1978 NBA draft

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1978 NBA draft
General information
SportBasketball
Date(s)June 9, 1978
LocationPlaza Hotel (New York City, New York)
Overview
202 total selections in 10 rounds
LeagueNBA
First selectionMychal Thompson (Portland Trail Blazers)
← 1977
1979 →

The 1978 NBA draft was the 32nd annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 9, 1978, at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, New York,[1] before the 1978–79 season. In this draft, 22 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip.[2] The Indiana Pacers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Kansas City Kings, who obtained the New Jersey Nets' first-round pick in a trade, were awarded the second pick.[3] The Pacers then traded the first pick to the Portland Trail Blazers before the draft. 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. 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. Before the draft, five college underclassmen were declared eligible for selection under the "hardship" rule.[4] These players had applied and gave evidence of financial hardship to the league, which granted them the right to start earning their living by starting their professional careers earlier.[5] Prior to the start of the season, the Buffalo Braves relocated to San Diego and became the San Diego Clippers.[6] The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 202 players.

Draft selections and draftee career notes[edit]

Mychal Thompson from the University of Minnesota was selected first overall by the Portland Trail Blazers. Thompson, who was born in the Bahamas, became the first foreign-born player to be drafted first overall.[7] Phil Ford from the University of North Carolina was selected second by the Kansas City Kings. He went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award and was also selected to the All-NBA Second Team in his rookie season.[8][9] A college underclassman from Indiana State University, Larry Bird, was selected sixth by the Boston Celtics. However, he opted to return to Indiana State for his senior season before entering the league in 1979. He won the Rookie of the Year Award and was also selected to both the All-NBA First Team and the All Star Game in his rookie season. Bird spent his entire 13-year career with the Celtics and won three NBA championships. He also won three consecutive Most Valuable Player Awards and two Finals Most Valuable Player Awards. He was also selected to ten All-NBA Teams and thirteen consecutive All-Star Games.[10] For his achievements, he has been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame.[11] Bird was also named to the list of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996.[12] After retiring as a player, Bird went on to have a coaching career. He coached the Indiana Pacers for three seasons, leading them to an NBA Finals appearance.[10][13] He also won the Coach of the Year Award in 1998.[14]

Before the draft, Larry Bird had just finished his junior year at Indiana State. However, he was eligible to be drafted without applying for "hardship" because his original college class at Indiana University had graduated.[10][15] He initially enrolled at Indiana University in 1974 but dropped out before the season began. After sitting out a year, he enrolled at Indiana State.[16] Despite being eligible for the draft, he stated that he would return to college for his senior season. His hometown team, the Indiana Pacers, initially held the first overall pick. However, when they failed to persuade him to leave college early, they traded the first pick to the Blazers, who also failed to convince him into signing.[17][18] Five teams, including the Pacers who held the third pick, passed on Bird until the Celtics used the sixth pick to draft him. They drafted him even though they knew that they might lose the exclusive rights to him if he didn't sign before the next draft. He could reenter the draft in 1979 and sign with the other team that drafted him, and in negotiations with Red Auerbach Bird's agent Bob Woolf bluntly dismissed Red's lowball salary offers (he said that he would not offer Bird a contract that paid him more than the $400,000 annual salary of the team's highest-paid player at the time, Dave Cowens) and made it clear that Bird would enter the 1979 Draft without any regrets if Boston didn't change its plans. Nevertheless, in April 1979, he signed a five-year, US$3.25-million contract with the Celtics, which made him the highest-paid rookie in the history of team sport at that time.[19]

Maurice Cheeks, the 36th pick, was selected to four All-Star Games and five consecutive All-Defensive Teams.[20] After retiring as a player, he coached the Portland Trail Blazers and the Philadelphia 76ers for four and a half seasons each. He then coached the Detroit Pistons for the first portion of the 2013/14 NBA season but was fired before finishing his first season with the team.[21] Micheal Ray Richardson, the fourth pick, Larry Bird, the sixth pick, Reggie Theus, the ninth pick, and Mike Mitchell, the fifteenth pick, are the only other players from this draft who were selected to an All-Star Game.[22][23][24] Michael Cooper, the 60th pick, won the Defensive Player of the Year Award in 1987 and was selected to eight consecutive All-Defensive Teams. He spent his entire 12-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers and won five NBA championships.[25] After retiring, he coached the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) for eight seasons, leading them to two consecutive WNBA championships in 2001 and 2002.[26] He also served as an interim head coach of the Denver Nuggets in the 2004–2005 season.[27] Four other players drafted also went on to have coaching careers in the NBA: Reggie Theus, 21st pick Mike Evans, 53rd pick Randy Ayers and 55th pick Marc Iavaroni.[28][29][30][31]

