Who Was The Youngest NBA Player?
Contents
The youngest player in the NBA is Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans. Williamson was born on July 6, 2000, and he made his debut with the Pelicans on October 22, 2019.
Introduction
In order to be eligible to be drafted into the NBA, a player must be at least 19 years old during the calendar year of the draft. So, the answer to the question “Who was the youngest NBA player?” is quite simple – anyone who was 18 years old or younger on December 31st of the year they were drafted.
With that being said, there have been some incredibly young players Drafted into the NBA over the years. The following is a list of the 10 youngest players ever drafted, as well as some additional information about each player.
The NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams, and each team plays 82 games in the regular season. The regular season runs from October through April, and the postseason runs from April through June.
The NBA began in 1946 as the Basketball Association of America (BAA). The BAA was formed by owners of the major arenas in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States. The BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1949, and the NBA was born.
The NBA is subdivided into two conferences, the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference. Each conference has three divisions, and each division has five teams. The conference winner with the best record in all of the NBA playoffs is crowned the NBA champion.
Many great players have played in the NBA, including Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Shaquille O’Neal.
The Youngest NBA Player
The youngest player in NBA history is LeBron James. He was just 18 years old when he was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2003.
Since then, LeBron has gone on to become one of the greatest players of all time. He’s won four NBA MVP Awards, three NBA Finals MVP Awards, and two Olympic gold medals. He’s also a 16-time All-Star and a 10-time All-NBA First Team selection.
Why They Were The Youngest NBA Player
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional men’s basketball league in North America, composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). It is one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, and is widely considered to be the premier men’s professional basketball league in the world.
A player must be 19 years of age or older during the calendar year of the draft to be eligible for selection. In terms of U.S. players, they must be at least one year out of high school. Foreign players who are not international players are automatically eligible if they turn 19 during or before the calendar year of the draft, regardless of whether they turn 20 during that year.
The following is a list of players who were drafted into the NBA while still 19 years old:
-Kobe Bryant was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th overall pick in 1996 NBA Draft out of Lower Merion High School (Ardmore, Pennsylvania). He was traded on draft night to the Los Angeles Lakers for Vlade Divac.
-LeBron James was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft out of St. Vincent–St. Mary High School (Akron, Ohio).
-Dwight Howard was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick in 2004 NBA Draft out of Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy (Atlanta, Georgia).
-Andrew Bogut was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks with the first overall pick in 2005 NBA Draft out of University of Utah (Salt Lake City, Utah). He became a naturalized Australian citizen in April 2006.
-Derrick Rose was drafted by the Chicago Bulls with first overall pick in 2008 NBA Draft out of Memphis University School (Memphis, Tennessee).
Conclusion
The youngest player in NBA history is Andrew Bynum, who was 19 years, 6 days old when he made his debut with the Los Angeles Lakers on November 2, 2005. He played in 82 games that season and averaged 7.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.