The best homegrown player for every NBA franchise

As a third-overall draft pick, Wilkins made an immediate impact for the Hawks. By his fourth season, he led the league in scoring and was in the MVP conversation. After 11 full seasons with the franchise, though, Atlanta did 'Nique dirty by unexpectedly trading him mid-season, while both he and the team were among the best in the NBA.

In the 1979 season, the year before Bird arrived in Boston, the Celtics finished with a dismal 29-53 record. Larry quickly turned things around: His rookie year, the team went 61-21 and reached the Conference Finals. By his sophomore season, he guided the C's to their first championship, and he ended up getting three total.

Lopez has had a good handful of 20-point-per-game and near-20 seasons, but he's not necessarily thought of as a scorer. And yet, he's actually the all-time leading scorer in Nets history with 10,444 (in second, fun fact, is Buck Williams with 10,440). Aside from a few extended stretches missed due to injury, Lopez otherwise played most games and was consistent on both ends of the floor.

The Hornets were generally pretty bad in the 2010s, but for most of the decade, Kemba was a bright spot. His 2019 season, his final with the franchise, was particularly memorable. He averaged 25 a game, made his third straight All-Star team, and made his first and only All-NBA team.

He's Michael Jordan, the guy who led the league in scoring ten times in an 11-season stretch. That means, over his 15 NBA seasons, he didn't have the highest PPG just five times. Between that and the six championships, his dominance is hard to top.

Even well before he was drafted, there was little doubt that LeBron would be one of the greats. The narrative was perfect, too: LeBron was born in Akron and played for his hometown Cavaliers. While he ultimately left the team (and then came back and left again), he gave the city 11 outstanding seasons and a championship.

It took Dirk a few seasons to really get going, but once he did, it was legendary. In his fourth season, he started a run where he was an All-Star in 13 of 14 seasons, then earned one more nod, a ceremonial one, in his final year. By the time Nowitzki hung 'em up, he played 21 seasons for the Mavs, picked up an MVP trophy, and won a championship.

Jokić has come so far from his draft pick, famously being announced during a Taco Bell commercial. The second-round pick quickly developed into a useful player for the Nuggets, and by his sixth season, he won his first MVP trophy. Still in his early 30s, with three MVPs and a championship under his belt, Jokić has already cemented himself as one of the best players of all time.

Thomas made an immediate impact with the Pistons: The team's 39-43 record in his rookie season wasn't awesome, but it was much better than the 21-61 they managed the season before. By 1987, Detroit was a real contender, and not long after, Isiah helped them win two championships in 1989 and 1990. After 13 years, he retired as a Pistons lifer and all-timer.

Curry has so far spent nearly two decades in the NBA, and even years after changing how the game is played with his three-point frequency and proficiency, he remains awesome. At 36 years old, he finished the '25 season averaging just under 25 points a game. He's been with Golden State the whole time, and it's tough to imagine a world where he doesn't retire a Warrior.

It was uncanny seeing Hakeem in a Raptors jersey for that one season at the end of his career, because for 17 of his 18 years in the NBA, he was not just a Rocket, but the Rocket. Olajuwon was an immediate star, averaging 20 points and 11 rebounds in his rookie season and making the All-Star team. He was elite for a long time, too, being named an All-Star in 12 of his first 13 seasons.

At 18 years, Reggie is one of the longest-tenured players in NBA history. Pre-Pacers, he was a pure California boy, born in Riverside and playing his college ball at UCLA. Once he got to Indiana, though, he made it his home and became a franchise legend.

For years, the Clippers were one of the worst teams in the NBA. When Blake came along, though, he gave the franchise a much-needed dose of excitement. He never got the team that far in the postseason, but he was a multi-time All-Star and one of the league's biggest stars for a stretch.

Although he was drafted by the Hornets, he was traded to the Lakers shortly after. While he was one of the NBA's most exciting young players in his first few seasons, he had become a star by the time the 2000s rolled around. Over the course of 20 years, he brought a lot of winning to LA, adding five titles to the franchise's total.

Marc has the rare distinction of being traded for his own brother, and while Pau was the headline of the deal, it didn't take long for Marc to become a star, too. Over 11 seasons in Memphis, he built a solid resume: three All-Star selections, a couple of All-NBA teams, and a DPOY trophy.

