The 39 Best Players in History Who Did Not Immediately Join the NBA After Being Drafted

The most common scenario when you enter the NBA Draft is to debut in the best league in the world in the following season. However, some players prefer to wait, either because they are not ready to make the leap or because they are shining in a top European team, for example. In this article, we are going to talk about those players who make such a decision.

Not going straight to the NBA after being drafted doesn’t mean you won’t become a true basketball legend. Larry Bird and David Robinson already proved it, as did Argentina's top players, Manu Ginobili and Luis Scola. Spanish stars like Marc Gasol, Ricky Rubio, or former players like Serge Ibaka and Nikola Mirotic have done the same. And today, we have the best example in Nikola Jokic.

The 39 best players who did not join the NBA when drafted:

1. David Robinson

   • Draft: 1st pick, 1987
   • NBA Seasons: 1989-2003
   • Regular Season Games: 987
   • Win Shares in Regular Season: 178.7

(*) As of November 7, 2024.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Los 39 mejores jugadores de la historia que no se unieron a la NBA inmediatamente después de ser drafteados