The 1979 NBA draft was the 34th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 25, 1979, before the 1979–80 season. In this draft, 23 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. The Houston Rockets 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 prior to the draft, were awarded the second pick.[1]
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. As it is commonplace in the event of identical win–loss records, the coin toss decision actually determined which team would receive what pick number between two otherwise tied teams; for example, if Washington Wizards and Detroit Pistons ended up with identical records at 40 wins and 52 losses apiece, then Washington would have been given
The 1979 NBA draft was the 29th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 9, 1979, before the 1979–80 season. In this draft, 23 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. The Los Angeles Lakers won the flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Detroit Pistons were awarded the second pick. 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.
The Houston Rockets won their initial playoff berth since joining forces with Moses Malone and Ralph Sampson in a 22-game turnaround from a 19-win season of 1978–79; they would lose to eventual Western Conference champion Seattle SuperSonics 4–1 in conference semifinals after splitting regular season series 2–2 with them; The Milwaukee Bucks advanced to their 2nd Conference Finals appearance; The Philadelphia 76ers lost 3 straight games after beating #2 seed Boston Celtics 4 games to 2 during Eastern Conference Semifinals
The 1979 NBA draft was the 33rd annual National Basketball Association (NBA) draft. The draft was held on June 9 and 10, 1979, before the 1979–80 season. In this draft, 23 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. The Los Angeles Lakers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Chicago Bulls were awarded the second pick. 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.
The Cleveland Cavaliers were awarded an extra first-round draft pick as compensation when Larry Nance signed with Phoenix during free agency.[1] 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 class graduated; drafted players who did not sign with the league were able to return to school.[2] Prior to this draft, only five high schoolers had been selected first overall—Lew Alcindor (1969), Julius Erving (1972), LaR
The 1979 NBA draft was the 30th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 8, 1979, before the 1979–80 season. In this draft, 23 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. The Los Angeles Lakers won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Portland Trail Blazers were awarded the second pick. 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.
This was also the last time that all three expansion teams from 1970 (Portland Trail Blazers, Cleveland Cavaliers and Buffalo Braves) made it through an entire decade without making a single playoff appearance. It would be another 25 years before another team failed to make a playoff appearance for such a long period of time again; that team being Charlotte Bobcats from 2004–14 (which is also an expansion team).
Were Larry Bird and Magic Johnson in the same draft?
Yes, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson were in the same draft.
The 1979 NBA Draft was held in New York on June 9, 1979. It was the first draft with the NBA Draft Lottery. The Los Angeles Lakers selected Earvin “Magic” Johnson with the first pick, while Larry Bird went third to the Boston Celtics. The Utah Jazz selected Darrell Griffith second overall and Kevin McHale fourth overall, both of whom are enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Johnson and Bird were two of nine players selected in the 1979 draft who would eventually win an NBA championship. The others were Bill Cartwright (Chicago Bulls), Ralph Sampson (Houston Rockets), Clyde Drexler (Portland Trail Blazers), James Worthy (Los Angeles Lakers), Terry Cummings (Milwaukee Bucks) and Jalen Rose (Detroit Pistons).
The short answer is yes. Larry Bird and Magic Johnson were both drafted by the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, respectively. However, they were drafted in two different years.
The first NBA draft took place in 1947. The Celtics selected Len Bias with their first round pick and Magic Johnson was taken with the 12th pick by the Lakers in 1979.
Yes, they were. Both players entered the NBA in 1979, with Bird drafted sixth overall by the Boston Celtics and Johnson selected first overall by the Los Angeles Lakers.
The draft was a fairly memorable one, as it also featured future Hall of Famers Isiah Thomas (second overall), James Worthy (17th), Alex English (18th) and Dominique Wilkins (19th).
Bird and Johnson would go on to become two of the greatest players in league history, each winning three championships and multiple league MVP awards. They both spent the majority of their careers with their original teams before moving on to play elsewhere late in their careers.
The answer is yes.
The 1979 NBA Draft was held on June 27, 1979 in New York City’s Felt Forum. The draft consisted of 23 rounds with the first two rounds being territorial picks. In this draft, there were two separate rounds for each team—one for American players and one for foreign players. The Boston Celtics had the sixth pick in the first round and selected Larry Bird out of Indiana State University. The Los Angeles Lakers had the second pick in both rounds and selected Earvin “Magic” Johnson from Michigan State University.
Who was in the 1979 draft class?

