NBA Draft: 30 Worst No. 1 overall picks in league history (Updated 2023)

30 worst No. 1 overall picks in league history: 23. Joe Barry Carroll

Stats:

• 17.7 points
• 7.7 rebounds

The history of the first overall pick is filled with more big men than guards. For much of the NBA’s history, the league went after size; you couldn’t teach size, after all, and the lack of floor spacing increased the value of players tall enough to score in a crowded paint.

The 7-foot tall Joe Barry Carroll is one such player, who excelled at Purdue University scoring inside and swatting an incredible amount of shots; he broke the school record for blocks as a sophomore, the rebounding record as a junior, and the minutes record as a senior. That final season he and Purdue made the Final Four and Carroll was a First Team All-American.

As they would a few times during their history, the Golden State Warriors had the first overall pick in 1980 and selected Carroll. Right from the jump he began putting up numbers, averaging 18.9 points and 9.3 rebounds as a rookie. His scoring would balloon even as his rebounding slipped slightly, and Carroll averaged as many as 24.1 points per game in 1982-83.

After an unexpected year away from the NBA to win a title in Italy, he returned and made his first and only All-Star appearance in 1987. Then began the journeyman phase as Carroll made his way around the league, playing for five teams over the final four seasons of his career. He would finish with 705 games played, but just four playoff berths over his time in the NBA.

Should have picked: Kevin McHale (3rd)