The 15 Biggest Steals In The History Of The NBA Draft

The NBA Draft gives teams the opportunity to add some valuable assets to their roster, and while franchises invest a ton of time and effort into making the optimal selections, that’s easier said than done. Plenty of highly-touted players who’ve been picked near the top ended up being a bust, and there are also more than a few who flew below the radar only to have an incredibly impressive career.

Every NBA team hopes to use the draft to acquire a player who’s capable of having a major impact on the franchise, but with the exception of some truly generational talents, identifying guys who can check that box is not an easy task.

If you need proof, there are plenty of examples concerning prospects who probably should have been picked higher in hindsight based on what they were able to achieve in the league.

Nikola Jokic: 41st Overall (2014)

I’m not necessarily listing these in any particular order, but if I were, there’s zero doubt Nikola Jokic would be at the top.

ESPN was somewhat famously running a Taco Bell commercial when the Nuggets selected the Serbian big man in the second round in 2014, and it’s safe to say that selection was a bit of an afterthought at the time.

However, it turned out to be incredibly consequential for the franchise that landed a man who’s won three MVP awards, been selected to the All-Star Game on seven occasions, and led the team to its first and only championship in 2023.

Manu Ginobili: 57th Overall (1999)

It took NBA teams longer than it probably should have to realize there was a ton of overlooked talent in other countries, and the Spurs were pretty ahead of the curve when it came to capitalizing on that untapped potential.

Manu Ginobili initially made a name for himself in his native Argentina before heading to Italy to continue his pro career, and the Spurs thought his athleticism was enough to justify the decision to use what seemed like it was going to be a throwaway pick in 1999.

The sharpshooter made his NBA debut with the team in 2002 and spent the entirety of his 16-year career with San Antonio while serving as a reliable sixth man who won four titles.

Tony Parker: 28th Overall (2001)

The Spurs pulled another coup on the international front a couple of years after landing Ginobili, as Tony Parker also flew under the radar before they got him at the end of the first round in 2001.

The Frenchman (who also spent 16 years in San Antonio before capping off his NBA career in Charlotte) was a six-time All-Star who played a pivotal role in the four championships he won as a Spur thanks to his ability to score and get the ball to his teammates so they could do the same.

Jimmy Butler: 30th Overall (2011)

The first three guys on this list were overlooked thanks in no small part to the fact that they didn’t hail from the United States, but that can’t be said for the draft steals who ended up surpassing expectations after coming out of college.

That includes Jimmy Butler, who had a solid career at Marquette but wasn’t really mentioned alongside the likes of Kyrie Irving, Derrick Williams, Tristan Thompson, and the other guys viewed as the top talents in the draft class in 2011.

However, he’s firmly outshined everyone but the first man on that list since the Bulls got him at the end of the first round as a six-time All-Star who carried the Heat to multiple NBA Finals appearances.

Draymond Green: 35th Overall (2012)

Draymond Green averaged a double-double during his senior year at Michigan State, but concerns he was too undersized to hold his own to the NBA undoubtedly contributed to him slipping to the start of the second round before the Warriors scooped him up.

That ended up being a very positive development for Golden State, and Green’s defensive prowess made him a cornerstone of the dynasty the franchise built with the help of Steph Curry and Klay Thompson while racking up four championships.

Dennis Rodman: 27th Overall (1986)

It’s pretty easy to understand why Dennis Rodman fell to the end of the first round of the draft in 1986.

He was an undersized high schooler who barely got any playing time before undergoing a growth spurt that helped him earn a spot on the team at Southeastern Oklahoma State University, an overlooked NAIA program that nonetheless ended up on Detroit’s radar thanks to The Worm.

He won a couple of championships with the “Bad Boy” Pistons before getting three more with the Bulls and retiring after cementing himself as one of the most formidable rebounders in basketball history.

Marc Gasol: 48th Overall (2008)

Pau Gasol had already spent a few years with the Grizzlies and won Rookie of the Year when the Lakers selected his younger brother Marc with the 48th pick in 2008, which resulted in the trade that sent the former to Los Angeles as Memphis secured the rights to the latter.

