College basketball season is heating up and the NBA Draft will be here before we know it. Although there's always a lot of hype around college players with pro potential, plenty fall short of expectations for a variety of reasons. To kick off the new year, 2aDays is highlighting the Top 5 NBA Draft busts. Remember, even if you can go pro, it's always smart to finish your degree!

Starting in 2006, the NBA updated their draft's eligibility rules in an attempt to encourage more high school athletes to go to college. Up until 2005, high school players were eligible for selection in the NBA draft–some of the NBA's greatest players in history like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Kevin Garnett were drafted straight out of high school. However, beginning in 2006, the league mandated that players must be at least 19 years of age and also be at least one year removed from their high school graduating class year. It's critical to note that this in no way mandates that high school basketball athletes must compete in the NCAA for at least a year, as several notable players like Marc Gasol and Brandon Jennings opted to play in international professional basketball leagues until they became eligible for the NBA Draft. But to be fair, while those aren't the only instances of talented high school basketball players playing a year or two in an international league before they meet the criteria for NBA Draft eligibility–those are exceptions to the general effect of the league's 2006 policy change as most NBA superstars elect to compete in college before going pro.

That said, the biggest vocalized issue with the League's draft eligibility criteria today is the “one and done” effect it's lead to. This refers to the increasingly common dynamic of very highly recruited high school basketball student-athletes committing to a powerhouse NCAA DI men's basketball program when they already have their mind made up that they're going to declare for the NBA Draft once they're eligible the following year. So while the NBA Draft's policy does ultimately push most high-school athletes into college, it doesn't provide them with any incentives to pursue a real college experience. Most NBA head coaches and scouts anticipate this effect–when a top-ranked high school basketball player goes into their freshman year at an ACC powerhouse basketball program for example, NBA teams already begin evaluating where that athlete will go in the following year's draft. Finally, for the best high school basketball players in the country, this is an ultimate dream situation for them in many ways–they get a full scholarship to an outstanding college, along with the best coaching staffs available, excellent exposure to NBA scouts, and a lifelong memorable college experience by any standards. 

The moral of the story: It's always smart to get your degree regardless of your professional opportunities. In this 2aDays Top 5, we're going to take a closer look at the most hyped NCAA basketball players who didn't come close to achieving their NBA potential. Our rankings were determined by several factors including NBA Draft overall selection spot, NCAA college basketball program attended, NBA scouts and other NBA basketball expert opinions, and finally each respective player's accomplishments in the NBA throughout their career. Now without further adieu, here are the 2aDays Top 5 NCAA Basketball superstars who ultimately turned into busts after pursuing professional basketball in the NBA, starting with our #5 pick.

#5: Greg Oden, Ohio State University, 2007 NBA Draft: 1st Overall Pick

The Top 5 list starts with Greg Oden, a former center from Ohio State University who was then selected 1st overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2007 NBA Draft. Oden is part of the “one and done” group; after one outstanding season at Ohio State, the 7-foot 1-inch superstar declared for the NBA Draft. He received a tremendous amount of hype before being drafted; Steve Kerr, head coach of the NBA's Golden State Warriors, was quoted as saying Oden was a “once-in-a-decade-player.” Though he missed some college games due to various injuries, Oden still managed to win the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year Award, as well as being a First Team All-Big Ten selection, and finally named to the Associated Press All-American Team. 

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Ouch!

Due to his extraordinary potential, many often argue that Oden should be higher on this kind of list because his NBA career was a total flop. It's true that it was a massive disappointment, but the reason behind it is critical: Oden's career was quite literally as plagued with injuries as could be. After being drafted 1st overall on June 28, 2007, less than three months later he got microfracture surgery on his chronically injured right knee, thus causing him to miss the entirety of what would have been his first NBA season. When Oden returned the following season, the excitement surrounding his name had worn off, and as it turned out, his performance suffered. While he was officially listed at 250 lbs, the Blazers' trainer, Jay Jensen, claimed Oden weighed roughly 290 lbs. The next couple of seasons he had an impressive game here and there, but when you look at the totality of his work they were more like flukes. The real defining story for Oden was the continuous injuries that began to seem never-ending, specifically with his knee. In February 2009 he missed nearly a month due to a chipped kneecap and later in December 2009, after he was taken off the court on two connected stretchers in the first quarter of an early-season game, Oden underwent another major surgery for a fractured patella and subsequently missed the rest of the season. Sadly, things continued to go downhill for Oden's knee troubles.

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More Injuries and a Happy Ending

In November 2010, Portland announced Oden was undergoing another microfracture surgery on his knee, causing him to miss that entire season as well. After the Trail Blazers announced Oden had suffered a setback in December 2011, casting doubts about whether he'd return the following season, he underwent arthroscopic knee surgery in February 2012. During the procedure, further damage was discovered to his articular cartilage, which led to his third microfracture surgery. At this point the Blazers had no choice but to waive Oden to make roster space available for trades and acquisitions and they did just that in March 2012. Oden would eventually sign a one-year deal with the Miami Heat for the 2014-15 season, but by then his NBA career was long over in reality. While the story of Oden's NBA career is quite saddening, once he left the league, things picked up for him. In April 2016 the Ohio State Buckeyes hired him to be a student manager for the men's basketball team as he went back to complete his college degree.

Curious about our #4 pick? Come back next week to see who we choose!

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Image Credit: The Columbus Dispatch

* Originally published on January 18, 2023, by 2aDays Staff