1997 NBA draft

Basketball player selection August 2023 1997 NBA draft Basketball June 25, 1997 Charlotte Coliseum (Charlotte, North Carolina) TNT NBA 57 2 Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs) 3 PF Tim Duncan PG Chauncey Billups SG Tracy McGrady 1996 1998 The 1997 NBA draft took place on June 25, 1997, at Charlotte Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Vancouver Grizzlies had the highest probability to win the NBA draft lottery, but since they were an expansion team along with the Toronto Raptors they were not allowed to select first in this draft. Although the Boston Celtics had the second-worst record in the 1996–97 season and the best odds (36 percent) of winning the lottery with two picks, the Spurs lost David Robinson and Sean Elliott to injury early in the season, finished with the third-worst record, and subsequently won the lottery. Leading up to the draft, there was no doubt that Tim Duncan would be selected at No. 1 by the Spurs as he was considered to be far and away the best prospect. After Duncan, the rest of the draft was regarded with some skepticism.Peter May. May 21, 2007. "Luck of draw went Spurs' way in '97 with Duncan - The Boston Globe". Boston Globe The Celtics had the third and sixth picks, selecting Chauncey Billups and Ron Mercer, both of whom were traded in the next two years. Duncan became the Spurs' franchise player and in a 19-year career spent entirely in San Antonio, he led the Spurs to five NBA championships, winning NBA Finals MVP in three of those campaigns. In addition, Duncan was a two-time NBA MVP, 15-time All-Star, 15-time All-NBA and 15-time All-Defensive team selection. Billups went on to earn five All-Star selections and won Finals MVP honors in 2004 with the Detroit Pistons. The ninth pick, Tracy McGrady, captured two NBA scoring titles and was named to seven All-Star and All-NBA teams. The Washington Wizards forfeited their 1997 first-round pick in connection with the signing of Juwan Howard. (Washington would have had the 17th pick.) Thus, the draft only had 28 first-round selections and 57 selections overall. Draft selections right|thumb|150px|Tim Duncan was selected 1st overall by the San Antonio Spurs. right|thumb|150px|Chauncey Billups was selected 3rd overall by the Boston Celtics. right|thumb|150px|Tracy McGrady was selected 9th overall by the Toronto Raptors. right|thumb|150px|Anthony Parker was selected 21st overall by the New Jersey Nets. right|thumb|150px|Stephen Jackson was selected 42nd overall by the Phoenix Suns. right|thumb|150px|Mark Blount was selected 54th overall by the Seattle SuperSonics. PG Point guard SG Shooting guard SF Small forward PF Power forward C Center y y y y y Round Pick Player Position Nationalityn Nationality indicates the player's national team or representative nationality. If a player has not competed at the international level, then the nationality indicates the national team which the player is eligible to represent according to FIBA rules. NBA team School/Club team11 Tim Duncan^~ PF/C n Tim Duncan is a United States citizen by birth, as are all natives of the U.S. Virgin Islands, he has represented the United States internationally.https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/virgin-islands/ https://web.archive.org/web/20210113025648/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/virgin-islands dead January 13, 2021 Virgin Islands August 12, 2008 CIA World Factbook August 12, 2008 San Antonio Spurs Wake Forest (Sr.)12 Keith Van Horn PF United States Philadelphia 76ers (traded to New Jersey) Utah (Sr.)13 Chauncey Billups^ PG United States Boston Celtics Colorado (So.)14Antonio Daniels PG United States Vancouver Grizzlies Bowling Green (Sr.)15Tony Battie C/F United States Denver Nuggets Texas Tech (Jr.)16Ron Mercer SF United States Boston Celtics (from Dallas) Kentucky (So.)17 Tim Thomas Tim Thomas (basketball) SF United States New Jersey Nets (traded to Philadelphia) Villanova (Fr.) 1 8 Adonal Foyle C Golden State Warriors Colgate (Jr.) 1 9 Tracy McGrady^ SG/SF United States Toronto Raptors Mt. Zion Christian Academy (Durham, North Carolina) 1 10Danny Fortson PF United States Milwaukee Bucks (traded to Denver) Cincinnati (Jr.) 1 11 Tariq Abdul-Wahad SF Sacramento Kings San Jose State (Sr.) 1 12 Austin Croshere PF United States Indiana Pacers Providence (Sr.) 1 13 Derek Anderson Derek Anderson (basketball) SG United States Cleveland Cavaliers Kentucky (Sr.) 1 14 Maurice Taylor PF United