Kentucky's 26 NBA players is the most among college basketball programs
John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats can once again hang their hat on being college basketball's best NBA factory, with 26 former student-athletes appearing on NBA rosters based on the league's opening-day roster list.
Duke (24) is the only other school with 20 or more former players, while UCLA (15), Kansas (12), Michigan and Gonzaga (11), and Arkansas, Arizona, Texas, and Villanova (10) round out the top ten.
The Kentucky alumni list is not just quantity over quality either, as many former Wildcats are among the best in the league, including Devin Booker, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Davis, De'Aaron Fox, Bam Adebayo, and Jamal Murray.
15 NBA franchises roster at least one former Wildcat, while the Knicks, Kings, and Thunder each have three, and the Heat, Lakers, Pacers, Bucks, and Hornets each have two.
Here is a look at each Wildcat on an NBA roster, listed alphabetically:
Bam Adebayo – Miami Heat
Devin Booker – Phoenix Suns
Brandon Boston Jr. – Los Angeles Clippers
Anthony Davis – Los Angeles Lakers
De'Aaron Fox – Sacramento Kings
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Oklahoma City Thunder
Tyler Herro – Miami Heat
Isaiah Jackson – Indiana Pacers
Keldon Johnson – San Antonio Spurs
Chris Livingston – Milwaukee Bucks
Trey Lyles – Sacramento Kings
Tyrese Maxey – Philadelphia 76ers
Malik Monk – Sacramento Kings
Jamal Murray – Denver Nuggets
Immanuel Quickley – New York Knicks
Julius Randle – New York Knicks
Nick Richards – Charlotte Hornets
Olivier Sarr – Oklahoma City Thunder
Shaedon Sharpe – Portland Trail Blazers
Jacob Toppin – New York Knicks
Karl-Anthony Towns – Minnesota Timberwolves
Oscar Tshiebwe – Indiana Pacers
Jarred Vanderbilt – Los Angeles Lakers
Cason Wallace – Oklahoma City Thunder
PJ Washington – Charlotte Hornets
TyTy Washington Jr. – Milwaukee Bucks
The 2024-25 NBA season is over a year away, but it seems very likely a few more will be added to this list - with mock drafts projecting Justin Edwards, DJ Wagner, and potentially a couple of other current Kentucky stars to play in the NBA next year.
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