2007 NBA draft

2007 NBA draft
General information
SportBasketball
Date(s)June 28, 2007
LocationMadison Square Garden (New York City)
Network(s)ESPN
Overview
60 total selections in 2 rounds
LeagueNBA
First selectionGreg Oden (Portland Trail Blazers)
← 2006
2008 →

The 2007 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2007, at the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was broadcast on television in 115 countries.[1] In this draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players.

Freshman Greg Oden from Ohio State University was drafted first overall by the Portland Trail Blazers, who won the draft lottery.[2] However, he missed the 2007–08 season due to microfracture surgery on his right knee during the pre-season.[3] Another freshman, Kevin Durant, was drafted second overall from the University of Texas by the Seattle SuperSonics,[4] and went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award for the 2007–08 season.[5] Oden and Durant became the first freshmen to be selected with the top two picks in the draft.[6] Al Horford, the son of former NBA player Tito Horford, was drafted third by the Atlanta Hawks.[7] Of the three top picks, Durant has been a League MVP, a two-time finals MVP and perennial All-Star while Horford has enjoyed a solid All-Star career. Oden, however, was beset by numerous microfracture surgeries on both knees that limited him to only 82 games from 2008 to 2010.

On the night after the draft, the Seattle Supersonics traded seven-time All-Star Ray Allen along with the draft rights of the 35th pick Glen Davis to the Boston Celtics in exchange for Delonte West, Wally Szczerbiak, and the draft rights to the 5th pick, Jeff Green.[8] The Portland Trail Blazers and the New York Knicks were also involved in a multi-player trade that sent Zach Randolph to the Knicks and Steve Francis to the Blazers.[9] Apart from those two trades, nine further draft-day trades were announced.[10]

The 2007 draft marked the first time three players drafted in the top 10 came from the same school: the University of Florida.[11] Florida, the 2007 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Basketball champion, tied the record set by the University of Connecticut in 2006 with five players selected in the first two rounds of an NBA draft.[12] Florida joined nine other schools, including Connecticut, that had five players selected in an NBA draft, second only to UNLV, which had six players selected in the eight-round 1977 draft.[12][13] Five players who competed in the 2007 NCAA Basketball National Championship Final were selected in the top 10; three players came from Florida, and two players came from the runner-up, Ohio State University.[14] This draft also set the record number of freshmen drafted in the first round when eight freshmen were selected.[15] Of the 60 players drafted, eight were freshmen, five were sophomores, 14 were juniors, 20 were seniors, and 13 were international players without U.S. college basketball experience. The Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers and Toronto Raptors all did not have a draft pick this year, although Indiana and Toronto each acquired a drafted player's rights after the draft.[10] As of 2024, the only remaining active NBA players from this draft are Kevin Durant, Al Horford, Mike Conley, Jeff Green, and Thaddeus Young.

  1. ^ "2007 NBA Draft Draws Increased Global Interest". NBA. June 26, 2007. Archived from the original on December 1, 2009. Retrieved August 24, 2009.
  2. ^ "Trail Blazers take ex-Ohio State star Oden with top choice". ESPN. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on June 28, 2008. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  3. ^ "Oden's recovery from surgery likely in range of 6–12 months". ESPN. September 14, 2007. Archived from the original on January 18, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  4. ^ Mahoney, Brian (June 29, 2007). "Oden to Blazers, Oden to Sonics". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 13, 2022. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  5. ^ "Kevin Durant Named T-Mobile Rookie of the Year". NBA. May 1, 2008. Archived from the original on April 29, 2009. Retrieved April 23, 2009.
  6. ^ Lee, Michael (June 29, 2007). "A Case of Natural Selection". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 6, 2008. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  7. ^ Lawlor, Christopher (June 29, 2007). "Notes: No. 3 pick Horford eager to help Hawks". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 9, 2007. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  8. ^ "Sonics' Allen traded to Celts for Wally, West & Green". ESPN. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on September 26, 2015. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  9. ^ "Randolph heading to Knicks, Francis shipped to Blazers in draft-day trade". ESPN. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on October 9, 2007. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  10. ^ a b "NBA draft-day trade overview". ESPN. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on June 28, 2008. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  11. ^ DuPree, David (June 28, 2007). "Florida trio tapped in top 10; Celts land Ray Allen". USA Today. Archived from the original on April 23, 2009. Retrieved May 3, 2009.
  12. ^ a b Carey, Jack (June 28, 2007). "First round awaits Gators after second collegiate title". USA Today. Archived from the original on January 22, 2011. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  13. ^ "NBA Draft Superlatives". CBS College Sports. CSTV Networks, Inc. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on June 26, 2008. Retrieved August 6, 2009.
  14. ^ "Portland Selects Oden With Top Pick". Channel3000.com. Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. June 29, 2007. Archived from the original on December 22, 2007. Retrieved August 7, 2009.
  15. ^ "Freshmen could produce record number in the '08 draft". ESPN. June 24, 2008. Archived from the original on July 20, 2009. Retrieved August 6, 2009.