States Los Angeles Clippers Michigan (Jr.) 1 15 Kelvin Cato C United States Dallas Mavericks (from Minnesota) Iowa State (Jr.) 1 16 Brevin Knight PG United States Cleveland Cavaliers (from Phoenix) Stanford (Sr.) 1 17 Johnny Taylor Johnny Taylor (basketball) PF United States Orlando Magic Chattanooga (Sr.) 1 18 Chris Anstey PF Portland Trail Blazers SE Melbourne Magic (Australia) 1 19 Scot Pollard C United States Detroit Pistons Kansas (Sr.) 1 20 Paul Grant Paul Grant (basketball) C United States Minnesota Timberwolves (from Charlotte via Milwaukee and Portland) Wisconsin (Sr.) 1 21 Anthony Parker SG United States New Jersey Nets (from L.A. Lakers; traded to Philadelphia) Bradley (Sr.) 1 22 Ed Gray PG/SG United States Atlanta Hawks California (Sr.) 1 23 Bobby Jackson PG United States Seattle SuperSonics Minnesota (Sr.) 1 24 Rodrick Rhodes SG United States Houston Rockets USC (Sr.) 1 25 John Thomas John Thomas (basketball) C United States New York Knicks Minnesota (Sr.) 1 26 Charles Smith Charles Cornelius Smith SG United States Miami Heat New Mexico (Sr.) 1 27 Jacque Vaughn PG United States Utah Jazz Kansas (Sr.) 1 28 Keith Booth SF United States Chicago Bulls Maryland (Sr.) 2 29 Serge Zwikker# C Netherlands Houston Rockets (from Vancouver) North Carolina (Sr.) 2 30 Mark Sanford Mark Sanford (basketball)# SF/PF United States Miami Heat (from Boston) Washington (Jr.) 2 31 Charles O'Bannon PG United States Detroit Pistons (from San Antonio) UCLA (Sr.) 2 32James Cotton James Cotton (basketball) SF United States Denver Nuggets Long Beach State (Sr.) 2 33 Marko Milič PG/SG Philadelphia 76ers Smelt Olimpija (Slovenia) 2 34 Bubba Wells SF/PF United States Dallas Mavericks Austin Peay (Sr.) 2 35 Kebu Stewart SF/PF United States Philadelphia 76ers (from New Jersey Nets) Cal State Bakersfield (Sr.) 2 36 James Collins James Collins (basketball) PG/SG United States Philadelphia 76ers(from Toronto) Florida State (Sr.) 2 37 Marc Jackson SF/PF United States Golden State Warriors Temple (Sr.) 2 38 Jerald Honeycutt PF United States Milwaukee Bucks Tulane (Sr.) 2 39 Anthony Johnson Anthony Johnson (basketball) PG/SG United States Sacramento Kings College of Charleston (Sr.) 2 40 Ed Elisma# SF United States Seattle SuperSonics(from L.A. Clippers) Georgia Tech (Sr.) 2 41 Jason Lawson C United States Denver Nuggets(from Indiana) Villanova (Sr.) 2 42 Stephen Jackson SG United States Phoenix Suns Butler CC (Fr.) 2 43 Gordon Malone# SF United States Minnesota Timberwolves West Virginia (Sr.) 2 44 Cedric Henderson Cedric Henderson (basketball, born 1975) PF United States Cleveland Cavaliers Memphis (Sr.) 2 45 God Shammgod PG United States Washington Wizards Providence (So.) 2 46 Eric Washington Eric Washington (basketball) SG United States Orlando Magic(traded to Denver) Alabama (Sr.) 2 47 Alvin Williams PG United States Portland Trail Blazers Villanova (Sr.) 2 48 Predrag Drobnjak C Washington Wizards (from Charlotte) KK Partizan (Yugoslavia) 2 49 Alain Digbeu# SG France Atlanta Hawks(from Detroit) ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne (France) 2 50 Chris Crawford Chris Crawford (basketball, born 1975) SF United States Atlanta Hawks Marquette (Sr.) 2 51 DeJuan Wheat PG United States Los Angeles Lakers Louisville (Sr.) 2 52 C.J. Bruton# PG/SG Australia Vancouver Grizzlies(from Houston) Indian Hills CC (So.) 2 53 Paul Rogers Paul Rogers (basketball)# C Australia Los Angeles Lakers (from New York) Gonzaga (Sr.) 2 54 Mark Blount C United States Seattle SuperSonics Pittsburgh (So.) 2 55 Ben Pepper# C Australia Boston Celtics (from Miami) Newcastle Falcons (Australia) 2 56 Nate Erdmann# SG United States Utah Jazz Oklahoma (Senior) 2 57 Roberto Dueñas# C Chicago Bulls FC Barcelona (Spain) n Notable undrafted players List of undrafted NBA players These players eligible for the 1997 NBA Draft were not selected but played in the NBA. right|thumb|150px|Despite going undrafted Pat Burke gained notability through being the NBA's first Irish player. Player Pos. Nationality School/Club teamPeter Aluma C Liberty (Sr.)Mengke Bateer C Beijing Ducks (China) Etdrick Bohannon F United States Auburn Montgomery (Sr.)Pat Burke C Auburn (Sr.) Keith Closs C United States Norwich Neptunes (Atlantic Basketball Association) Reggie Freeman SG United States Texas (Sr.) Rubén Garcés PF/C Providence (Sr.) Chris Garner basketball PG United States Memphis (Sr.) Marlon Garnett G United States Santa Clara (Sr.) Kiwane Garris PG United States Illinois (Sr.) Derek Grimm