Key[edit]

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
x Denotes player who has been selected for at least one All-NBA Team
# Denotes player who has never appeared in an NBA regular season or playoff game

Draft[edit]

Mychal Thompson was selected 1st overall by the Portland Trail Blazers.
Larry Bird was selected 6th overall by the Boston Celtics.
A man, wearing a black jacket and black T-shirt, is walking onto the basketball court.
Jack Givens was selected 16th overall by the Atlanta Hawks.
Maurice Cheeks was selected 36th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers.
Marc Iavaroni was selected 55th overall by the New York Knicks.
Round Pick Player Pos. Nationality Team School/club team
1 1 Mychal Thompson F/C  Bahamas Portland Trail Blazers (from Indiana)[a] Minnesota (Sr.)
1 2 Phil Fordx G  United States Kansas City Kings (from New Jersey)[b] North Carolina (Sr.)
1 3 Rick Robey F/C  United States Indiana Pacers (from Buffalo via Portland)[a] Kentucky (Sr.)
1 4 Micheal Ray Richardson+ G/F  United States New York Knicks (from Houston via Buffalo and New Jersey)[c] Montana (Sr.)
1 5 Purvis Short G/F  United States Golden State Warriors (from Kansas City via Los Angeles)[d] Jackson State (Sr.)
1 6 Larry Bird^ F  United States Boston Celtics Indiana State (Jr.)[1]
1 7 Ron Brewer G  United States Portland Trail Blazers (from Detroit via Seattle)[e] Arkansas (Sr.)
1 8 Freeman Williams G/F  United States Boston Celtics (from New Orleans via Los Angeles)[f] Portland State (Sr.)
1 9 Reggie Theus+ G  United States Chicago Bulls UNLV (Jr.)
1 10 Butch Lee G  Puerto Rico Atlanta Hawks Marquette (Sr.)
1 11 James Hardy F/C  United States New Orleans Jazz (from Golden State)[g] San Francisco (Jr.)
1 12 George Johnson F/C  United States Milwaukee Bucks (from Cleveland)[h] St. John's (Sr.)
1 13 Winford Boynes G/F  United States New Jersey Nets (from New York)[c] San Francisco (Jr.)
1 14 Roger Phegley G/F  United States Washington Bullets Bradley (Sr.)
1 15 Mike Mitchell+ F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers (from Milwaukee)[i] Auburn (Sr.)
1 16 Jack Givens G/F  United States Atlanta Hawks (from Los Angeles via New Orleans)[f] Kentucky (Sr.)
1 17 Rod Griffin# F  United States Denver Nuggets (from Seattle)[j] Wake Forest (Sr.)
1 18 Dave Corzine C  United States Washington Bullets (from Denver)[k] DePaul (Sr.)
1 19 Marty Byrnes F  United States Phoenix Suns Syracuse (Sr.)
1 20 Frankie Sanders G/F  United States San Antonio Spurs Southern (Jr.)
1 21 Mike Evans G  United States Denver Nuggets (from Philadelphia)[l] Kansas State (Sr.)
1 22 Raymond Townsend G  United States Golden State Warriors (from Portland)[m] UCLA (Sr.)
2 23 Terry Tyler G/F  United States Detroit Pistons (from New Jersey) Detroit (Sr.)
2 24 Keith Herron G/F  United States Portland Trail Blazers (from Buffalo via Atlanta) Villanova (Sr.)
2 25 Rick Wilson G  United States Atlanta Hawks (from Houston) Louisville (Sr.)
2 26 Ron Carter G  United States Los Angeles Lakers (from Kansas City)[d] VMI (Sr.)
2 27 Wayne Radford G  United States Indiana Pacers Indiana (Sr.)
2 28 Buster Matheney# F  United States Houston Rockets (from Boston) Utah (Sr.)
2 29 John Long G/F  United States Detroit Pistons Detroit (Sr.)
2 30 Jeff Judkins G/F  United States Boston Celtics (from New Orleans) Utah (Sr.)
2 31 Marvin Johnson# F  United States Chicago Bulls New Mexico (Sr.)
2 32 John Rudd F  United States New York Knicks (from Atlanta) McNeese State (Sr.)
2 33 Harry Davis F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Florida State (Sr.)
2 34 Greg Bunch F  United States New York Knicks Cal State Fullerton (Sr.)
2 35 Tommie Green G  United States New Orleans Jazz (from Golden State) Southern (Sr.)
2 36 Maurice Cheeks^ G  United States Philadelphia 76ers (from Milwaukee) West Texas State (Sr.)
2 37 Terry Sykes# F  United States Washington Bullets Grambling State (Sr.)
2 38 Lew Massey# G  United States Los Angeles Lakers UNC Charlotte (Sr.)
2 39 James Lee# F  United States Seattle SuperSonics Kentucky (Sr.)
