Ranking the Top-Five NBA Draft Picks of the Last Five Years

The NBA Draft has infused the league with talent since its inception, sending a bright new crop of players to the league each year. Recently, there's been several valuable drafts that have added future stars and superstars that have hit the ground running.

Below we’ll rank the top-five draft picks of the last five years, dating back to the 2022 NBA Draft:

1. Victor Wembanyama, Spurs

Of the 300-ish players taken in the last five draft cycles, only one sits on truly all-time trajectory through just a few seasons. Spurs’ forward Victor Wembanyama recently took his team to the Finals, earning his first Defensive Player of the Year Award in just his third season.

He’s a nearly supernatural impactor of the game, able to put a lid of the rim while coming down with boards and scoring at all three levels.

He’s not done evolving just yet, and is already breathing rare air among early-career players.

2. Cooper Flagg, Mavericks

Had Wembanyama not existed, Mavericks’ forward Cooper Flagg would be an easy shoo-in as the best prospect of all five classes. Unfortunately, his competition is already a two-time All-Star and DPOY.

Flagg capped his very first season averaging 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and nearly a steal and block per game, winning Rookie of the Year in the process. He’s still just 19, and has already seen one of the best rookie seasons in decades.

Dallas would likely be in a full blown rebuild without him, but instead has hope moving forward.

3. AJ Dybantsa, Wizards

One could’ve penciled in any of AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson and Cameron Boozer here, though the former was widely believed to be the best prospect by most evaluators and NBA decision-makers.

Even more, Dybantsa — a hyper-scoring wing — is going to join a team in the Wizards that desperately needs his offensive punch.

He’s yet to play an NBA game, though there’s little doubt he’ll be one of the top up-and-coming prospects in the league with his combination of size, fluidity, athleticism and scoring ability.

4. Jalen Williams, OKC Thunder

The Thunder have done as much with lesser picks as any team in the league. One of the organization’s best-ever picks was forward Chet Holmgren second overall in 2022. Though they nabbed a similarly impactful player 10 spots later in Jalen Williams, giving the latter a slight edge.

Despite dealing with injuries last season, Williams has been a force for OKC, playing a multitude of positions and fitting into a variety of roles. He’s already earned All-Star, All-NBA and All-Defense nods, and has cemented his Thunder legacy with a 40-point performance in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

Pound-for-pound, Williams is one of best picks in recent memory.

5. Stephon Castle, Spurs

The second Spur to grace the list, Castle is likely in competition with 2025’s second-overall pick in Dylan Harper. Though Castle’s selection at No. 4 pushes him higher.

The 2024 NBA Draft class wasn’t thought of to be a deep one, and several of the top picks in the class — Zaccharie Risacher, Reed Sheppard, Ron Holland II and Tidjane Salauan — have all seen early-career struggles here and there.

So far, Castle is shaping up to be the best player in the class, having massively grown his scoring and passing game in just two seasons, while playing some of the best defense in the league this postseason.

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