SF United States Missouri (Sr.) Troy Hudson G United States Southern Illinois (Jr.) Nate Huffman C United States Central Michigan (Sr.) Damon Jones G United States Houston (Jr.) Garth Joseph C The College of Saint Rose (Sr.) Jonathan Kerner PF United States East Carolina (Sr.) Mikki Moore F/C United States Nebraska (Sr.)Ira Newble F United States Miami (Ohio) (Sr.)Fabricio Oberto C Atenas (Argentina)Mike Penberthy G United States The Master's (Sr.) Jamal Robinson SF United States Virginia (Sr.) Shea Seals SG United States Tulsa (Sr.) Alvin Sims SG United States Louisville (Sr.) Michael Stewart basketball F/C United States California (Sr.) Dedric Willoughby PG United States Iowa State (Sr.) Trevor Winter C United States Minnesota (Sr.) Early entrants College underclassmen This year saw a continued rise of collegiate underclassmen and other players of similar nature declaring entry into the NBA draft. This year initially saw a total of 47 eligible players enter the draft at first, but seven of these players (including Cory Carr from Texas Tech University, former DePaul University player Ronnie Fields from the St. Paul Slam! in the International Basketball Association, the Greek born Dimitrios Papanikolaou of the Olympiacos Piraeus B.C. in Greece, Larell Redic from Utah State University, Dawood Thomas from the California University of Pennsylvania, the Turkish-Yugoslavian born Mirsad Türkcan of the Efes Pilsen in Turkey, and the Argentinian-Spanish born Lucas Victoriano of the Olimpia Venado Tuerto in Argentina) would later decline their entry for this year's draft. Including the likes of high school phenom Tracy McGrady from Mount Zion Christian Academy, the Slovenian born Marko Milič of the Smelt Olimpija in Slovenia, and former Central Connecticut State University player Keith Closs of the Norwich Neptunes from the Atlantic Basketball Association minor league, the number of qualified underclassmen would increase from 37 only in college to 40 total players. Regardless, the following college basketball players successfully applied for early draft entrance.1997 Underclassmen https://www.thedraftreview.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3044:1997-underclassmen&catid=136&Itemid=384 The Draft Review August 4, 2007 December 16, 2022 USA Gracen Averil – G, Texas Tech (junior) USA Tony Battie – F/C, Texas Tech (junior) USA Chauncey Billups – G, Colorado (sophomore) USA Carl Blanton – F, Sinclair CC (junior) USA Mark Blount – C/F, Pittsburgh (sophomore) AUS C. J. Bruton – G, Indian Hills CC (sophomore) USA Dan Buie – F, Washburn (junior) USA James Cotton – G, Long Beach State (junior) USA Tony Doyle – F, Columbia (junior) USA Ian Folmar – F, Slippery Rock (junior) USA Danny Fortson – F, Cincinnati (junior) VIN Adonal Foyle – C/F, Colgate (junior) USA Darryl Hardy – F, Winston–Salem State (junior) USA Antjonne Holmes – F, Central Baptist (freshman) USA Troy Hudson – G, Southern Illinois (junior) USA Marc Jackson – F/C, Temple USA Stephen Jackson – F/G, Butler CC (freshman) USA Ed Jenkins – F, Ohio State (junior) USA Marcus Johnson – F, Long Beach State (junior) USA Damon Jones – G, Houston (junior) USA Nate Langley – G, George Mason (junior) USA Keith Love – G, Rosary (junior) USA Gordon Malone – F, West Virginia (junior) USA Amere May – F, Shaw (junior) USA Elgie McCoy – F, Kutztown (junior) USA Ron Mercer – G/F, Kentucky (sophomore) USA Victor Page – G, Georgetown (sophomore) USA Shawn Ritzie – G, Norwalk CC (sophomore) AUS Paul Rogers – F/C, Gonzaga (junior) USA Bryon Ruffner – F, BYU (junior) FRA Olivier Saint-Jean – San Jose State (junior) USA Mark Sanford – F, Washington (junior) USA God Shammgod – G, Providence (sophomore) USA Maurice Taylor – F, Michigan (junior) USA Tim Thomas – F, Villanova (freshman) USA Mark Young – F, Kansas State (junior) High school players This would be the third year in a row where high school players were allowed entry into the NBA draft after previously only doing it back in 1975. However, only one player would go directly from high school to enter the NBA this year. The following high school player successfully applied for early draft entrance. USA Tracy McGrady – G/F, Mount Zion Christian Academy (Durham, North Carolina) International players This year, only one international born player would officially enter the NBA draft after seeing three other international players initially declare their interest in entering this year's draft. The following international player successfully