1966 NBA draft
The 1966 NBA draft was the 20th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on May 11 and 12, 1966 before the 1966–67 season. In this draft, ten NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was eligible for selection. If a player left college early, he would not be eligible for selection until his college class graduated. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each division, with the order determined by a coin flip.[1] The New York Knicks won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Detroit Pistons were awarded the second pick. This draft was the first to use the coin flip method, which replace the territorial pick rule.[2] The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. An expansion franchise, the Chicago Bulls, took part in the NBA Draft for the first time and were assigned the last pick of each round. The draft consisted of 19 rounds comprising 112 players selected.
1966 NBA draft | |
---|---|
General information | |
Sport | Basketball |
Date(s) | May 11, 1966 (Rounds 1–8) May 12, 1966 (Rounds 9–19) |
Location | New York City, New York |
Overview | |
112 total selections in 19 rounds | |
League | NBA |
First selection | Cazzie Russell, New York Knicks |
Beginning in 1966, the territorial selection allowed in previous drafts was eliminated (i.e. the "common draft" era).
Draft selections and draftee career notes
Cazzie Russell from the University of Michigan was selected first overall by the New York Knicks. Dave Bing from Syracuse University, who went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award in his first season, was drafted second by the Detroit Pistons.[3] He was named in the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History list announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996 and has also been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame.[4][5] He was selected to three All-NBA Teams and seven All-Star Games.[6] He became a politician after ending his playing career and won the election to become the mayor of Detroit in 2009.[7]
Russell won the NBA championship with the New York Knicks 1970. He later was named to the All-Star Game in 1972.[8] Lou Hudson, the 4th pick, and Archie Clark, the 37th pick, have also been selected to both All-NBA Team and All-Star Game. Hudson was selected to six All-Star Games and one All-NBA Team while Clark was selected to two All-Star Games and one All-NBA Team.[9][10] Three other players from this draft, 3rd pick Clyde Lee, 5th pick Jack Marin and 27th pick John Block, have also been selected to at least one All-Star Game.[11][12][13] Matt Guokas, the 9th pick, won the NBA championship with the Philadelphia 76ers in his rookie season. He and his father, Matt Guokas, Sr., became the first father and son duo to win the NBA championships. Matt Guokas, Sr. won the inaugural championship with the Philadelphia Warriors in 1947.[14] The younger Guokas became a head coach after ending his playing career. He coached the 76ers for three seasons and the Orlando Magic for four seasons.[15] John Wetzel, the 75th pick, also became a head coach; he coached the Phoenix Suns for one season.[16]
Key
Pos. | G | F | C |
Position | Guard | Forward | Center |
^ | Denotes player who has been inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
* | Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game and All-NBA Team |
+ | Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-Star Game |
# | Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game |
Draft
Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Cazzie Russell+ | G/F | New York Knicks | Michigan | |
1 | 2 | Dave Bing^ | G | Detroit Pistons | Syracuse | |
1 | 3 | Clyde Lee+ | F/C | San Francisco Warriors | Vanderbilt | |
1 | 4 | Lou Hudson* | G/F | St. Louis Hawks | Minnesota | |
1 | 5 | Jack Marin+ | G/F | Baltimore Bullets | Duke | |
1 | 6 | Walt Wesley | C | Cincinnati Royals | Kansas | |
1 | 7 | Jerry Chambers | F | Los Angeles Lakers | Utah | |
1 | 8 | Jim Barnett | G/F | Boston Celtics | Oregon | |
1 | 9 | Matt Guokas | G/F | Philadelphia 76ers | Saint Joseph's | |
1 | 10 | Dave Schellhase | G | Chicago Bulls | Purdue | |
2 | 11 | Henry Akin | F/C | New York Knicks | Morehead State[17] | |
2 | 12 | Dorie Murrey | F/C | Detroit Pistons | Detroit | |
2 | 13 | Joe Ellis | G/F | San Francisco Warriors | San Francisco | |
2 | 14 | Dick Snyder | G/F | St. Louis Hawks | Davidson | |
2 | 15 | Neil Johnson | F/C | Baltimore Bullets | Creighton | |
2 | 16 | Jerry Lee Wells# | G | Cincinnati Royals | Oklahoma City | |
2 | 17 | Hank Finkel | C | Los Angeles Lakers | Dayton | |
2 | 18 | Leon Clark# | F | Boston Celtics | Wyoming | |
2 | 19 | Bill Melchionni | G | Philadelphia 76ers | Villanova | |
2 | 20 | Erwin Mueller | F/C | Chicago Bulls | San Francisco |
Other picks
The following list includes other draft picks who have appeared in at least one NBA game.[18][19]
Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3 | 24 | Tommy Kron | G | St. Louis Hawks | Kentucky | |
3 | 26 | Jim Ware | F | Cincinnati Royals | Oklahoma City | |
3 | 27 | John Block+ | F/C | Los Angeles Lakers | USC | |
3 | 29 | Donnie Freeman | G | Philadelphia 76ers | Illinois | |
4 | 37 | Archie Clark* | G | Los Angeles Lakers | Minnesota | |
4 | 38 | Johnny Austin | G | Boston Celtics | Boston College | |
4 | 39 | Ken Wilburn | F | Philadelphia 76ers | Central State | |
8 | 69 | Mike Silliman | F | New York Knicks | Army | |
8 | 73 | Roland West | G | Baltimore Bullets | Cincinnati | |
8 | 75 | John Wetzel | G/F | Los Angeles Lakers | Virginia Tech | |
9 | 78 | Bill Turner | F | New York Knicks | Akron | |
10 | 88 | Freddie Lewis | G | Cincinnati Royals | Arizona State | |
11 | 94 | Stan McKenzie | G/F | Baltimore Bullets | NYU | |
12 | 98 | Dave Deutsch | G | New York Knicks | Rochester | |
15 | 106 | Paul Long | G | St. Louis Hawks | Wake Forest |
References
- General
- "Complete First Round Results 1960–69". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 March 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- "1966 NBA Draft". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 13 March 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- "1962–1966 NBA Drafts". The Association for Professional Basketball Research. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- "1966 NBA Draft". The Draft Review. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- Specific
- "Evolution of the Draft and Lottery". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 March 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- Dengate, Jeff (May 16, 2007). "Let the Ping-Pong Balls Fall". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 21 March 2010. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- "Rookie of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 7 March 2009. Retrieved March 10, 2009.
- "The NBA's 50 Greatest Players". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on 5 April 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2010.
- "Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Inductees". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- "Dave Bing Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved March 17, 2009.
- "NBA great Dave Bing elected as Detroit mayor". USA Today. May 6, 2009. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
- "Cazzie Russell Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "Lou Hudson Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "Archie Clark Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on 4 May 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "Clyde Lee Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "Jack Marin Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "John Block Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- Tomasson, Chris (June 3, 2009). "Younger Walton takes third shot at father-son champion club". USA Today. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "Matt Guokas Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "John Wetzel Coaching Record". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
- Dondero, Tony (July 24, 2008). "A Seattle SuperSonics' original: Henry Akin". The Enterprise Newspapers. The Daily Herald Co. Retrieved April 12, 2010.
- "1966 NBA Draft - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
- "NBA Past Drafts - RealGM". basketball.realgm.com.