Held on 27 June 1989 inside Madison Square Garden’s Felt Forum, the 1989 draft was the first ever conducted in prime-time national television—and the first to use the modern two-round, 54-pick format that is still in place today .
What it lacked in slam-dunk star power at the top, it made up for with trades, international intrigue and a deep vein of eventual All-Stars unearthed after the lottery.
Setting the Stage
- Location: Felt Forum, New York City
- Total selections: 54 (down from 75 in 1988)
- Lottery teams: Sacramento (No. 1), L.A. Clippers (No. 2), San Antonio (No. 3)
- Expansion flavour: Orlando Magic and Minnesota Timberwolves made their first ever selections.
- Rule ripple: The shorter draft forced scouts to tier prospects more aggressively—only 48 of the 54 picks ever played an NBA game, still the lowest “hit-rate” of any 1990s draft .
First-Round Snapshot (top 10)
| Pick | Team | Player | College/Club | Career Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kings | Pervis Ellison | Louisville | “Never Nervous” became “Out of Service” Pervis—injuries limited him to 474 games, but he did win Most Improved Player 1992 and averaged 20-11 in that healthy season . |
| 2 | Clippers→Cavs | Danny Ferry | Duke | Refused to play for LAC; traded to Cleveland. Never an All-Star, yet lasted 13 seasons as a stretch-four and key role player on the 2003 Spurs title team . |
| 3 | Spurs | Sean Elliott | Arizona | Two-time All-Star, 1999 champion; famous for the “Memorial Day Miracle” three in the ’99 WCF . |
| 4 | Heat | Glen Rice | Michigan | Dead-eye scorer; 1995 All-Star MVP, 2000 Lakers champion, still top-50 all-time in threes made . |
| 5 | Hornets | J. R. Reid | UNC | Physical forward, 672 career games; later embraced role as enforcer off the bench . |
| 6 | Bulls | Stacey King | Oklahoma | Won three rings as Jordan’s backup; memorable for celebratory quotes (“I’ll remember this 50 years from now!”) . |
| 7 | Pacers | George McCloud | Florida St. | Developed into a 18.9 ppg scorer with Dallas; 12-year journeyman . |
| 8 | Mavericks | Randy White | Louisiana Tech | Hyped as “Mailman II”; managed only 8.9 ppg career, became a literal mailman after hoops . |
| 9 | Bullets | Tom Hammonds | Georgia Tech | Lightning-quick forward, 12 seasons; later a NHRA drag-racer . |
| 10 | Timberwolves | Pooh Richardson | UCLA | Franchise’s first ever pick; averaged 17-9 as a rookie, gave Minny its first highlight reels . |
Diamonds in the Rough (non-lottery gems)
International Intrigue
- Vlade Divac (No. 26) – first Serbian to make an All-Star team; cornerstone of the “Basketball Without Borders” pipeline that opened the floodgates for European talent .
- Dino Rađa (No. 40) – 1994 All-Rookie 1st, averaged 16.7 ppg & 8.4 rpg in only four NBA seasons; Hall-of-Famer via international resume .
Surprises & What-Ifs
The 1989 NBA Draft is memorable for the stark contrast between its top ten picks, many of whom were considered busts, and the hidden gems found later in the draft. It is often described as one of the worst drafts at the top, but ultimately produced nine All-Stars and three Hall of Famers.
Surprises of the 1989 NBA Draft
- Top Picks as Busts: The biggest surprise was the lack of impact from the top of the draft board. The first two picks, Pervis Ellison (Sacramento Kings) and Danny Ferry (Los Angeles Clippers), had relatively disappointing careers given their draft positions. Ellison, nicknamed “Out of Service Pervis” due to injuries, was traded after just one season. Ferry refused to play for the Clippers and went to play in Italy before being traded.
- Hidden Gems in Later Rounds: In stark contrast to the top of the draft, many highly successful players were selected much later:
- Shawn Kemp (17th pick), Tim Hardaway (14th pick), and Vlade Divac (26th pick) all became multiple-time All-Stars.
- Clifford Robinson, an All-Star and key contributor for many years, was a second-round steal (36th pick).
- Dino Rađa, a standout European player and future Hall of Famer, was selected with the 40th pick.
- An Undersized Point Guard Explosion: Pooh Richardson was the first point guard taken at pick 10, ahead of future All-Stars and productive players like Mookie Blaylock, B.J. Armstrong, Dana Barros, and Tim Hardaway.
