Ranking the top 10 NBA players drafted straight out of high school

Beginning in 2005, the NBA implemented the “one-and-done” rule, which requires all players to be at least 19 years old and one year removed from their high school graduation to be eligible for the NBA Draft.

That was not the case in 1975, or from 1995-2005 when NBA teams had the option to select players straight out of high school.

With the 2025 NBA Draft just a few weeks away, we decided to rank the top 10 players of all time who went straight from their high school gyms to center stage on an NBA court.

After being recognized as the top high school basketball player in the nation while at Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, Kobe Bryant was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft before being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers for Vlade Divac.

Needless to say, the Lakers got the better end of the deal. Kobe played for 20 seasons, all with the Lakers, winning five NBA titles and two NBA Finals MVPs in the process. He was also named the league MVP in 2008 and was selected to the NBA All-Defensive First Team nine times.

Arguably the most hyped draft pick of all time, LeBron James was taken by his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, after a fabled high school career at Akron, Ohio’s St. Vincent-St. Mary High School. James would return to Cleveland and help the Cavaliers win their first-ever NBA title in 2016, but not before he took his talents to Miami and led the Heat to two NBA titles alongside Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh.

LeBron left Cleveland again in 2018, this time to join the Lakers, whom he led to another NBA title in 2020. On February 7, 2023, he passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer. He has been named the league MVP four times.

On the heels of being named a McDonald’s All-American and the national high school player of the year, for his work at Chicago’s Farragut Career Academy, Kevin Garnett was selected fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 1995 NBA Draft. He played for the T-Wolves until 2007, leading them to eight consecutive playoff appearances, including in 2004 when he took them all the way to the Western Conference Finals and won the NBA MVP Award.

In 2007, KG was traded to the Boston Celtics, where he won the Defensive Player of the Year Award and his lone NBA championship in 2008. He was a nine-time All-NBA Defensive First Team selection and led the league in rebounds four times over the course of his career.

Following in the footsteps of his idol KG, Dwight Howard was drafted straight out of Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy in 2004 when he was selected with the first overall pick by the Orlando Magic. He averaged 12 points and 10 rebounds in his rookie season, making him the youngest player in NBA history to average a double-double in a season, and became the first player in league history to play all 82 games in a regular season after being drafted straight out of high school.

Howard played for seven different teams over the course of his 18-year career, winning the DPOY Award three times, leading the NBA in rebounds five times, and registering a league-high number of blocks twice. He was a member of the NBA Champion Lakers in 2020.

Tracy McGrady was selected ninth overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 1997 NBA Draft after a stellar senior season at Mount Zion Christian Academy, in North Carolina, that saw him named a McDonald’s All-American, the USA Today High School Basketball Player of the Year, and the Associated Press’s North Carolina Mr. Basketball.

T-Mac played for the Raptors, Magic, Rockets, Knicks, Pistons, Hawks and Spurs in 15 15-year career. He was named an NBA All-Star every year from 2001-2007, and he was the NBA scoring champion in back-to-back seasons (2003, 2004).

Jermaine O’Neal averaged 22.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 5.2 blocks his senior season at Eau Claire High School in South Carolina, which led to the Portland Trail Blazers selecting him 17th overall in the 1996 NBA Draft when he was just 17 years old. O’Neal made his debut at 18, and at the time, he was the youngest player to ever play in an NBA game.

He played for seven different teams over the course of his 18-year NBA career and was named an NBA All-Star six consecutive times from 2002 to 2007. O’Neal finished third in the 2003-04 MVP race when he helped lead the Pacers to a league-best 61-21 record.

Amar’e Stoudemire played for three different schools but eventually graduated from Cypress Creek High School in Orlando before being taken ninth overall by the Phoenix Suns in 2002. He had an immediate impact for the Suns, taking home the 2003 NBA Rookie of the Year Award with averages of 13.5 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.

The six-time All-Star also played for the Knicks, Mavericks and Heat during his 14-year career, making the All NBA First-Team once (2007) and earning All NBA Second-Team honors four times.

Taken second overall by the Clippers in the 2001 NBA Draft, out of California’s Dominguez High School, Tyson Chandler was immediately traded to the Chicago Bulls for former No. 1 overall pick Elton Brand.

He played for eight teams over the course of 19 years, winning an NBA title with the Mavericks in 2011 and the Defensive Player of the Year Award with the Knicks in 2012.

Drafted 10th overall by the Lakers in the 2005 NBA Draft, Andrew Bynum decided to forgo college after graduating from St. Joseph High School in New Jersey, where he averaged 22.4 points, 16.8 rebounds and 5.3 blocks per game his senior season.

Bynum played for the Lakers in their season opener just six days after his 18th birthday, which made him the youngest player to ever play in an NBA game. While he never quite lived up to the hype he received straight out of high school, he did help the Lakers win two titles (2009, 2010) and was named an NBA All-Star in 2012.

Rashard Lewis was drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics (now the Oklahoma City Thunder) with the 32nd overall pick in the 1998 NBA Draft, out of Alief Elsik High in Houston. On March 13, 2007, Lewis passed Gary Payton for the most three-pointers made in SuperSonics’ franchise history.

After Seattle, he played for the Orlando Magic and Washington Wizards before ending his career with the Miami Heat, where he won his lone NBA Championship in 2013.

Who knows if and when we’ll ever see another era where high school stars skip college basketball and go directly to the NBA, although the idea of lowering the draft eligible age comes up nearly every year. However, entities such as G-League Ignite and Overtime Elite, where high school players are virtually playing as professionals, not to mention every evolving NIL pathways could affect future draft trends.

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