other draft picks who have appeared in at least one NBA game.

George Gervin was selected 40th overall by the Phoenix Suns.

Round	Pick	Player	Pos.	Nationality	Team	School/club team
3	37	Coniel Norman	G	United States	Philadelphia 76ers	Arizona (So.)
3	38	Foots Walker	G	United States	Cleveland Cavaliers (from Portland)[j]	West Georgia (Sr.)
3	39	Kevin Restani	F/C	United States	Cleveland Cavaliers	San Francisco (Sr.)
3	40	George Gervin^	G/F	United States	Phoenix Suns	Virginia Squires (ABA)
3	42	Harvey Catchings	F/C	United States	Philadelphia 76ers (from Kansas City–Omaha)[k]	Hardin–Simmons (Sr.)
3	43	Darrell Elston	G	United States	Atlanta Hawks	North Carolina (Sr.)
3	44	Talvin Skinner	G/F	United States	Seattle SuperSonics	Maryland-Eastern Shore (Sr.)
3	45	Kim Hughes	C	United States	Buffalo Braves	Wisconsin (Sr.)
3	47	Frank Kendrick	F	United States	Golden State Warriors	Purdue (Sr.)
3	49	Earl Williams	F/C	United States	Phoenix Suns (from Washington)[l]	Winston-Salem State (Sr.)
3	52	Bobby Wilson	G	United States	Chicago Bulls	Wichita State (Sr.)
4	56	Mickey Johnson	F	United States	Portland Trail Blazers	Aurora (Sr.)
4	63	Bernie Harris	F	United States	Buffalo Braves	Virginia Commonwealth (Sr.)
4	66	Stan Washington	G	United States	Washington Bullets	San Diego State (Sr.)
5	77	Owen Wells	F	United States	Houston Rockets	Detroit (Sr.)
5	80	Dean Tolson	F	United States	Seattle SuperSonics	Arkansas (Sr.)
5	82	Ed Searcy	F	United States	New Orleans Jazz	St. John's (Sr.)
5	86	Greg Jackson	G	United States	New York Knicks	Guilford (Sr.)
5	89	Ben Clyde	F	United States	Boston Celtics	Florida State (Sr.)
6	92	Daniel Anderson	G	United States	Portland Trail Blazers	USC (Sr.)
6	98	Wardell Jackson	F	United States	Seattle SuperSonics	Ohio State (Sr.)
7	115	Greg Lee	G	United States	Atlanta Hawks	UCLA (Sr.)
9	145	Perry Warbington	G	United States	Philadelphia 76ers	Georgia Southern (Sr.)
9	154	Ken Boyd	F	United States	New Orleans Jazz	Boston University (Sr.)
9	160	Al Skinner	G	United States	Boston Celtics	Massachusetts (Sr.)
10	169	Rod Derline	G	United States	Seattle SuperSonics	Seattle (Sr.)
10	175	Bill Ligon	G	United States	Detroit Pistons	Vanderbilt (Sr.)

