The 2003 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2003, at

The Theater at Madison Square Garden The Theater at Madison Square Garden is a theater located in New York City's Madison Square Garden (MSG). It seats between 2,000 and 5,600 people and is used for concerts, shows, sports, meetings, and other events. It is situated beneath the main ...

in New York City, New York. The NBA announced that 41 college and high school players and a record 31 international players had filed as early-entry candidates for the

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

NBA draft. The

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

, who had a 22.50 percent probability of obtaining the first selection, won the

NBA draft lottery The NBA draft lottery is an annual event held by the National Basketball Association (NBA), in which the teams who had missed the playoffs the previous year participate in a lottery process to determine the draft order in the NBA draft. The NBA d ...

on May 22, and Cleveland chairman Gordon Gund said afterward his team would select

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. ( ; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is the NBA's all-time leading scorer and ...

, and they did. The

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

and the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

were second and third, respectively. This draft was the first draft to be aired on

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

after they picked up the license from

TNT Troponin T (shortened TnT or TropT) is a part of the troponin complex, which are proteins integral to the contraction of skeletal and heart muscles. They are expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes. Troponin T binds to tropomyosin and helps ...

. The 2003 draftees represented one of the deepest talent pools in NBA history. The draft contained 15 players who combined for 26 championships. Four of the top five picks are NBA All-Stars and " Redeem Team" Olympic Gold Medalists:

Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Kyam Anthony ( ; born May 29, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. Anthony played 19 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and is a ten-time NBA All-Star Game, NBA All-Star and six-time All-NBA T ...

Chris Bosh Christopher Wesson Bosh (born March 24, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. A Texas Mr. Basketball in high school, he played one season of college basketball for Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets men's basketball, Georgia Tech ...

Dwyane Wade Dwyane Tyrone Wade Jr. ( or , born January 17, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who is currently the co-owner of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association. He is also currently the host of the American a ...

, and

Overview

Four of the top five picks of the 2003 draft became NBA All-Stars and " Redeem Team" Olympic Gold Medalists:

, and

. Nine players have participated in an

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...

was named

NBA Finals MVP The Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (formerly known as the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1969 NBA Finals. The award is decided by a panel of eleven medi ...

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

and won

NBA championship The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern and Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league ...

s with the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

in 2006, 2012 and 2013, as well as the NBA All Star Game MVP in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

Boris Diaw Boris Babacar Diaw-Riffiod (born 16 April 1982), better known as Boris Diaw, is a French basketball executive and former player who is the president of Metropolitans 92 of LNB Pro A. Diaw began his playing career in Pro A and returned to that lea ...

won the Most Improved Player Award in

, Jason Kapono won the three point shootout in back-to-back years in 2007 and 2008, James Jones won the three point shootout in 2011, Leandro Barbosa won the Sixth Man Award in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

Kyle Korver Kyle Elliot Korver (born March 17, 1981) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is the assistant general manager for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for ...

set the NBA record for three point shooting percentage in

(53.6%), and in the

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, and

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

seasons, LeBron James won the

NBA Most Valuable Player Award The NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1955–56 season to the best performing player of the regular season. Since the 2022–23 season, winners receive the Michael Jor ...

, and the

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, and

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

won the 2013 NBA scoring title and was the only player in NBA history to win at least three Olympic gold medals until

Kevin Durant Kevin Wayne Durant (born September 29, 1988), also known by his initials KD, is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Durant has won two List of NBA champions, NBA champ ...

won his third one in

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

. Zaza Pachulia and David West won

s with the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

in 2017 and 2018. Matt Bonner won NBA championships with the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

in 2007 and 2014. Dahntay Jones and Mo Williams won the NBA championship in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Luke Walton Luke Theodore Walton (born March 28, 1980) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the lead assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 10 seasons in the NBA as a ...

won three NBA championships, two as a player with the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

in 2009 and 2010 and one as an assistant coach with the Warriors in 2015.

left the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

in 2010 as its all-time leader in points, rebounds, blocks, double doubles, free throws made and attempted, and minutes played; he went on to win championships with the Miami Heat in 2012 and 2013. The 2003 draft class has drawn comparisons to the

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

and

1996 NBA draft The 1996 NBA draft was the 50th NBA draft, draft in the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held on June 26, 1996–97 NBA season, 1996, at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In this draft, NBA teams took turns s ...

classes but is also known for the Detroit Pistons' selection of Darko Miličić with the second overall pick over other prospects who went on to have much more success in the league. As of 2025, LeBron James is the only remaining active player from the 2003 draft class. Eleven of the players selected in this draft never played in an NBA game throughout their professional basketball careers. Two of those players were the sole selection of the draft by their respective teams:

Malick Badiane Malick Badiane (born January 1, 1984) is a Senegalese former professional basketball player. He played mainly as a center, but could also play at the power forward position. He is 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) in height. Club career Early years Ba ...

(Houston's only pick) and Paccelis Morlende (Philadelphia's only pick).

Draft selections

Notable undrafted players

These players were not selected in the 2003 NBA draft, but have played at least one game in the NBA.