2 40 Wayne Cooper F/C  United States Golden State Warriors (from Denver) New Orleans (Sr.)
2 41 Jerome Whitehead F/C  United States Buffalo Braves (from Phoenix) Marquette (Sr.)
2 42 Keven McDonald# F  United States Seattle SuperSonics (from San Antonio) Pennsylvania (Sr.)
2 43 Glenn Hagan G  United States Philadelphia 76ers St. Bonaventure (Sr.)
2 44 Clemon Johnson F/C  United States Portland Trail Blazers Florida A&M (Sr.)
3 45 Mike Phillips# F  United States New Jersey Nets Kentucky (Sr.)
3 46 Hollis Copeland F  United States Denver Nuggets (from Buffalo) Rutgers (Sr.)
3 47 Billy Ray Bates G  United States Houston Rockets Kentucky State (Sr.)
3 48 Mike Santos# F  United States San Diego Clippers Utah State (Sr.)
3 49 Jeff Cook F/C  United States Kansas City Kings Idaho State (Sr.)
3 50 Dana Skinner# G  United States Boston Celtics Merrimack (Sr.)
3 51 Ricky Gallon# C  United States San Diego Clippers Louisville (Sr.)
3 52 Mike Russell# F  United States Kansas City Kings Texas Tech (Sr.)
3 53 Randy Ayers# G  United States Chicago Bulls Miami (Ohio) (Sr.)
3 54 Steve Grant# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Manhattan (Sr.)
3 55 Marc Iavaroni F  United States New York Knicks Virginia (Sr.)
3 56 Steve Neff# C  United States Golden State Warriors Southern Nazarene (Sr.)
3 57 Kenny Higgs G  United States Cleveland Cavaliers LSU(Sr.)
3 58 Rick Apke# F  United States Washington Bullets Creighton (Sr.)
3 59 Pat Cummings F/C  United States Milwaukee Bucks Cincinnati (Sr.)
3 60 Michael Cooper G/F  United States Los Angeles Lakers New Mexico (Sr.)
3 61 Dave Baxter# G  United States Seattle SuperSonics Michigan (Sr.)
3 62 Dave Batton C  United States New Jersey Nets (from Denver) Notre Dame (Sr.)
3 63 Joel Kramer F/C  United States Phoenix Suns San Diego State (Sr.)
3 64 Gerald Henderson G  United States San Antonio Spurs VCU (Sr.)
3 65 Marvin Delph# G  United States San Diego Clippers Arkansas (Sr.)
3 66 Sterling Edmonds# F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Dartmouth (Sr.)
4 67 Jackie Robinson F  United States Houston Rockets (from New Jersey) UNLV (Sr.)
4 68 Jim Boylan# G  United States San Diego Clippers Marquette (Sr.)
4 69 Joel Thompson# F  United States Houston Rockets Michigan (Sr.)
4 70 Geoff Crompton C  United States Kansas City Kings North Carolina (Sr.)
4 71 Rickey Lee# F  United States Indiana Pacers Oregon State (Sr.)
4 72 Dave Nelson#[2] F  United States
 Greece
Boston Celtics Bloomfield (Sr.)
4 73 Larry Harris# F  United States San Diego Clippers Pittsburgh (Sr.)
4 74 Mel Davis# F  United States New Orleans Jazz North Texas (Sr.)
4 75 Jeff Covington# F  United States New Orleans Jazz Youngstown State (Sr.)
4 76 Leroy McDonald# G  United States San Diego Clippers Wake Forest (Sr.)
4 77 Derrick Jackson# G  United States Golden State Warriors Georgetown (Sr.)
4 78 Stan Rome# G  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Clemson (Sr.)
4 79 Erving Giddings# F  United States New York Knicks Dayton (Sr.)
4 80 Otis Howard F  United States Milwaukee Bucks Austin Peay (Sr.)
4 81 Lawrence Boston F  United States Washington Bullets Maryland (Sr.)
4 82 Harold Robertson# G  United States Los Angeles Lakers Lincoln (Missouri) (Sr.)
4 83 Billy Lewis# F  United States Seattle SuperSonics Illinois State (Sr.)
4 84 Walter Jordan F  United States New Jersey Nets (from Denver) Purdue (Sr.)
4 85 Bob Miller F  United States Phoenix Suns Cincinnati (Sr.)
4 86 Rich Adams# F  United States San Antonio Spurs Illinois (Sr.)
4 87 Brett Vroman C  United States Philadelphia 76ers UNLV (Sr.)
4 88 Wayne Smith# G  United States Phoenix Suns UC Irvine (Sr.)
5 89 Cecil Rose# G  Bahamas New Jersey Nets Houston (Sr.)
5 90 David Thompson# F  United States San Diego Clippers Florida State (Sr.)
5 91 Gary Goodner# F  United States Houston Rockets Texas (Sr.)
5 92 James Sparrow# F  United States Indiana Pacers North Carolina A&T (Sr.)
5 93 Derrick Clairborne# G  United States Kansas City Kings UMass (Sr.)
