Going undrafted is usually the end of the road, but some players turned that snub into championships, All-Star selections and Hall of Fame careers. Here are 10 who went from undrafted to NBA stars.
- Ben Wallace. Undrafted in 1996, he is widely seen as the best undrafted player ever. He won Defensive Player of the Year four times, helped the Pistons win the 2004 title and in 2021 became the first undrafted player inducted into the Hall of Fame.
- Fred VanVleet. Undrafted in 2016 after four years at Wichita State, he won a title with Toronto in 2019 and made the All-Star team in 2022.
- John Starks. Undrafted in 1988, he bounced through junior colleges and the CBA before becoming an All-Star and helping the Knicks reach the 1994 Finals.
- Udonis Haslem. Undrafted out of Florida in 2002, he spent a year in France before joining his hometown Heat, where he played 20 seasons and won three championships.
- Bruce Bowen. Undrafted in 1993, he became an elite perimeter defender with three titles with San Antonio, five straight All-Defensive First Team picks and three Second Team honors.
- Alex Caruso. Undrafted in 2016, he became a defensive specialist, a champion and an analytics favorite.
- Austin Reaves. Undrafted in 2021 after five college seasons, he developed into a high-level Lakers guard. He is one of the most prominent current undrafted success stories, as in our look at Luka Doncic’s Lakers.
- Jeremy Lin. Undrafted, he became a sensation with the Knicks in the Linsanity era.
- Naz Reid. Undrafted in 2019 out of LSU, he grew into a regular big-man rotation player.
- Wesley Matthews. He spent 14 years in the NBA after going undrafted out of Baylor.
Others often named include Raja Bell, Brad Miller, Lu Dort and Duncan Robinson. Rankings of undrafted players are subjective, but Wallace tops nearly every one. For the other end of the draft, see our piece on the NBA records that may never be broken.
Sources: Dunkest, Airball, NBA Hoops Online, Sports Illustrated, SI (2012).