Draft lottery

Early entrants

College underclassmen

In terms of underclassmen declaring for this year's draft, the number of players available for entry this year would increase up to 73 after previously being down a bit the previous year. However, it would also see the most withdrawn entries from underclassmen either in college, overseas, or even high school in the case of Charlie Villanueva with 27 total people doing exactly that. As such, there would actually be 46 underclassmen that qualified as such for this year's draft, which would be an overall step down when compared to last year's official number of underclassmen entering the NBA draft. The following

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

players successfully applied for early draft entrance. * Chris Alexander – C, Iowa State (junior) *

– F, Syracuse (freshman) * Mario Austin – F,

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, United States. It is classified among "R ...

(junior) * Ronald Blackshear – G,

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

(junior) *

– F,

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

(freshman) * Lamar Castile – G, CC of Beaver County (sophomore) * Rod Edwards – G, Ouachita Baptist (junior) * Carl English – G,

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

(junior) * T. J. Ford – G,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

(sophomore) * Zack Fray – F, Santa Ana (sophomore) * Jonathan Hargett – G,

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

(freshman) * David Hamilton – F, Salem International (junior) * Jarvis Hayes – F/G,

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

(junior) * Maurice Jackson – F, Texas–Permian (junior) * Richard Jeter – G, Atlanta Metro (sophomore) * Chris Kaman – C,

Central Michigan Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, Lower Peninsula of the United States, U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said t ...

(junior) * Josh Powell – F, NC State (sophomore) * Rick Rickert – F,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

(sophomore) * Luke Ridnour – G,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

(junior) * Rob Smith – F, North Carolina Wesleyan (junior) *

Michael Sweetney Michael Damien Sweetney (born October 25, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He is now the assistant coach of the Yeshiva University Men's basketball team and head coach of the girls varsity basketball team at New York's ...

– F, Georgetown (junior) *

– G, Marquette (junior) * Mo Williams – G,

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

(sophomore) * Doug Wrenn – F/G, Washington (junior)

High school players

This would be the ninth straight year in a row where at least one high school player would declare their entry into the NBA draft directly out of high school after previously only allowing it one time back in

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

. However, it would be one of the most famous ones due to the entry of high school phenom

entering the NBA draft this year, being the second high schooler to be drafted at #1 behind only Kwame Brown back in

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, as well as being the second high schooler to win the

NBA Rookie of the Year Award The National Basketball Association's Rookie of the Year is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given to the top rookie(s) of the regular season. Initiated following the 1952–53 NBA season, it confers the Eddie Gottlieb Tr ...

behind

Amar'e Stoudemire Amar'e Carsares Stoudemire (born November 16, 1982) is an American-Israeli professional basketball coach and former player who most recently served as a player development assistant for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NB ...

only a year prior. This draft also saw a high schooler named Charlie Villanueva initially enter for the NBA draft, but withdraw his name and go to college before the draft began. The following high school players successfully applied for early draft entrance. * Ndudi Ebi – F, Westbury Christian School (

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

) *

– G, St. Vincent–St. Mary High School (

Akron, Ohio Akron () is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, fifth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 190,469 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Akron metr ...

) * James Lang – F, Central Park Christian High School (

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Alabama, Jefferson County. The population was 200,733 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List ...

) * Travis Outlaw – F, Starkville High School (

Starkville, Mississippi Starkville is a city in and the county seat of Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, Starkville's population is 24,360, making it the 16th-most populated city in Mississippi. Starkville is the largest ...

) * Kendrick Perkins – F, Clifton J. Ozen High School (

Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, located in Southeast Texas on the Neches River about east of Houston (city ...

)

International players

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

– F, Langen (

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

) * Leandro Barbosa – G, Bauru Tilibra (

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

) * Carlos Delfino – G, Skipper Bologna (

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

) *

– F, Pau-Orthez (

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

) * Maciej Lampe – F, Universidad Complutense (

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

) * Darko Miličić – F, Hemofarm Vršac (

Serbia and Montenegro The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro or simply Serbia and Montenegro, known until 2003 as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and commonly referred to as FR Yugoslavia (FRY) or simply Yugoslavia, was a country in Southeast Europe locate ...

) * Zaza Pachulia – F/C, Ülker (

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

) * Aleksandar Pavlović – G/F, Budućnost (

) * Mickaël Piétrus – G, Pau-Orthez (

) * Zoran Planinić – G, Cibona (

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

) * Sofoklis Schortsanitis – F, Iraklis (

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

) *

Nedžad Sinanović Nedžad Sinanović (born 29 January 1983) is a Bosnian former basketball player. Professional career In 2003, Sinanović was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American ...

– C, Brotnjo (

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

) * Jón Arnór Stefánsson – G,

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

(

) * Szymon Szewczyk – F,

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( ; from Low German , local dialect: ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

(

) * Remon van de Hare – C/F,

FC Barcelona Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly known as FC Barcelona and colloquially as Barça (), is a professional Football club (association football), football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of ...

(

) * Slavko Vraneš – C, Budućnost (

) * Xue Yuyang – F, Hong Kong Flying Dragons (

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

)

References

* *

External links

ESPN.com Draft 2003
* * {{Featured list

Draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

NBA draft

NBA draft The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947 BAA draft, 1947, in which the teams in the league can Draft (sports), draft players who declare for the draft and that are Eligibility for the NBA dr ...

2000s in Manhattan Basketball in New York City Sporting events in New York City Sports in Manhattan

Overview

Draft selections

Notable undrafted players

Draft lottery

Early entrants

College underclassmen

High school players

International players

See also

References

External links