One and Done: Zion is 11th Frosh in Last 13 Years to Be 1st Overall Choice

The newcomers are the latest not to give themselves sufficient time at the college level to amass one-for-the-books or one-for-the-ages career records. Zion Williamson (Duke) was the 11th freshman in the last 13 years to become the first overall choice in the NBA draft. But be careful out there with any focus on freshman fascination! Greg Oden, the first pick in the 2007 NBA draft, scored a grand total of 30 playoff points in three injury-plagued campaigns compared to Kevin Durant, the second selection in the 2007 draft, dominating two of the last three NBA Finals. Washington's Markelle Fultz, the first overall pick two years ago before inexplicably misplacing his shooting touch, averaged only 7.1 ppg in 14 contests as a rookie with the Philadelphia 76ers before averaging a modest 8.2 ppg in another abbreviated campaign this season.

Incredibly, all of coach John Calipari's 31 frosh defectors (4 with Memphis and 27 with Kentucky) became first-round picks in the NBA draft after two one-and-done Wildcats were chosen this season. Manute Bol (Bridgeport CT) and Bol Bol (Oregon) became the first father-son combination in this first-year category. An all-time record 16 first-round choices in 2017 are among the following alphabetical list of 169 freshmen, only 31 hanging around long enough to become an All-American (five in 2017), leaving universities since troubled Dontonio Wingfield became the first major-college "one 'n done" frosh upon departing from Cincinnati in 1994:

NOTE: Manute Bol (DII Bridgeport in 1985) and Shawn Kemp (JC Trinity Valley in 1989) were the first two non-NCAA DI players selected as freshmen. Ledo did not play with PC for academic reasons.