applied for early draft entrance. SLO Marko Milič – G/F, Smelt Olimpija (Slovenia) Other eligible players This year marked the third time in NBA history (the first two times being in 1971 and 1987) that an eligible underclassman player of sorts would declare entry for an NBA draft by playing minor league basketball within the U.S.A. first (as well as have it be the first time that it wouldn't involve the Continental Basketball Association or its previous name in the Eastern Basketball Association). It would also be the fourth time that a player would declare entry while also playing in another American basketball league, with the second case of this occurring in 1973 with David Brent being allowed entry into the NBA draft despite him already playing for the Carolina Cougars of the rivaling American Basketball Association at the time. Player Team Most recent team played for before the draft Note Ref.USA Keith Closs Norwich Neptunes (Atlantic Basketball Association) Left Central Connecticut in 1996; playing professionally since the 1996–97 season Keith Closs 1997 Underclassmen https://www.thedraftreview.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3558 The Draft Review November 30, 2007 December 16, 2022 Invited attendees The 1997 NBA draft is considered to be the twentieth NBA draft to have utilized what's properly considered the "green room" experience for NBA prospects. The NBA's green room is a staging area where anticipated draftees often sit with their families and representatives, waiting for their names to be called on draft night. Often being positioned either in front of or to the side of the podium (in this case, being positioned somewhere within the Charlotte Coliseum1997 Green Room Invites - the Draft Review April 14, 2026 https://www.thedraftreview.com/historical-draft-events/green-room/1997-green-room-invites ), once a player heard his name, he would walk to the podium to shake hands and take promotional photos with the NBA commissioner. From there, the players often conducted interviews with various media outlets while backstage. From there, the players often conducted interviews with various media outlets while backstage. However, once the NBA draft started to air nationally on TV starting with the 1980 NBA draft, the green room evolved from players waiting to hear their name called and then shaking hands with these select players who were often called to the hotel to take promotional pictures with the NBA commissioner a day or two after the draft concluded to having players in real-time waiting to hear their names called up and then shaking hands with David Stern, the NBA's commissioner at the time.Maurer Matthew 2024-02-18 Draft Broadcasts - The Draft Review https://www.thedraftreview.com/sundry/sundry-articles/draft-broadcasts 2026-04-14 The Draft Review en-us The NBA compiled its list of green room invites through collective voting by the NBA's team presidents and general managers alike, which in this year's case belonged to only what they believed were the top 15 prospects at the time.Green Room - The Draft Review https://www.thedraftreview.com/historical-draft-events/green-room 2026-04-14 The Draft Review en-us Surprisingly, outside of the missing inclusion of Danny Fortson being the tenth pick of the draft, this would be the most accurate green room draft invitation group yet. With that in mind, the following players were invited to attend this year's draft festivities live and in person. USA Derek Anderson – SG, Kentucky USA Tony Battie – PF/C, Texas Tech USA Chauncey Billups – PG, Colorado USA Kelvin Cato – C, Iowa State USA Austin Croshere – PF, Providence USA Antonio Daniels – PG, Bowling Green VIR/USA Tim Duncan – C, Wake Forest VIN Adonal Foyle – C, Colgate USA Brevin Knight – PG, Stanford USA Tracy McGrady – SG/SF, Mount Zion Christian Academy (Durham, North Carolina) USA Ron Mercer – SF, Kentucky FRA Olivier Saint-Jean – SF, San Jose State USA Maurice Taylor – PF, Michigan USA Tim Thomas – SF, Villanova USA Keith Van Horn – PF, Utah See also List of first overall NBA draft picks References External links http://www.nba.com/draft97/ Official website NBA.com 2011-06-15 bot: unknown https://web.archive.org/web/20010215043149/http://www.nba.com/draft97/ 2001-02-15 1997 NBA Draft at Basketball-reference Draft Category:NBA draft NBA draft NBA draft Category:Basketball in North Carolina Category:Organized events in Charlotte, North Carolina Category:Basketball in Charlotte, North Carolina