The Lakers obviously benefited from that move based on Pau’s contributions during their back-to-back title runs in 2009 and 2010, but the Grizzlies also ended up getting a franchise player and three-time All-Star who was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 2013.

Isaiah Thomas: 60th Overall (2011)

Isaiah Thomas was seemingly destined to live in the shadow of the Isiah Thomas he was named after, but he managed to do a pretty good job living up to that legacy while defying the odds.

The 5’9″ guard became the NBA version of Mr. Irrelevant when the Kings selected him with the final pick in the draft in 2011, but he quickly emerged as a valuable contributor and really came into his own during the two years he spent with the Celtics beginning in 2015.

The journeyman who’s played for ten different teams was an All-Star during both of his seasons with Boston and is easily the best player who’s gone last overall.

Khris Middleton: 39th Overall (2012)

The Pistons nabbed Khris Middleton out of Texas A&M in 2012, but he only spend a year in Detroit before he was traded to the Bucks in the offseason in 2013.

He almost doubled the average point total he posted during his rookie year after making his debut with Milwaukee, and his game continued to improve as he emerged as a weapon who help the Bucks win a championship in 2021 while complementing the talents of another steal in the form of…

Giannis Antetokounmpo: 15th Overall (2013)

We’re heading back to the international player well with The Greek Freak, who is ushering the section of the list devoted to guys who were picked toward the first half of the first round but still ended up being a huge steal based on the impact they ended up having.

Giannis took a few years to find his footing in the NBA, but he got the first of the nine All-Star Team selections he’s earned so far in 2017 during a breakout season where the two-time MVP put the league he’s continued to dominate since then on notice.

Kawhi Leonard: 15th Overall

Oh look, it’s another steal who ended up on the Spurs.

The Pacers were actually the team who picked San Diego State standout Kawhi Leonard with the 15th selection in 2011, but he was traded to San Antonio in what turned out to be a very lopsided deal.

It took him a few years to come into his own, but he’d firmly done that by the time he was named NBA Finals MVP in 2014.

The two-time champion soon emerged as one of the best players in the league and got another Finals MVP award after leading the Raptors to a title in 2019.

John Stockton: 16th Overall (1984)

The Jazz made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history in 1984 after a string of dismal seasons, but they really managed to turn the corner with two draft steals they got in back-to-back years.

The first was John Stockton, the Gonzaga guard who was drafted with the 16th pick that year to kick off a 19-year Hall of Fame career he spent entirely in Utah while being named to the All-Star Team ten times and setting the NBA record for assists with a little bit of help from…

Karl Malone: 15th Overall

The Jazz outdid themselves in 1985 by opting to use the 13th pick to get Karl Malone out of Louisiana Tech, who spent 18 seasons in Utah while cementing himself as one of the all-time greats.

The Mailman was a two-time MVP and 14-time All-Star who retired with the second-most points in NBA history after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (he’s now third thanks to LeBron James), and while the Jazz were never able to win a title, they were one of the best teams in the NBA for over a decade thanks to that dynamic duo.

Steve Nash: 15th Overall (1996)

Steve Nash got his first taste of the spotlight when he helped 15th-seeded Santa Clara upset Arizona in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in 1993, and he’d emerged as the star of the team by the time he wrapped up his senior season.

However, he was still a relative unknown in a 1996 draft class that boasted college stars including Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, and Stephon Marbury, who went near the top while Nash ended up going to the Suns with the 15th pick.

Phoenix made a bit of an unforced error by trading him to the Mavericks in 1998, and the point guard emerged as a force to be reckoned with during his time in Dallas.

He returned to the Suns as a free agent in 2004 and promptly won back-to-back MVP awards, and while he was never able to get a ring, he more than earned a spot in the Hall of Fame.

Kobe Bryant: 13th Overall (1996)

Steve Nash wasn’t the only steal in the draft in 1996, as the Lakers also got one a couple of picks ahead of him when they decided to go with a high schooler named Kobe Bryant.

I probably don’t need to tell you how that ended up working out for Los Angeles, as the legendary point guard ended his career with five rings, an MVP award, and a staggering 18 All-Star Game selections.