Sometimes, potential falls flat and nowhere is that more obvious than in Draft busts. We're counting down the best (worst?) NBA Draft busts–last week's bust, Adam Morrison, came in at #3. Here's our #2 pick:

#2: Anthony Bennett, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, 2013 NBA Draft: 1st Overall Pick

The #2 biggest bust in this 2aDays Top 5 is Anthony Bennett from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Though he was selected quite recently, in the 2013 NBA Draft, he's already widely recognized as one of the greatest draft busts of all-time. Bennett is one of the best modern examples of why the “one and done” approach to getting drafted isn't necessarily an effective strategy. He played just one season at UNLV before declaring for the NBA draft, where the Cleveland Cavaliers immediately selected him with their 1st overall pick.

A Power-full Start

Before his first touch as an NBA player, many criticized the Cavaliers' decision to draft Bennett first overall. He had a great freshman season at UNLV, averaging a pretty solid 16.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, but that's considering he only averaged 27.1 minutes per game due to a midseason shoulder injury. Listed as 6'8” and weighing 245 pounds, he spent most of his time as a power forward, also occasionally playing in the small forward position. 

Collegiately, Bennett shot 53.3% overall from the field and 37.5% from three-point territory, which showed an impressive range for a power forward. Perhaps what intrigued the Cavaliers so much was his on-court efficiency; Bennett had a Player Efficiency Rating (PER) of 28.3 in his only season at UNLV, with the league average being a 15.0.  But somewhat similar to Morrison, Bennett just never got going in the NBA, and it wasn't related to any injury or any off-court incidents. It took him 33 games to score double-digit points, finally scoring 15 points and grabbing eight rebounds against the New Orleans Pelicans; this was three times longer than any prior player selected first overall in the NBA Draft. 

Rookie Curse?

Bennett's stats from his rookie year are pretty abysmal by any standards: he averaged 4.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game, while playing an average of 12.8 minutes per game for the season as his poor play ultimately got him benched. One year with Bennett was enough for the Cavs, so they traded him to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a three-team deal the year after they drafted him. Unfortunately, Bennett failed to make any meaningful impact with the Timberwolves and after one season where he started only three games, averaging 5.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 15.7 minutes per game. 

Bennett was subsequently waived by Minnesota, also after just one season with the team. Despite managing to sign a one-year deal with his hometown Toronto Raptors, things somehow managed to get worse for Bennett in his third NBA season: early in the year, the Raptors sent him down to the D-League, making him the NBA's first No.1 overall draft pick to make an appearance in the NBA Development League. When his one-year deal with the Raptors expired, he was signed by the Brooklyn Nets then quickly waived just a few months later, this time failing to make it through a full NBA season. That marked the end of Bennett's NBA career as he moved to play professional basketball in Turkey for Fenerbahce, but his struggles continued. After only one season, where he made just ten appearances and averaged a measly 1.2 points per game, he was released once again. Though the 2013 NBA Draft class was notably weak, it still makes you wonder how current NBA stars like Victor Oladipo and Giannis Antetokounmpo were overlooked in favor of Anthony Bennett. 

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Image Credit: Las Vegas Review Journal

* Originally published on February 16, 2023, by 2aDays Staff