Wade was a headliner of the extremely loaded 2003 draft class, and Miami clearly made the right pick at No. 5. By just his third season, he led the Heat to a championship, and from there, he became one of the best guards of all time. Even in his final season with the Heat at nearly 40 years old, he was still useful as a sixth man, putting up 15 points a game.

The Timberwolves didn't enjoy much success during KG's initial 12-season stint with the team. He was fantastic, though, an All-Star just about every year and a routine MVP candidate, picking up one trophy in 2004. Although he later spent time in Boston and Brooklyn, he went home to wrap up his career, playing a final season and a half with his beloved first team.

Younger NBA fans might know CP3 best as a veteran point guard who has played for six different teams since 2017. He got his NBA start with the Hornets, though, as one of the most promising and later one of the best young guards in the league. Although he played in New Orleans for only six seasons, he was nonetheless the franchise player and one of the faces of the NBA during his time there.

It's a bittersweet distinction, but Ewing is one of the best players to never win an NBA championship. Despite that, he made the Knicks competitive in the '90s. With career averages of 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks per game, he was about as good as big men got in his era.

Russ has been a journeyman during the latter half of his career, playing for six teams since the 2020 season. Before that, though, he was the face of OKC alongside Kevin Durant, taking over the role entirely when KD jumped ship. He led the franchise during some deep postseason runs and was impactful from the moment the Thunder drafted him.

There was a lengthy stretch where Dwight could not be stopped. He won the DPOY trophy three times in a row and was second in MVP voting one of those seasons. Between that, leading the league in blocks per game twice and rebounds four times over a five-year span in Orlando, he was the greatest homegrown talent the franchise ever saw.

Iverson didn't let standing at just six feet tall stop him: He's the shortest player to ever win MVP. He immediately took over the 76ers when drafted, putting up averages of 23 points and 7 assists a game during his debut campaign. He never won a title, but he dragged an otherwise unremarkable Philly team to the Finals in 2001, which is quite the achievement in itself.

Nash has a few inches on Iverson at 6'4", but he's also one of the shortest MVPs ever, and he won the award twice (and finished a close, close second one year). While he was out in Phoenix after a couple of seasons, when he returned to the franchise years later, he was a more polished player, hitting his potential and winning those aforementioned MVPs and leading the league in assist average five times.

Even though Portland never had a real shot at a title with Lillard, he still gave the team some astounding years. It started right away, when he won ROY and was an All-NBA and All-Star player by his second season. He has love for the city, enough to return to the franchise after chasing greener pastures for a couple of seasons in Milwaukee.

Oscar was an incredibly versatile player at a time when basketball was still in a relatively prototypical stage. He could score, make plays for teammates, and rebound as a guard, earning notoriety for averaging a triple-double over the course of an entire season. It was tough to do much winning given that his time with the Cincinnati Royals overlapped with those '60s Celtics teams, but Robertson was nonetheless one of the most complete players the game had ever seen.

Not only did Duncan win the Rookie Of The Year trophy, but also in his first season, he made first-team All-NBA, second-team All-Defense, and was fifth in voting for both MVP and Defensive Player Of The Year. It was a phenomenal start, and it only got better from there. The Spurs were the only team he ever played for, and his loyalty was rewarded with five championships and Finals MVP wins.

Bosh's decision to leave the Raptors to team up with Dwyane Wade and LeBron James in Miami was understandable; The two titles speak for themselves. Before that, though, he was the pride of Canada during his seven seasons in Toronto. He could score and defend, doing it all with a passion that quickly made him easy to root for.

Something that seems to be forgotten today is how great Malone was: He's third all-time in scoring in NBA history! Over 19 years, he, with a lot of help from John Stockton, ensured the Jazz never once finished the season with a losing record. Had it not been for MJ's Bulls, the Jazz would have likely had a couple of championships and improved the legacy of "The Mailman."

Looking just at Unseld's scoring, it might seem like he wasn't remarkable. After the Bullets drafted him, though, he quickly became the team's cornerstone, averaging 18 rebounds a night his first season, winning both Rookie Of The Year and MVP. That's a feat unlikely to be repeated, and for that and other reasons, Unseld will forever be a Bullets/Wizards icon.