Which College Has the Most First-Round Draft Picks in NBA History?

It's time to break out a bit of trivia ahead of the 2025 NBA draft.

Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard passes the ball during a game against the Tennessee Volunteers in February. / Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

Cooper Flagg and the rest of the stars of the 2025 NBA draft class are ready to find their new basketball homes.

For months—perhaps even years now—Flagg has been expected to be the top player selected in the 2025 NBA draft, which is set to begin at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday at the Barclays Center. He'll likely land with the Dallas Mavericks at No. 1, becoming the third Duke player to be selected with the top pick in the last seven years.

But Flagg won't be the only former Blue Devils star to land in the first round. College teammates Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach are anticipated to be top-10 picks on Wednesday night, which would boost Duke's all-time total of first-round picks from 56 to 59.

Aside from Duke, there are several prospects from other big collegiate programs projected to be first-round picks. North Carolina guard/forward Drake Powell could be selected late in the first round, and Michigan State guard Jase Richardson has a chance to be the Spartans' first-round pick since Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. in 2018.

Which college has produced the most first-round draft picks in NBA history?

Entering the 2025 draft, Kentucky has seen an NBA-best 60 players taken in the first round in program history. That is three more than the Blue Devils (56) in second place, with North Carolina (54) in third.

Forty-two of the Wildcats' 60 first-round picks played for coach John Calipari over his dominant 15-year run on Kentucky's sidelines from 2009 to '24. The Calipari era started with a bang, as the Wildcats produced five first-round picks after his first year with the Wildcats in 2010—guard John Wall, forward DeMarcus Cousins, forward Patrick Patterson, guard Eric Bledsoe and forward Daniel Orton.

The Wildcats have seen at least one player be selected in the first round of the NBA draft in 15 straight years, dating back to 2010. However, that streak is in jeopardy of ending in 2025, as Wildcats seniors Koby Brea and Jaxson Robinson are considered second-round prospects by most draft experts.

RANK	COLLEGE	FIRST-ROUND PICKS	MOST RECENT FIRST-ROUND PICK(S)
1	Kentucky	60	Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham (2024)
2	Duke	56	Jared McCain (2024)
3	North Carolina	54	Day'Ron Sharpe (2021)
4	UCLA	43	Jaime Jaquez Jr. (2023)
5	Kansas	36	Gradey Dick (2023)
6	Michigan	30	Jett Howard and Kobe Bufkin (2023)
7	Indiana	28	Jalen Hood-Schifino (2023)
8	Arizona	26	Bennedict Mathurin and Dalen Terry (2022)
9	Ohio State	25	Brice Sensabaugh (2023)
t-10	Louisville	24	Donovan Mitchell (2017)
t-10	Syracuse	24	Tyler Lydon (2017)
12	UConn	23	Stephon Castle and Donovan Clingan (2023)
t-13	Michigan State	21	Miles Bridges and Jaren Jackson Jr. (2018)
t-13	Notre Dame	21	Blake Wesley (2022)
15	Maryland	20	Jalen Smith (2020)
t-16	Georgia Tech	19	Josh Okogie (2018)
t-16	Texas	19	Kai Jones (2021)
t-16	Alabama	19	Brandon Miller and Noah Clowney (2023)
19	LSU	17	Tari Eason (2022)
t-21	NC State	16	Dennis Smith (2017)
t-21	Minnesota	16	Kris Humphries (2004)
t-21	St. John's (NY)	16	Maurice Harkless (2012)

---

More NBA Draft on Sports Illustrated

feed