The Best #1 NBA Draft Picks of All Time

With the 2007 NBA draft nearing, fans of Portland are buzzing about the potential of the number one overall prospect they will have for next year. To be thought of as a success, however, Greg Oden or Kevin Durant have their work cut out for them. Not surprisingly, the first pick has generated more than it's fair share of generational superstars. But just who does this year's prospects have to beat out to make the top ten number one picks of all time?

Determining the top ten number one picks throughout the NBA's history was not as easy as it may seem. The top of the pile was full of Hall of Fame players who had gained both personal and team success during their long careers. To fairly judge each player, we will look at six different factors; playoff success, All-NBA selections, All-Star selections, MVP awards won, longevity, and team impact. Yao Ming and LeBronJames were omitted for consideration because they have only played for five or less years in the NBA.

Playoff success refers to the number of NBA Finals reached by a player and the number of subsequent championships won. The point system was weighted so that rings meant more than appearances. All-NBA selections simply gave credit for making the 1^st, 2^nd, or 3^rd All-NBA teams. Obviously, 1^st All-NBA team selections were more impressive than 3^rd team selections.

All-Star appearances simply were taken at face value. On the other hand, MVP awards took into consideration, with extensive research, years in which players finished 2^nd or 3^rd in the MVP voting as well as the ones in which they finished 1^st. This allowed for a more comprehensive analysis of the player's impact on the league throughout his career.

Longevity was another important factor that was based on the number of games missed per season. No matter how good a player is, he cannot be all that a team wants if he is spending half of each season on the disabled list. Finally, team impact looks at each player's impact on his team once drafted from an opinionated view.

All of these factors are weighted equally together and have created the following list: