The 2003 NBA Draft Cheat Sheet
The 2003 NBA draft is one of the best drafts in league history, producing an impressive selection of players who would dominate the league for many years to come. Hosted at what is now known as the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, the Cleveland Cavaliers were awarded the 1st overall pick after finishing the season tied for the worst record.
The draft produced 9 players who were named to at least 1 All-Star Team, 4 players who were named to at least 1 All-NBA Team, and 1 player who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. It is important to note that this class will end up having at least 4 members inducted into the hall of fame as Lebron James, Dwyane Wade, and Carmelo Anthony will all undoubtedly get in once they are eligible.
While the 1984 NBA draft and the 1996 NBA draft both slightly edged out the 2003 NBA draft in overall talent, the 2003 NBA draft is by far the best draft of the 21st century. While many different important players were drafted, it was primarily famous for 2 different reasons.
First, Lebron James was drafted #1 overall by his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers and would become arguably the greatest player in NBA history. Second, the #2 overall pick Darko Milicic ended up being labeled as one of the biggest draft “busts” of all time.
2003 NBA Draft Order
FIRST ROUND LOTTERY PICKS
- LeBron James (CLE)
- Darko Miličić (DET)
- Carmelo Anthony (DEN)
- Chris Bosh (TOR)
- Dwyane Wade (MIA)
- Chris Kaman (LAC)
- Kirk Hinrich (CHI)
- T.J. Ford (MIL)
- Mike Sweetney (NYK)
- Jarvis Hayes (WAS)
- Mickaël Piétrus (GSW)
- Nick Collison (SEA)
- Marcus Banks (MEM)
REMAINING FIRST ROUND PICKS
- Luke Ridnour (SEA)
- Reece Gaines (ORL)
- Troy Bell (BOS)
- Zarko Čabarkapa (PHO)
- David West (NOH)
- Sasha Pavlović (UTA)
- Dahntay Jones (BOS)
- Boris Diaw (ATL)
- Zoran Planinić (NJN)
- Travis Outlaw (POR)
- Brian Cook (LAL)
- Carlos Delfino (DET)
- Ndudi Ebi (MIN)
- Kendrick Perkins (MEM)
- Leandro Barbosa (SAS)
- Josh Howard (DAL)
SECOND ROUND PICKS
- Maciej Lampe (NYK)
- Jason Kapono (CLE)
- Luke Walton (LAL)
- Jerome Beasley (MIA)
- Sofoklis Schortsanitis (LAC)
- Szymon Szewczyk (MIL)
- Mario Austin (CHI)
- Travis Hansen (ATL)
- Steve Blake (WAS)
- Slavko Vraneš (NYK)
- Derrick Zimmerman (GSW)
- Willie Green (SEA)
- Zaza Pachulia (ORL)
- Keith Bogans (MIL)
- Malick Badiane (HOU)
- Matt Bonner (CHI)
- Sani Bečirovič (DEN)
- Mo Williams (UTA)
- James Lang (NOH)
- James Jones (IND)
- Paccelis Morlende (PHI)
- Kyle Korver (NJN)
- Remon van de Hare (TOR)
- Tommy Smith (CHI)
- Nedd Sinanović (POR)
- Rick Rickert (MIN)
- Brandon Hunter (BOS)
- Xue Yuyang (DAL)
- Andreas Glyniadakis (DET)
NBA Draft Picks 1-10 Re-Draft based on Career
- Lebron James
- Dwyane Wade
- Chris Bosh
- Carmelo Anthony
- David West
- Kyle Korver
- Kirk Hinrich
- Maurice Williams
- Boris Diaw
- Chris Kaman
Top Players
LEBRON JAMES
Lebron James is one of the 2 best NBA basketball players of all time, along with the legendary Michael Jordan. Revolutionizing the league into a player-mobile era, James won 4 championships with 3 different franchises, the Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Los Angeles Lakers.
He is an 18-time All-Star, has been named to the All-NBA First Team 13 times, has been named to the All-Defensive First Team 5 times, is a 4-time NBA MVP winner, and has won 4 Finals MVPs. Currently the 2nd all-time leading scorer in NBA history, Lebron James is on pace to surpass Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the all-time scoring leader during the 2022-2023 season.
With 20 seasons in the NBA, Lebron James is showing no signs of retiring, continuing to perform at a high level night after night.
DWYANE WADE
One of the 5 best shooting guards of all time, Dwayne Wade is probably best known for his 4-year run with Lebron James and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat from 2010 to 2014. However, he also had some incredible individual seasons with the Heat before the Big 3 era and also had a historic 2006 NBA Finals performance against the Dallas Mavericks. During this series, which the Heat won in 6 games, he averaged an impressive 34.7 PPG, 7.8 RPG, 3.8 APG, 2.7 SPG, and 1 BPG.
Wade was a 13-time All-Star, was named to the All-NBA First Team 2 times, was named to the All-NBA Second Team 3 times, and was a 3-time NBA champion.
CHRIS BOSH
Although often overlooked as the “3rd Wheel” on the back-to-back Heat championship teams with Lebron James and Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh nonetheless played a major role. His biggest contribution was probably his ability to hit open perimeter jump shots when the opposing team’s defense closed in on a driving James or Wade.
Before his time with the Heat, Bosh was a star with the Toronto Raptors, helping lead the previously struggling franchise to back-to-back playoff appearances during the 2006-2007 and 2007-2008 seasons. Bosh was an 11-time All-Star, was named to the All-NBA 2nd Team once, and won 2 NBA championships.
CARMELO ANTHONY
Although he ended up playing for several different teams during his career, Carmelo Anthony is best known for his playing days with the Denver Nuggets and New York Knicks. He established himself as one of the best offensive players during his prime, averaging more than 20 points per game over his first 14 seasons in the NBA.
Anthony was a 10-time All-Star, was named to the All-NBA 2nd Team twice, and was named to the All-NBA Third Team 4 times. He currently holds the record for most points scored at Madison Square Garden with 62.
While NBA draft history has resulted in plenty of great classes over the years, few can match the overall success of the 2003 NBA draft class. It dwarfed many of the drafts surrounding it, including the 2002 NBA draft, the 2004 NBA draft, the 2005 NBA draft, 2006, 2007 and the 2008 NBA draft.
It produced one of the greatest players of all time, Lebron James, and will end up having at least 4 of its members being inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