5 94 Greg Tynes# G  United States Boston Celtics Seton Hall (Sr.)
5 95 Dave Caligaris# G  United States
 Greece
Detroit Pistons Northeastern (Sr.)
5 96 Duck Williams G  United States New Orleans Jazz Notre Dame (Sr.)
5 97 Ron Anthony# F  United States Chicago Bulls Jacksonville (Sr.)
5 98 Chris Potter# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Holy Cross (Sr.)
5 99 Ken Koenigs# F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Kansas (Sr.)
5 100 Greg Green# G  United States New York Knicks Southern (Sr.)
5 101 Bubba Wilson G  United States Golden State Warriors Western Carolina (Sr.)
5 102 Roger Dickens# G  United States Washington Bullets Towson (Sr.)
5 103 Russ Coleman# F  United States Milwaukee Bucks Pacific (Sr.)
5 104 Carlos Terry G/F  United States Los Angeles Lakers Winston-Salem State (Sr.)
5 105 Ralph Drollinger C  United States Seattle SuperSonics UCLA (Sr.)
5 106 Michael Edwards# F  United States Denver Nuggets Pan American (Sr.)
5 107 Andre Wakefield G  United States Phoenix Suns Loyola (Illinois) (Sr.)
5 108 Eugene Parker# G  United States San Antonio Spurs Purdue (Sr.)
5 109 Mark Haymore# F  United States Philadelphia 76ers UMass (Jr.)
5 110 Clay Johnson G  United States Portland Trail Blazers Missouri (Sr.)
6 111 Golie Augustus# F  United States New Jersey Nets South Carolina (Sr.)
6 112 Bob Misevicius# F  United States San Diego Clippers Providence (Sr.)
6 113 Eddie Joe Chavez# G  United States Houston Rockets Santa Clara (Sr.)
6 114 Jim Krivacs# G  United States Kansas City Kings Texas (Sr.)
6 115 Sherman Dillard# G  United States Indiana Pacers James Madison (Sr.)
6 116 Dave Winey# F  United States Boston Celtics Minnesota (Sr.)
6 117 Audie Matthews# G  United States Detroit Pistons Illinois (Sr.)
6 118 John Douglas G  United States New Orleans Jazz Kansas (Sr.)
6 119 John Shoemaker# G  United States Chicago Bulls Miami (Ohio) (Sr.)
6 120 Gerald Glover# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Howard (Sr.)
6 121 Eddie Warren# G  Panama New York Knicks Briar Cliff (Sr.)
6 122 Buzz Harnett# F  United States Golden State Warriors San Diego (Sr.)
6 123 Ron Bell# G  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Virginia Tech (Sr.)
6 124 Dave Kyle# F  United States Milwaukee Bucks Cleveland State (Sr.)
6 125 Archie Aldridge# F  United States Washington Bullets Miami (Ohio) (Sr.)
6 126 Kim Stewart# F  United States Los Angeles Lakers Washington (Sr.)
6 127 Robert Heard# F  United States Denver Nuggets Columbus State (Sr.)
6 128 Charles Thompson# F  Bahamas Phoenix Suns Houston (Sr.)
6 129 Harry Morgan# F  United States San Antonio Spurs Indiana State (Sr.)
6 130 Osborne Lockhart# G  Bahamas Philadelphia 76ers Minnesota (Sr.)
6 131 Tim Evans# F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Puget Sound (Sr.)
7 132 Doug Jemison# F  United States New Jersey Nets San Francisco (Sr.)
7 133 Stan Pietkiewicz G/F  United States Buffalo Braves Auburn (Sr.)
7 134 Stan Stewart# G  United States Houston Rockets Loyola Marymount (Sr.)
7 135 Ollie Matson Jr.# F  United States Indiana Pacers Pepperdine (Jr.)
7 136 Charles McMillian# G  United States Kansas City Kings North Texas (Sr.)
7 137 Steve Balkun# F  United States Boston Celtics Fairfield (Sr.)
7 138 Herb Entzminger# F  United States Detroit Pistons Johnson C. Smith (Sr.)
7 139 Willie Howard# F  United States New Orleans Jazz New Mexico (Sr.)
7 140 Jarvis Reynolds# F  United States Chicago Bulls West Georgia (Sr.)
7 141 Jim DeWeese# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Gonzaga (Sr.)
7 142 Rick Bernard# G  United States Golden State Warriors Saint Mary's (Sr.)
7 143 Tony Smith# G  United States Cleveland Cavaliers UNLV (Jr.)
7 144 Gary Pember# F  United States New York Knicks Nasson (Sr.)
7 145 Ed Hopkins# F  United States Washington Bullets Georgetown (Sr.)
7 146 Kim Anderson F  United States Milwaukee Bucks Missouri (Sr.)
7 147 Larry Paige# F  United States Los Angeles Lakers Colorado State (Sr.)
7 148 Jack Gilloon# G  United States Denver Nuggets South Carolina (Sr.)
