Ranking the Last 5 Atlantic Division No. 1 Overall Picks

Since 1996, the Atlantic Division has had five number-one overall draft picks. When a team has the top pick, the player is expected to change the team’s fortunes, leading them back to the playoffs. The results don’t always meet the expectations. Sometimes, top picks never live up to the hype.

These five players range from a league MVP to a few players who never rose to All-Star-level play. This group features 15 All-Star appearances, two Rookie of the Year Award winners, and a four-time scoring champ. The

Philadelphia 76ers

have made three of the division’s last five number-one overall picks, the

Brooklyn Nets

have made one, and the

Toronto Raptors

have made one.

5

Markelle Fultz

Markelle Fultz hasn’t lived up to the expectations

The 76ers took

Markelle Fultz

with the top pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. They hoped to have found a point guard to play with

Ben Simmons

and

Joel Embiid

in the “Trust the Process” rebuild. However, Fultz only played in 14 games during his rookie season.

Injuries have played a large part in his career. He has played in 60 or more games twice in his seven-year career. Philadelphia wanted to build toward winning a championship, so they traded him after just two seasons. That trade led to the 76ers drafting All-Star point guard

Tyrese Maxey

. So, while the draft night trades and decisions the 76ers made in 2017 look bad now (they traded up to get Fultz over

Jayson Tatum

), they’ve managed to salvage it by adding Maxey.

The severity of the decision to draft Fultz is sharpened by the other members of the 2017 draft class: Tatum,

Lauri Markkanen

,

De’Aaron Fox

,

Donovan Mitchell

, and

Bam Adebayo

. Philadelphia may have been one player away during their current run. Imagine if they had been able to add one of those players back in 2017. Fultz is now a free agent.

4

Andrea Bargnani

Andrea Bargnani struggled in the wrong era

In 2006, the Toronto Raptors took Andrea Bargnani with the top pick. Bargnani played how big men play today. However, the outside-shooting big never became quite what the Raptors had hoped for when they drafted him. The

Portland Trail Blazers

selected seven-time All-Star

LaMarcus Aldridge

with the pick after Bargnani. Brandon Roy,

Kyle Lowry

,

Paul Millsap

, and Rajon Rondo were other notable members of this draft class.

The Raptors paired Bargnani with Chris Bosh. The team made the playoffs his first two seasons but had little postseason success. Bosh went to the Miami Heat (winning two titles). Bargnani did have a good stretch of basketball from 2009-10 to 2011-12. He averaged 19.2 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, shooting 35 percent from beyond the arc.

After a few more seasons, Bargnani played with the Knicks and Nets to round out his NBA career after the 2015-16 season.

3

Kenyon Martin

Kenyon Martin played a key role for multiple title contenders

In 2000, the New Jersey Nets selected Kenyon Martin with the top pick. During his four seasons with the team, the Nets reached the NBA Finals twice. The high-flying Martin worked well with Jason Kidd. The Nets were the original version of Lob City. Martin made his only All-Star game while with the Nets in 2003-04.

After the season, the Nets traded him to the

Denver Nuggets

. In Denver, Martin played with Allen Iverson,

Carmelo Anthony

, and later Chauncey Billups.

In 2009, the Nuggets came within two games of making the NBA Finals, losing to the

Kobe Bryant

-led Lakers in six games. Martin played in 112 playoff games in his career, averaging 12.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.1 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game. While Martin did not have the career of a first-overall pick, he played an important role for multiple teams.

2

Ben Simmons

Ben Simmons’ career got off to a strong start

In 2016, the 76ers selected

Ben Simmons

with the top pick. The point forward presented an interesting prospect with his combination of size and skill. After missing his first season with an injury, Simmons won the 2017-18 Rookie of the Year Award, helping the 76ers return to the playoffs. Simmons made three straight All-Star games from 2018-19 to 2020-21.

He averaged 16.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, 7.6 assists, and 1.7 steals per game in that span. Simmons played both ends of the floor well. His only downside was his shooting. Simmons shot 21.7 percent from three-point range.

Simmons then ran into some more injury issues and chose not to play, sitting out the 2021-22 season. Additionally, the 76ers weren’t having the playoff success they had hoped for, so they decided to trade Simmons to the Brooklyn Nets in 2022. Philadelphia acquired James Harden but still did not succeed in the postseason.

Simmons has struggled with injuries in Brooklyn, playing 57 games in his two seasons. At 27, Simmons could reemerge as a two-way playmaker in the NBA.

1

Allen Iverson

AI, The Answer was everything the 76ers had hoped for

One of the league’s most influential players, Allen Iverson led one of the league’s best draft classes (Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Ray Allen), winning Rookie of the Year in 1996-97. Iverson instantly became one of the league’s most entertaining players. The 6-0 guard led the league in scoring four times, averaging 29.2 points per game from 1998-99 to 2006-07.

In 2000-01, the Hall-of-Famer led the 76ers to the NBA Finals. While his team only won a single game, Iverson averaged 35.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.8 steals per game.

Iverson went on to play with Carmelo Anthony in Denver. The high-scoring duo never had much success. Iverson finished his career with stints in Detroit and Memphis and a return to Philadelphia. Even as the game changed, leaning more towards efficiency, Iverson never lost his popularity. He made 11 All-Star games, won the 2001 League MVP, and is a member of the 75th Anniversary team.

All stats provided by Basketball Reference

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