Trades

• ^{a 1 2} On the draft-day, the Seattle SuperSonics acquired a first-round pick from the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Dick Snyder and a first-round pick. The Sonics used the pick to draft Tommy Burleson. The Cavaliers used the pick to draft Campy Russell.
• ^b On May 20, 1974, the Atlanta Hawks acquired Bob Kauffman, Dean Meminger, the tenth pick, a 1975 first-round pick, 1975 and 1976 second-round picks, and a 1980 third-round pick from the New Orleans Jazz in exchange for Pete Maravich. The Hawks used the pick to draft Mike Sojourner.
• ^c On the draft-day, the Chicago Bulls acquired a first-round pick from the New York Knicks in exchange for Howard Porter and a 1975 second-round pick. The Bulls used the pick to draft Maurice Lucas.
• ^d On August 31, 1972, the Los Angeles Lakers acquired a second-round pick from the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Jim Cleamons. The Lakers used the pick to draft Billy Knight.
• ^e On August 23, 1973, the Washington Bullets (as the Capital Bullets) acquired a second-round pick from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Stan Love. Previously, the Lakers acquired the pick on September 19, 1972, from the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Paul Stovall. The Bullets used the pick to draft Truck Robinson.
• ^f On September 10, 1973, the Chicago Bulls acquired John Hummer and a second-round pick from the Buffalo Braves in exchange for Gar Heard, Kevin Kunnert and a 1975 second-round pick. The Bulls used the pick to draft Leon Benbow.
• ^g On October 30, 1973, the Phoenix Suns acquired Keith Erickson and a second-round pick from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Connie Hawkins. The Suns used the pick to draft Fred Saunders.
• ^h On October 14, 1973, the Portland Trail Blazers acquired a second-round pick from the Chicago Bulls in exchange for Rick Adelman. The Blazers used the pick to draft Phil Lumpkin.
• ⁱ On September 11, 1972, the Portland Trail Blazers acquired a second-round pick from the Philadelphia 76ers as compensation for the signing of Gary Gregor as a free agent. Previously, the 76ers acquired the pick and future consideration (the 76ers acquired John Block on July 28, 1972) on December 13, 1971, from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Wali Jones. The Blazers used the pick to draft Rubin Collins.
• ^j On October 24, 1972, the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired a third-round pick from the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Charlie Davis. The Cavaliers used the pick to draft Foots Walker.
• ^k On January 26, 1973, the Philadelphia 76ers acquired Tom Van Arsdale and a third-round pick from the Kansas City-Omaha Kings in exchange for John Block. The 76ers used the pick to draft Harvey Catchings.
• ^l On October 9, 1973, the Phoenix Suns acquired 1974 and 1975 third-round picks from the Washington Bullets (as the Capital Bullets) in exchange for Walt Wesley. The Suns used the pick to draft Earl Williams.

Early entrants

College underclassmen

On May 9, 1974, the NBA announced that 20 college undergraduates had successfully applied for an NBA hardship that enabled them to be selected in the 1974 draft.

• Alvan Adams – F/C, Oklahoma (junior)
• Jimmy Baker Jr. – Nevada (junior)
• Gary Brokaw – G, Notre Dame (junior)
• Luther Burden – G, Utah (junior)
• Rubin Collins – G, Maryland Eastern Shore (junior)
• John Drew – F, Gardner–Webb (junior)
• Rudy Jackson – Hutchinson CC (sophomore)
• Maurice Lucas – F, Marquette (junior)
• David Mitchell Jr. – West Florida (junior)
• Eric Money – G, Arizona (junior)
• Coniel Norman – G, Arizona (sophomore)
• Cliff Pondexter – F/C, Long Beach State (sophomore)
• Roscoe Pondexter – Long Beach State (junior)
• Campy Russell – Michigan (junior)
• Mike Sojourner – Utah (sophomore)
• Robert Traylor – F/C, Michigan (junior)
• Mel Utley – G, St. John's (junior)
• Michael Washington – Southeastern CC (sophomore)
• Henry Williams – Jacksonville (junior)
• Fly Williams – G, Austin Peay (sophomore)

Notes

^ 1: Even though John Shumate was a senior, he had one extra year of college eligibility remaining after he missed his sophomore year due to an illness. However, he decided to pass up his final year to enter the draft.
^ 2: Keith Wilkes changed his name into Jamaal Abdul-Lateef prior to the start of the season. However, he retained his surname throughout his NBA career and is commonly known as Jamaal Wilkes.

See also

• List of first overall NBA draft picks

References

General

• "Complete First Round Results 1970–79". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 March 2010. Retrieved April 9, 2010.
• "1974 NBA Draft". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 9, 2010.
• "1972–1976 NBA Drafts". The Association for Professional Basketball Research. Retrieved April 9, 2010.

Specific

External links

• NBA.com
• NBA.com: NBA Draft History