7 149 Steve Malovic C  United States Phoenix Suns San Diego State (Jr.)
7 150 Hector Olivencia# G  United States San Antonio Spurs Sacred Heart (Sr.)
7 151 Anthony Murray# G  United States Philadelphia 76ers Alabama (Sr.)
7 152 Walter Reason# G  United States Portland Trail Blazers Pacific (Sr.)
8 153 Bruce Campbell# F  United States New Jersey Nets Providence (Sr.)
8 154 Felton Young# C  United States San Diego Clippers Jacksonville (Sr.)
8 155 Ron Hammye# F  United States Kansas City Kings Bowling Green (Sr.)
8 156 Kim Fisher# G  United States Boston Celtics Fairfield (Sr.)
8 157 Earl Evans F  United States Detroit Pistons UNLV (Jr.)
8 158 Carl Kilpatrick C  United States New Orleans Jazz Northeast Louisiana (Sr.)
8 159 Chubby Cox G  United States Chicago Bulls San Francisco (Sr.)
8 160 Ed Murphy# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Merrimack (Sr.)
8 161 Roland Martin# F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Missouri Southern (Sr.)
8 162 Greg Sanders# F  United States New York Knicks St. Bonaventure (Sr.)
8 163 Tony Searcy# F  United States Golden State Warriors Appalachian State (Sr.)
8 164 Tom Zaliagiris# G  United States Milwaukee Bucks North Carolina (Sr.)
8 165 Nestor Cora# F  Puerto Rico Washington Bullets St. Francis Brooklyn (Sr.)
8 166 Larry Vaculik# F  United States Denver Nuggets Colorado (Sr.)
8 167 George Fowler# C  United States Phoenix Suns Pacific (Sr.)
8 168 Henry Taylor# F  United States San Antonio Spurs UT Rio Grande Valley (Sr.)
8 169 Alan Cunningham# F  United States Philadelphia 76ers Colorado State (Sr.)
8 170 Mark Wickman# F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Linfield (Sr.)
9 171 Frank Sowinski# F  United States New Jersey Nets Princeton (Sr.)
9 172 Bobby White# F  United States San Diego Clippers Centenary (Sr.)
9 173 Les Anderson# F  United States Boston Celtics George Washington (Sr.)
9 174 Ulice Payne# F  United States Detroit Pistons Marquette (Sr.)
9 175 Chad Nelson# C  United States New Orleans Jazz Drake (Jr.)
9 176 Joe Ponsetto# F  United States Chicago Bulls DePaul (Sr.)
9 177 Maurice Robinson# C  United States Atlanta Hawks West Virginia (Sr.)
9 178 Denny Fields# F  United States New York Knicks UNC Wilmington (Sr.)
9 179 Bobby Humbles# G  United States Golden State Warriors Bradley (Sr.)
9 180 Steve Bayless# F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Central State (Sr.)
9 181 Tim Claxton# G  United States Washington Bullets Temple (Sr.)
9 182 Gary Rosenberger# G  United States Milwaukee Bucks Marquette (Sr.)
9 183 Thomas Schneeberger# F  United States Denver Nuggets Air Force (Sr.)
9 184 Nate Stokes# G  United States Phoenix Suns Grand Canyon (Sr.)
9 185 Rick Taylor# G  United States San Antonio Spurs Arizona State (Sr.)
9 186 Paul Cozens# F  United States Portland Trail Blazers George Fox (Sr.)
10 187 Michael Vicens# G  Puerto Rico New Jersey Nets Holy Cross (Sr.)
10 188 Walter Harrigan# F  United States Boston Celtics Brandeis (Sr.)
10 189 Dave Grauzer# G  United States Detroit Pistons Central Michigan (Sr.)
10 190 Rickey Williams G  United States New Orleans Jazz Long Beach State (Sr.)
10 191 Mark Tucker# G  United States Chicago Bulls Oklahoma State (Sr.)
10 192 Marshall Lester# F  United States Atlanta Hawks Florida Southern (Sr.)
10 193 Mike Muff# F  United States Golden State Warriors Murray State (Sr.)
10 194 Gary Winton# F  United States Cleveland Cavaliers Army (Sr.)
10 195 Ernest Simons# G  United States New York Knicks Pace (Sr.)
10 196 Tom Anderson# G  United States Milwaukee Bucks Green Bay (Sr.)
10 197 Steve Connor# G  United States Washington Bullets Boise State (Sr.)
10 198 Phil Taylor# F  United States Denver Nuggets Arizona (Sr.)
10 199 Lewis Cohen# G  United States Phoenix Suns Cal Poly (Sr.)
10 200 Larry Brewster# C  United States San Antonio Spurs Florida (Sr.)
10 201 Dennis James# F  United States Philadelphia 76ers Widener (Sr.)
10 202 Tim Warkentin# F  United States Portland Trail Blazers Biola (Sr.)