The 1979 NBA draft was the 28th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 27, 1979, before the 1979–80 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. The New Jersey Nets won the flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Kansas City Kings, who obtained it from the Houston Rockets, were awarded the second pick.[1]
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.[2] This marked the first time that an expansion team would be awarded a top-three pick in an NBA draft.[3] The Los Angeles Clippers had been formed a few months earlier as one of two ABA teams joining the league.[4]
The University of North Carolina Tar Heels had four players selected in this
The 1979 NFL Draft occurred on April 27–28, 1979. The draft was reduced to seven rounds due to the ongoing strike that began in week six of the 1978 season and lasted until early September.
The following players were drafted over the seven rounds of the 1979 NFL Draft:
The 1979 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1979, at the New York Sheraton Hotel in New York City, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season. This draft is notable because of the large number of future Hall of Famers it produced.
The following list includes all players that have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame that were selected by at least one professional football team during the 1979 draft and played in at least one game for that team or an NFL club during their career.
The 1979 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 3–4, 1979, at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in New York City, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
For more information on the events of this year’s draft, see 1979 NFL Draft.
The following table shows the players selected by team and round:
Why did Larry Bird not get drafted?
Larry Bird was a star for Indiana State University, but he failed to impress NBA scouts in 1977.
Bird was the sixth pick in the 1978 NBA draft by Phoenix. He was traded to Boston after his rookie season.
A brief look at Bird’s college career shows why he didn’t get drafted higher.
Bird scored 19 points per game as a sophomore at Indiana State, but his team went just 10-17. The following year, Bird averaged 26 points per game and led his team to an undefeated regular season, but they lost their first round NCAA tournament game to Western Kentucky University.
After that season, Bird declared himself eligible for the NBA draft despite being just a junior in college
Larry Bird is one of the most famous athletes in the world, but he was not drafted by any team during his senior year at Indiana State University. Why?
Bird was considered a “late bloomer” and had been lightly recruited out of high school. He spent one year at Indiana University-Bloomington before transferring to ISU, where he played for three years.
He was a junior when he decided to forego his senior season and enter the NBA draft. The Celtics held the sixth pick in 1979 and had a strong desire to land Bird; however, they knew that other teams would also be interested in him. So Celtics president Red Auerbach ordered his scouts not to contact Bird until after the NBA draft lottery, which would determine the order of picks for each team.
The lottery went according to plan: The Celtics had the sixth pick, but second-year guard Scott Wedman was taken with the fifth pick by Utah (who then traded him to Boston). That left Boston with no choice but to take Bird with their first choice.
“Larry Bird was the best player in basketball and he didn’t get drafted,” said former NBA great Oscar Robertson.
Bird had the misfortune of being a freshman in college when the NBA-ABA merger occurred in 1976. The Celtics already had two first-round picks in that draft, including the seventh overall selection. They selected 6-8 forward Cedric “Cornbread” Maxwell out of Kentucky State University with their first pick and then took 6-10 forward/center Rick Robey from Kansas with their second pick at No. 8 overall.
Bird, who was attending Indiana State University at the time, was not even on their radar screen until after they had made their selections in the first round.
The Celtics were so impressed by Bird’s play that they offered him a contract as an undrafted free agent after the draft and he accepted it without hesitation.
Larry Bird is one of the greatest basketball players of all time. He was an All-Star in his rookie year and won three MVP awards. He played for the Boston Celtics from 1979 to 1992.
But before he was a star, Larry Bird had to overcome one huge obstacle: he wasn’t drafted by any NBA team.
Bird was considered too small and unathletic to make it in the league. He stood 6 feet 9 inches tall but weighed only 200 pounds — about 30 pounds lighter than most players at his height. He also had a bad back, which made him less effective on defense.
But Bird proved everyone wrong by becoming one of the best players ever. In fact, he may have been even better than Michael Jordan!
Who was the first person drafted out of high school?

The first person to be drafted out of high school was Kevin McReynolds, who was chosen by the New York Mets with the second pick in the 1982 draft.
McReynolds played five seasons in the majors before ending up with a .251 career batting average and 46 home runs. He also played in six All-Star Games.
The first player drafted out of college was Ken Griffey Jr., who went to the Seattle Mariners with the No. 1 overall pick in 1987. Griffey went on to have a Hall of Fame career that included 630 home runs, 10 Gold Gloves and 10 All-Star appearances before retiring in 2010 at age 40
The first person drafted out of high school was Walt Bellamy, who was selected in the 1962 NBA Draft by the Chicago Packers. The team was a member of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and later became the Washington Bullets.
Bellamy played at Chicago’s DuSable High School and went on to attend historically black Southern Illinois University (SIU).
