How important having a first round NBA player has been to NCAA Tournament champions

[HooperScooper]

Not exactly a hot take that having first round NBA talent on your roster is almost a must to winning a championship. Worth a read though.

Of the 45 men's college basketball national champions since 1976, the year of the NBA/ABA merger, 44 featured at least one first-round pick in a future NBA Draft.

How important having a player picked in the first round of the NBA Draft has been to NCAA Tournament champions

Almost every NCAA Tournament champion since 1976 has produced a NBA Draft first-round pick

www.cbssports.com

 

[awfuldan]

Interesting! Thanks for sharing.

Six First-rounders on our 2004 team is tied for most overall. Shabazz being the highest-drafted player on the 2014 roster at Pick #24 is the lowest on the list.

 

[8893]

 

[mussels]

Ooof - they forgot to include Shabazz on the 2011 team

 

[bendm]

not this year

 

[superjohn]

not this year

I don't see us having a single first round pick this upcoming draft but we'll have multiple first rounders with this roster in the future.

 

[Kitaman]

Not many will win it all without an All American. Also helps to have a sidekick.

UConn fans know a little bit about Championship Teams and All Americans (1st Team). Writers and pundits just need to ask the Yard.

 

[8893]

not this year

Did you read the article? It said in a future draft, i.e., not necessarily in this year’s draft. Or are you saying that there are no players on this year’s team who will be drafted in the first round in future years?

Call me crazy but I think we have few guys on this year’s roster who may get drafted in the first round in future years. I think it’s likely that at least one of them will.

 

[Rico444]

Did you read the article? It said in a future draft, i.e., not necessarily in this year’s draft. Or are you saying that there are no players on this year’s team who will be drafted in the first round in future years?

Call me crazy but I think we have few guys on this year’s roster who may get drafted in the first round in future years. I think it’s likely that at least one of them will.

Agreed. Hawkins, Jackson, Sanogo, and Samson all have the potential. I'd be willing to bet at least one of them is drafted in the 1st.

 

[bendm]

Did you read the article? It said in a future draft, i.e., not necessarily in this year’s draft.

yup didn't read it just assumed it meant the draft was the same year as the chip

having someone on a chip team drafted in the 1st round w/in 3 years is not surprising in the least

 

[auror]

There's a chicken-and-the-egg argument to be had here. Particularly in the early years after the merger, drafting was a more inexact science. And it's worth asking: Were teams winning because they had more NBA talent, or were NBA teams at some level drawn to some of those players because they were winning?

Yeah poorly designed/researched. It doesn't tell you anything because the results themselves change the criteria. And it certainly doesn't tell you anything about who has the best shot before the tournament.