Notable undrafted players[edit]

These players were not selected in the 1978 draft but played at least one game in the NBA.

Player Pos. Nationality School/club team
Del Beshore G  United States California (Pennsylvania) (Sr.)
Mike Davis C  United States Maryland (Sr.)
Rock Lee C  United States San Diego State (Sr.)
Myles Patrick F  United States Auburn (Sr.)
Sam Pellom C  United States Buffalo (Sr.)
Jim Zoet C  Canada Lakehead (Sr.)

Trades[edit]

  • a 1 2 On June 8, 1978, the Portland Trail Blazers acquired the first pick from the Indiana Pacers in exchange for Johnny Davis and the third overall pick.[32] Previously, the Blazers acquired a first-round pick on October 18, 1976, from the Buffalo Braves in exchange for Moses Malone.[33] The Blazers used the pick to draft Mychal Thompson. The Pacers used the pick to draft Rick Robey.
  • b On September 10, 1976, the Kansas City Kings acquired Jim Eakins, Brian Taylor, 1977 and 1978 first-round picks from the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Nate Archibald.[34] The Kings used the pick to draft Phil Ford.
  • c 1 2 On June 8, 1978, the New York Knicks acquired the fourth pick and a 1979 first-round pick from the New Jersey Nets in exchange for Phil Jackson, the thirteenth pick and US$3.2-million settlement of their indemnification debt to the Knicks.[35][36] Previously, the Nets acquired George E. Johnson, the pick and a 1979 first-round pick on September 1, 1977, from the Buffalo Braves in exchange for Nate Archibald.[34] Previously, the Braves acquired the pick and a 1977 first-round pick on October 24, 1976, from the Houston Rockets in exchange for Moses Malone.[33] The Knicks used the pick to draft Micheal Ray Richardson. The Nets used the pick to draft Winford Boynes.
  • d 1 2 On September 14, 1977, the Golden State Warriors acquired a first-round pick and cash considerations from the Los Angeles Lakers. This trade was arranged as compensation when the Lakers signed Jamaal Wilkes on July 11, 1977.[37][38] Previously, the Lakers acquired Ollie Johnson, the pick and a second-round pick on June 1, 1977, from the Kansas City Kings in exchange for Lucius Allen.[39] The Warriors used the pick to draft Purvis Short. The Lakers used the pick to draft Ron Carter.
  • e On November 11, 1977, the Portland Trail Blazers acquired a 1978 first-round pick and a 1979 second-round pick from the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for Wally Walker.[40] Previously, the Sonics acquired the pick on September 25, 1975, from the Detroit Pistons in exchange for Archie Clark.[41] The Blazers used the pick to draft Ron Brewer.
  • f 1 2 On December 27, 1977, the Boston Celtics acquired Don Chaney, Kermit Washington and a first-round pick from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Charlie Scott.[42] On October 13, 1977, the Atlanta Hawks acquired a first-round pick from the New Orleans Jazz in exchange for Joe Meriweather.[43] Previously, the Lakers acquired 1977, 1978 and 1979 first-round picks, and a 1980 second-round pick on August 5, 1976, from the Jazz in exchange for a 1978 first-round pick and a 1977 second-round pick. This trade was arranged as compensation when the Jazz signed Gail Goodrich on July 19, 1976.[44] The Celtics used the pick to draft Freeman Williams. The Hawks used the pick to draft Jack Givens.
  • g On October 3, 1977, the New Orleans Jazz acquired a first-round pick from the Golden State Warriors as compensation for the signing of E. C. Coleman as a free agent.[45] The Jazz used the pick to draft James Hardy.
  • h On January 13, 1977, the Milwaukee Bucks acquired Rowland Garrett, 1977 and 1978 first-round picks from the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Elmore Smith and Gary Brokaw.[46] The Bucks used the pick to draft George Johnson.
