The 1997 NBA draft took place on June 25, 1997, at

Charlotte Coliseum Charlotte Coliseum was a multi-purpose sports and entertainment arena located in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was operated by the Charlotte Coliseum Authority, which also oversees the operation of Bojangles' Coliseum (which was called Charlott ...

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, Meckl ...

. The Vancouver Grizzlies had the highest probability to win the NBA draft lottery, but since they were an expansion team along with the Toronto Raptors they were not allowed to select first in this draft. Although the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of ...

had the second-worst record in the 1996–97 season and the best odds (36 percent) of winning the lottery with two picks, the Spurs lost David Robinson and Sean Elliott to injury early in the season, finished with the third-worst record, and subsequently won the lottery. Leading up to the draft, there was no doubt that Tim Duncan would be selected at No. 1 by the Spurs as he was considered to be far and away the best prospect. After Duncan, the rest of the draft was regarded with some skepticism.Peter May. May 21, 2007. "Luck of draw went Spurs' way in '97 with Duncan - The Boston Globe". ''Boston Globe''
/ref> The Celtics had the third and sixth picks, selecting Chauncey Billups and Ron Mercer, both of whom were traded in the next two years. The

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

forfeited their 1997 first-round pick in connection with the signing of Juwan Howard. (Washington would have had the 17th pick.) Thus, the draft only had 28 first-round selections and 57 selections overall.

Draft selections

Notable undrafted players

These players eligible for the 1997 NBA Draft were not selected but played in the NBA. Burke Pat

Early entrants

College underclassmen

The following

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

players successfully applied for early draft entrance. * Gracen Averil – G, Texas Tech (junior) * Tony Battie – F/C, Texas Tech (junior) * Chauncey Billups – G,

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

(sophomore) * Carl Blanton – F, Sinclair CC (junior) * Mark Blount – C/F,

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

(sophomore) * C. J. Bruton – G, Indian Hills CC (sophomore) * Dan Buie – F,

Washburn Washburn (alternatively Wasseburne, Wasseborne, Wasshebourne, Wassheborne, Washbourne, Washburne, Washborne, Washborn, Wasborn, Washbon) is a toponymic surname, probably of Old English origin, with likely Anglo-Norman and Norman-French influenc ...

(junior) * James Cotton – G, Long Beach State (junior) * Tony Doyle – F,

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

(junior) * Ian Folmar – F, Slippery Rock (junior) *

Danny Fortson Daniel Anthony Fortson (born March 27, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. He played the power forward and center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1997 to 2007. Early life Although born in P ...

– F,

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

(junior) * Adonal Foyle – C/F, Colgate (junior) * Darryl Hardy – F, Winston–Salem State (junior) * Antjonne Holmes – F, Central Baptist (freshman) * Troy Hudson – G,

Southern Illinois Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of the Upland South than the Mi ...

(junior) * Marc Jackson – F/C,

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called church (building), churches), Hindui ...

* Stephen Jackson – F/G, Butler CC (freshman) * Ed Jenkins – F, Ohio State (junior) * Marcus Johnson – F, Long Beach State (junior) * Damon Jones – G,

Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...

(junior) * Nate Langley – G,

George Mason George Mason (October 7, 1792) was an American planter, politician, Founding Father, and delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, one of the three delegates present who refused to sign the Constitution. His writings, including s ...

(junior) * Keith Love – G,

Rosary The Rosary (; la, , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), also known as the Dominican Rosary, or simply the Rosary, refers to a set of prayers used primarily in the Catholic Church, and to the physical string of knots or ...

(junior) *

Gordon Malone Gordon Malone (born July 17, 1974) raised in Brooklyn, NY, is a former basketball player who played college basketball for West Virginia. In high school, Malone was the most feared block specialist in the northeast. He once blocked a ball so ha ...

– F,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the ...

(junior) * Amere May – F, Shaw (junior) * Elgie McCoy – F,

Kutztown Kutztown (Pennsylvania German: ''Kutzeschteddel'') is a borough in Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located southwest of Allentown and northeast of Reading. As of the 2010 census, the borough had a population of 5,012. Kutztown ...

(junior) * Ron Mercer – G/F,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virgini ...

(sophomore) * Victor Page – G, Georgetown (sophomore) * Shawn Ritzie – G, Norwalk CC (sophomore) * Paul Rogers – F/C,

Gonzaga Gonzaga may refer to: Places * Gonzaga, Lombardy, commune in the province of Mantua, Italy * Gonzaga, Cagayan, municipality in the Philippines *Gonzaga, Minas Gerais, town in Brazil *Forte Gonzaga, fort in Messina, Sicily People with the surna ...

(junior) * Bryon Ruffner – F, BYU (junior) * Olivier Saint-Jean – San Jose State (junior) *

Mark Sanford Marshall Clement "Mark" Sanford Jr. (born May 28, 1960) is an American politician and author who served as the U.S. Representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district from 1995 to 2001 and again from 2013 to 2019, and also as th ...

– F, Washington (junior) * God Shammgod – G, Providence (sophomore) * Maurice Taylor – F,

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

(junior) * Tim Thomas – F, Villanova (freshman) * Mark Young – F, Kansas State (junior)

High school players

The following high school players successfully applied for early draft entrance. * Tracy McGrady – G/F, Mount Zion Christian Academy ( Durham, North Carolina)

International players

The following international players successfully applied for early draft entrance. *

Marko Milič Marko Milič (born May 7, 1977) is a Slovenian former professional basketball player. He represented the senior Slovenian national basketball team. Professional career After being selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1997 NBA draft (34th pic ...

– G/F,

Smelt Olimpija Košarkarski klub Olimpija ( en, Olimpija Basketball Club) was a men's professional basketball club based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Olimpija has won 23 National League championships, including eight consecutive titles between 1992 and 1999. They ...

(

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

)

Other eligible players

References

External links

*
1997 NBA Draft
at Basketball-reference {{DEFAULTSORT:1997 Nba Draft Draft National Basketball Association draft National Basketball Association lists