2026 Basketball Eligibles
Trevor Ariza had a journeyman career, having played for ten different NBA teams, three of them twice. The Small Forward was a former Mr. California basketball player who went to UCLA for a year and impressed scouts enough to be drafted by the New York Knicks in the Second Round of 2004. Ariza played off of the bench mostly in his first five seasons, and with his third team, the Los Angeles Lakers, he won…
Lou Williams was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2005 straight out of high school. Although he didn't start in many games in Philadelphia, he soon became known for his ability to perform well as a bench player and is now considered by many to be the best Sixth Man over the last two decades. Williams played for the Sixers for seven seasons before signing with the Atlanta Hawks, where he saw an increase in…
Joe Johnson was a Mr. Arkansas Basketball and he stayed in state to play his college ball at the University of Arkansas where he was the SEC Rookie of the Year. Johnson declared for the draft in 2001, where he was taken 10th Overall by the Boston Celtic 10th Overall, but he did not last the season, as he was traded to Phoenix. The trade accelerated Johnson’s development as he saw significantly more playing time…
Hassan Whiteside was a high second-round pick by Sacramento in 2010, but he spent most of his first two professional years in the G-League. Following this, he played overseas for the next two years in Lebanon and China, where he won the Defensive Player of the Year and Finals MVP. Encouraged by his success in Asia, Whiteside decided to give the NBA another chance, this time with Miami, and he was successful in making a…
Goran Dragic, hailing from Slovenia, caught the attention of NBA scouts when he led his club team, Union Olimpija, to the 2008 league championship and earned the Finals MVP recognition. The Phoenix Suns picked him in the Second Round of that year's draft, and he made his way to the United States. However, Dragic didn't get much playing time during his two-and-a-half seasons with the Suns, averaging less than 20 minutes per game. He only…