14.) Glenn Robinson, F
School: Purdue
Drafted: Bucks 1994
Eight seasons with Milwaukee
Robinson played eight seasons in Milwaukee, averaging 20.7 points and 6.1 rebounds per game with a 17.8 PER. He was a scoring machine, but other than that he was pretty one-dimensional. The Bucks made the playoffs just three of those seasons and only got out of the first round once. Robinson was traded to the Hawks for Toni Kukoc, Leon Smith and a 2003 first-round pick (which turned out to be T.J. Ford). While Robinson was solid, he never had the impact of several other players in his draft class, including No. 2 pick Jason Kidd.
Johnson was a stud in teal for the Hornets for five seasons, averaging 19.6 points, and 9.2 rebounds per game and posting a PER of 18.4 before he was traded to the Knicks for Brad Lohaus and Anthony Mason. He made two All-Star teams and two playoff appearances in Charlotte.
Bogut was drafted by the Bucks after a stellar sophomore season at Utah over the likes of Chris Paul and Deron Williams. In his seven seasons with the Bucks, he averaged 14 points, 10.3 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game with a 17 PER and, surprisingly, became a real defensive force in the middle. After breaking his hand and dislocating his right elbow in 2010, he was never quite the same, and the Bucks ended up trading him, along with Stephen Jackson, to the Warriors for Monta Ellis, Kwame Brown and Ekpe Udoh.
Martin had a long productive career, despite coming out of one of the worst drafts in history. Henny Ray Abrams/AFP/Getty Images
Martin was the No. 1 pick for one of the worst draft classes in NBA history. Mike Miller and Michael Redd were probably the best players to come out of the class, and Martin likely placed third behind them. He was a solid player during his four seasons in New Jersey, averaging 15.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game, while posting a 15.9 PER. He was traded for three first-round draft picks, which wound up being Joey Graham, Renaldo Balkman and Marcus Williams. Yeah, it wasn't pretty.
Brand has had a long and fruitful career in the NBA, averaging 16.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per game with a career 20.6 PER during his 16 seasons in the league. Unfortunately for the Bulls, he played just his first two seasons in Chicago in the era directly after Michael Jordan's retirement. As solid as Brand was, he wasn't able to help the Bulls win games. Chicago finished with the worst record in the NBA during both seasons he was there.
Still reeling from the Chris Webber disaster (see Webber at No. 24 for details), the Warriors went after a completely different type of player in Smith in 1995. While Webber was all about ego, Smith was egoless. It also turned out that he wasn't nearly the basketball player Webber was. Smith lasted just two and half seasons in Golden State, averaging a career-best 17 points and 8.2 rebounds with a PER of 16.3. At the trade deadline in 1998, he was sent to the 76ers for Jim Jackson and Clarence Weatherspoon.
General manager Bryan Colangelo surprised many in 2006 by taking the Italian big man ahead of players like LaMarcus Aldridge and Rudy Gay. Colangelo thought Bargnani could be the next Dirk Nowitzki and, early on, there were glimpses that he might be right. Bargnani averaged 15.2 points and 4.8 rebounds with a 14.3 PER in his five seasons in Toronto. While he was a scoring threat, his lack of rebounding and defense often made him a liability on the floor. He was eventually traded to the Knicks for Marcus Camby, Steve Novak, Quentin Richardson and a 2016 first-round pick.
Brown has become the poster child for draft busts, though in virtually every way he's not the worst draft pick in the last 25 years. Michael Jordan famously decided to draft Brown No. 1 after watching him handily beat Tyson Chandler in a game of one-on-one the day before the draft. Brown then told Jordan he would never let MJ down. Jordan and head coach Doug Collins were not ready to handle Brown's unpreparedness to play in the NBA. They both were pushing for the playoffs and rode Brown mercilessly. He averaged just 7.7 points and 5.5 rebounds during his four seasons in Washington, while posting a decent 14.5 PER. The Wizards passed on better talents in 2001, including Pau Gasol.
As bad as Brown was, in most every way, Olowokandi was even worse. The Clippers took him No. 1 ahead of players like Nowitzki and Paul Pierce in 1998, and he never amounted to much. During his five seasons in L.A., he averaged 9.9 PPG and 8 RPG but was largely inefficient, posting a relatively poor 11.0 PER. The Clippers never made the playoffs during his five seasons, and he bolted from the team in free agency.
Irving has excelled since being drafted by Cleveland, but Bennett struggled mightily. Fernando Medina/NBAE/Getty Images
Cavaliers GM Chris Grant made everyone scratch their heads when he selected Bennett No. 1 during a very weak 2013 NBA draft. As soft as it was, players like Nerlens Noel (who was recovering from a torn ACL) and Victor Oladipo were considered better prospects that night. At the time, Bennett was still recovering from shoulder surgery, had gotten out of shape before the draft and, while a talented scorer, had a questionable work ethic. He was an unmitigated disaster for the Cavs in that lone season. He struggled to get minutes, averaged just 4.2 points per game and shot 36 percent from the field. He also posted a pitiful 6.9 PER. That summer, the Cavs packaged him and Wiggins in a trade with the Wolves for Kevin Love; so they got something good for Bennett.
Webber would obviously be much, much higher on this list if it were based on talent alone. He averaged 20.7 points, 9.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game for his career and had a career PER of 20.9. The issue for Webber was his impact on the Warriors, which, in almost every way, was a disaster. Golden State traded him for three future first-round picks (that became Todd Fuller in 1996, Keon Clark in 1998 and Mike Miller in 2000), along with the draft rights to Penny Hardaway. He played one season for the Warriors, where he constantly clashed with head coach Don Nelson. Golden State then turned around and traded him to the Wizards for Tom Gugliotta (who was then traded a year later for Donyell Marshall). The Warriors hit rock bottom after the Webber trade, failing to win more than 21 games in a season from 1997-2002. Only Greg Oden has done more to destroy a franchise, and the Oden debacle wasn't his fault.
Oden should have been a monster. Unfortunately, his knees were made of glass. In the 82 NBA games he played for the Trail Blazers, Oden averaged a whopping 19.4 PER. In 2009, he was averaging a 23 PER -- All-Star numbers -- before going down with yet another injury. Oden's first injury occurred during the summer when he was drafted. No one knows what happened, but Oden had microfracture surgery and missed his entire rookie season. He missed a total of 61 games his second season with a foot injury and a chipped knee cap. In November of 2010, Oden went under the knife again for his second microfracture surgery and never played for the Blazers again. But the worst fate of all for Blazers fans was to sit helplessly by while the guy taken second, Kevin Durant, went on to be a superstar and eventually league MVP.