He was an All-American in 1961–62 and led SIU to a Missouri Valley Conference championship before turning pro after his sophomore year. He joined the Packers in 1962–63 and became their starting center.
The first person drafted out of high school was the legendary Ted Williams. The Boston Red Sox selected the future Hall of Famer with the No. 1 overall pick in 1939.
Williams had an incredible career, winning two MVP awards and leading his team to World Series titles in 1946, ’48, ’49 and ’50.
But as good as he was at baseball, he might have been even better at golf. He won 19 tournaments on the PGA Tour and remains one of only three people to win the Masters Tournament back-to-back (1958 and 1959).
The first player to be drafted out of high school was Rick Monday, in 1965. He was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fourth round of that year’s draft, but he opted not to sign for $25,000 and instead enrolled at Arizona State University. He went on to have an 11-year MLB career with four teams.
Who was the first ever NBA draft pick?
The NBA draft has been around since 1947. It was originally created by the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1949 to form what we now know as the NBA. The first ever draft pick went to Bill Russell, who was selected by the Boston Celtics with the second overall pick in 1956.
Russell is also one of only two people to win multiple MVP awards and an Olympic gold medal in basketball. He’s one of five players to have his jersey retired by the Celtics, and he’s one of four players inducted into both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame (the others being Jim Brown, Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus).
Bill Russell had a great career with Boston and won 11 championships during his 13 seasons with them. He was named Most Valuable Player five times during his career, including four straight from 1959-1962 (the only player ever to do so).
The National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft is an annual sports draft in which teams select eligible players to join the team. The NBA Draft is held every June at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York and takes place over two days.
The first ever NBA draft was held on June 6, 1947 with the Boston Celtics selecting Chuck Cooper with their fifth overall pick. The first player coming from an ACC school was Wake Forest’s Dickie Hemric who was taken by the Minneapolis Lakers in 1953.
In 1956, Wilt Chamberlain became the first high school player to be drafted by an NBA team. The first white player to be drafted was Bill Russell in 1956 by the St Louis Hawks. In 1960, there were no drafts for college players as most of them went straight into professional leagues instead of going to college
The first ever NBA draft was held in 1947. It took place on April 25th at the Hotel Commodore in New York City. The draft lasted for three rounds, with each team picking players in reverse order of their win-loss record from the previous season.
The Chicago Stags were the first team to choose a player, and they selected George Mikan from DePaul University with the first overall pick. He would go on to have a Hall of Fame career, winning four NBA championships with the Lakers during his 14-year career.
Here’s a list of every player selected in the first round of every NBA draft since 1947:
The first NBA draft took place in 1947. The New York Knickerbockers (later the Knicks) selected George Mikan, a center from DePaul University, as the No. 1 pick.
Mikan was also chosen by the Chicago American Gears, but he decided to play for the Knicks instead. He went on to win six scoring titles and seven MVP awards during his career.
The second pick in the draft went to Providence College’s Al Cervi, who spent 12 years with the Rochester Royals before retiring in 1958.
Who was the first NBA player to dunk?

The first NBA player to dunk was George “The Iceman” Gervin of the San Antonio Spurs. He did it on December 12, 1978 against the Houston Rockets at the Hemisfair Arena in San Antonio.
The first NBA player to dunk was George “The Iceman” Gervin.
George Gervin was born on February 26, 1952, in Chicago, Illinois. His nickname “The Ice Man” came from his cool demeanor on the court, as well as his ice-cold jumper. In addition to being an excellent scorer, Gervin was also a good rebounder and passer. He was an All-Star every year from 1978 through 1984 (except 1980), and he led the league in scoring three times during that span (1979-1981).
When Gervin joined the Spurs in 1976 after four seasons with the Virginia Squires of the ABA, he averaged 20 points per game and helped lead San Antonio to its first playoff appearance in 1977-78. He led the NBA in scoring each season from 1979 through 1981 and again from 1983 through 1985. In 1980-81 he set a record by averaging 31 points per game over an entire season (which has since been broken).
The first NBA player to dunk was on March 12, 1957, by Bob Pettit of the St. Louis Hawks.
Pettit was not only a great player, but he had a very high vertical leap and could jump over seven feet in the air. He used his jumping ability to set up his dunk against the New York Knicks.
The dunk came near the end of the game when Pettit took off from outside the free throw line and threw it down hard over center Darrall Imhoff’s head for two points. The crowd went wild as Pettit made history with his dunk.
The first player to dunk in an NBA game was Wilt Chamberlain. The date was March 2, 1962. Chamberlain was 24 years old and playing center for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
“The day before the game,” Chamberlain later wrote in his autobiography, “I told [Warriors coach] Frank McGuire that I was going to try a few dunks.” Chamberlain did just that, adding one more to his tally later in the game.