- Expansion Teams’ First Draft: This was the first draft for the new expansion teams, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Orlando Magic, who made selections in the college draft after participating in the 1989 NBA Expansion Draft.
What-Ifs of the 1989 NBA Draft
- What if the Kings drafted Glen Rice or Shawn Kemp? Instead of Pervis Ellison at No. 1, the Kings could have selected Glen Rice or Shawn Kemp, both of whom became far more productive players. A franchise player like Kemp or Rice might have altered the Kings’ trajectory in the 1990s.
- What if Danny Ferry played for the Clippers? Ferry spent a year in Italy before being traded. Had he embraced playing for the Clippers, he might have helped a franchise that struggled to find stability during that era.
- What if Shawn Kemp had played college basketball at Kentucky? Kemp enrolled at Kentucky but was academically ineligible and never played a game before declaring for the draft. A year of college development might have further refined his game earlier in his career, and potentially changed the dynamic of the highly successful Seattle SuperSonics teams of the 90s.
- What if teams selected for talent over need? The San Antonio Spurs passed on Stacey King (the projected #1 pick by some analysts) for Sean Elliott because they already had a young David Robinson. While Elliott was a good fit and contributed to a championship team, the instinct to choose based on “fit” rather than “best available talent” led to several busts at the top of the draft.
- What if the draft remained three rounds? The 1989 draft was the first to be reduced to its current two-round format, limiting the total number of players selected to 54. This change might have prevented late-round finds, though this specific draft still managed to unearth plenty of talent in the second round.
Long-Term Outcomes
The long-term outcome of the 1989 NBA draft was a mixed bag, widely considered to be one of the weaker draft classes in history due to many top-10 busts, yet it still produced several highly successful, multi-time All-Stars and two Hall of Fame players found in the later picks.
Top Draft Busts
The most significant long-term outcome was the failure of many high first-round picks to live up to expectations:
- Pervis Ellison (No. 1 overall pick): Nicknamed “Out of Service Pervis” due to chronic knee and foot injuries, he was traded after just one season and never became the franchise cornerstone the Sacramento Kings envisioned. He did win the NBA’s Most Improved Player award in 1992 but his career was constantly derailed by injuries.
- Danny Ferry (No. 2 overall pick): Ferry had a 13-season career, but primarily as a role player with modest averages, a poor return for a second overall pick.
- Other Top-10 Underachievers: Eight of the first ten picks were generally considered underachievers, with only Sean Elliott and Glen Rice becoming All-Stars.
Successful and Impactful Players
Despite the disappointments at the top, the draft yielded numerous talented players who had long and productive NBA careers, often selected later in the draft:
- Tim Hardaway (No. 14 overall pick): A five-time All-Star and a key part of the “Run TMC” Warriors, Hardaway was known for his revolutionary crossover dribble and dynamic playmaking. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
- Shawn Kemp (No. 17 overall pick): “The Reign Man” was a six-time All-Star and a three-time All-NBA Second Team selection, becoming a superstar with the Seattle SuperSonics known for his powerful dunks and athleticism.
- Vlade Divac (No. 26 overall pick): One of the first European players to make a major impact in the NBA, Divac was an excellent passing big man who had a 16-year career, was an All-Star, and became a Hall of Famer.
- Glen Rice (No. 4 overall pick): One of the few successful top-10 picks, Rice was a dynamic scorer and three-time All-Star who won an NBA Championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000.
- Clifford Robinson (No. 36 overall pick): Drafted in the second round, “Uncle Cliffy” had a remarkably long 18-season career, was an All-Star, and twice named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team.
- Mookie Blaylock (No. 12 overall pick): A standout defensive guard, Blaylock was an All-Star and earned All-Defensive team honors six times during his 13-year career.
Overall Legacy
The 1989 NBA Draft will never escape its “lottery-letdown” reputation, yet it quietly seeded the modern league:
- Introduced the two-round template that forces sharper scouting and rewards second-round steals.
- Accelerated the global game, with Divac and Rađa blazing the trail that produced Nowitzki, Giannis and Jokić.
- Proved that depth beats sizzle—nine All-Stars, 11 rings and nearly two decades of productive role players emerged from a class once mocked as historically weak.
Nearly 36 years later, the 1989 draft stands less as a superstar factory and more as a foundation stone for today’s faster, longer, more international NBA.