  • i On June 1, 1978, the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired the 15th pick from the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for a 1979 first-round pick.[47] The Cavaliers used the pick to draft Mike Mitchell.
  • j On the draft-day, the Denver Nuggets acquired the 17th pick from the Seattle SuperSonics in exchange for Tom LaGarde.[48] The Nuggets used the pick to draft Rod Griffin.
  • k On October 11, 1977, the Washington Bullets acquired a first-round pick from the Denver Nuggets in exchange for Bo Ellis.[49] The Bullets used the pick to draft Dave Corzine.
  • l On the draft-day, the Denver Nuggets acquired the 21st pick from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for a 1984 first-round pick.[50][51] The Nuggets used the pick to draft Mike Evans.
  • m On June 7, 1978, the Golden State Warriors acquired the 22nd pick from the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for a 1981 first-round pick.[52] The Warriors used the pick to draft Raymond Townsend.

Early entrants[edit]

College underclassmen[edit]

The following college basketball players successfully applied for early draft entrance.[53]

Notes[edit]

^ 1: Even though Larry Bird was a junior, he was eligible to be drafted because he was already four years out of high school and therefore he did not need to apply for early entry.[10]
^ 2: Nelson became known as David Stergakos during his career in Greece.[54]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

General
  • "Complete First Round Results 1970–79". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on July 27, 2010. Retrieved September 1, 2010.
  • "1978 NBA Draft". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on August 23, 2010. Retrieved September 1, 2010.
  • "1977–1981 NBA Drafts". The Association for Professional Basketball Research. Archived from the original on September 17, 2010. Retrieved September 1, 2010.
Specific
  1. ^ Robert D. Bradley (May 2, 2013). The Basketball Draft Fact Book: A History of Professional Basketball's College Drafts. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810890695. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  2. ^ "Evolution of the Draft and Lottery". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on September 27, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  3. ^ "Pacers Win Flip, Going After Bird". The Milwaukee Journal. Milwaukee, Wisconsin: Newspaper, Inc. April 14, 2010. Retrieved October 2, 2010.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ "Early Entry Candidate History". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on September 14, 2009. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  5. ^ "Spencer Haywood Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on September 1, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  6. ^ "This Date in History–July". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on November 19, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  7. ^ "Yao Ready For This?". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. June 25, 2002. Archived from the original on September 1, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  8. ^ "Rookie of the Year". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on September 13, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  9. ^ "Phil Ford Statistics". basketball-reference.com. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  10. ^ a b c d "Larry Bird Bio". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on September 1, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2010.
  11. ^ "Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Inductees". basketball-reference.com. Archived from the original on September 13, 2010. Retrieved September 28, 2010.
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