Chamberlain’s dunks came in a period when dunks were not yet common. Darryl Dawkins became famous for his early 1980s dunks, but there were only about 100 such dunks in all of 1971-72 and 1972-73 combined (according to Basketball-Reference). There were only two per team per game on average during those seasons — meaning that if you saw one on television it was special.
Who was the first black NBA player?
The first black player in the NBA was Chuck Cooper, who played for the Boston Celtics and New York Knicks in the 1950s.
He was followed by Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, who played for the New York Knicks in 1951.
Larry Brown became the first black head coach in pro basketball when he was hired by the Denver Nuggets in 1976.
The first black player in the NBA was Chuck Cooper. He was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 1950 but didn’t make his debut until 1954 because he was serving in the Army.
The first black player to actually play in an NBA game was Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, who played for the New York Knicks.
The first black players in the NBA were Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, Chuck Cooper, Earl Lloyd and Hank DeZonie.
Clifton was a rookie in the league’s inaugural game on November 1, 1946. He played for the New York Knicks and was their leading scorer with 15 points. Lloyd played for the Washington Capitols, while Cooper and DeZonie each played for the Boston Celtics. Cooper scored six points and DeZonie had two assists.
The first black player to win an NBA championship was Bill Russell. He won his first title with the Boston Celtics in 1959 when they defeated the Minneapolis Lakers 4-3 in a best-of-seven series that went seven games.
Russell won eight more titles before retiring after his 13th season in 1969 with a total of 11 rings (eight regular season titles and three championships). He also had 11 All-Star selections and 12 All-NBA First Team nods during his career.
In 1950, Chuck Cooper became the first black player on an NBA team. The Boston Celtics drafted him in the second round of that year’s draft. Cooper went on to play nine seasons in the league, averaging 10 points per game during his career.
In addition to his achievements on the court, he was also a trailblazer off of it. He became one of the first players to advocate for integration in pro sports when he sued the NBA for not allowing blacks to play in 1948.
Cooper was honored by President Obama at the White House in 2011 for his contributions to civil rights and basketball
Who has the most 1st picks in NBA history?

The most 1st picks in NBA history is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in 1969.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a retired professional basketball player who played for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers. He is also a six-time champion and three-time MVP winner.
The second most number of 1st picks in NBA history is Bill Russell, who played for the Boston Celtics and won 11 championships with them. He was also named Most Valuable Player five times during his career.
Bill Russell was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 1956 and won 11 championships with them during his career. He was also named Most Valuable Player five times throughout his career.
The most 1st picks in NBA history is a record held by the Boston Celtics who have selected first overall a total of 17 times.
The Celtics were 1st overall in 3 drafts, 1950, 1951 and 1953. The other 14 selections were spread out over 5 drafts as follows:
1957 – 1958 – 1959 – 1960 – 1961 (3) – 1963 – 1965 – 1966 – 1968 – 1969 – 1970 (2) – 1972 (2)
The Boston Celtics have the most first-round draft picks in NBA history.
The Boston Celtics have the most first-round draft picks in NBA history, with 64. The Chicago Bulls are second with 60 and the Los Angeles Lakers are third with 58.
The Celtics have had the most success of any team when it comes to drafting players in the top 10 of the draft. They’ve selected 14 Hall of Famers who were taken among their first 10 picks, including Larry Bird (1978), Bill Russell (1956) and Bob Cousy (1950).
The Bulls have drafted 11 Hall of Famers among their first 10 picks, including Michael Jordan (1984), Scottie Pippen (1987) and Horace Grant (1989).
The Lakers also have 11 Hall of Famers among their first 10 selections, including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1969), Magic Johnson (1979) and James Worthy (1982).
The NBA draft is the most important event of the offseason for most teams. It’s a chance to add young talent, and it’s also a chance to change your team’s fortunes.
While there have been plenty of great players taken with the No. 1 overall pick, there have also been some bad ones.
Here are the top five players in NBA Draft history:
5) Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille O’Neal was selected by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick in 1992 after leading LSU to a National Championship. He went on to win four NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers and was named MVP three times during his career. He averaged 23 points and 11 rebounds per game over his 19-year career.
4) Kyrie Irving
Kyrie Irving was selected by Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in 2011 after leading Duke University to an NCAA Championship as a freshman. He won Rookie of the Year honors in 2012 and has been named an All-Star in each of his first four seasons in the league, averaging 20 points per game during that time period while playing alongside LeBron James on numerous occasions.