Colleges with most players on 2022-23 NBA opening day rosters
NEW YORK (BVM) – The NBA has become a global league. With 120 international players from 40 different countries and six continents, this much is clear. However, many players, both international and from the U.S., made their way to the sport‘s biggest league through American colleges.
Over 120 different universities are represented by a player on an NBA opening day roster. The ACC has the most players in the league with 84 while the SEC has 81 and the PAC 12 is third with 69. Nine colleges or universities have double-digit players on rosters, showing their ability to produce top-end professional talent.
Below is the list of the top five universities with the most players on NBA opening day rosters.
Editor’s note: Players‘ colleges/universities are from their roster profiles on NBA.com. Additionally, two-way contracts and inactive players are included.
5. Arizona, Kansas, Texas and Villanova (10 players)
Given a pair of recent NCAA champions (Kansas and Villanova) in the group, it comes as no surprise that those schools have good representation within the league. Notable Kansas alumni include Joel Embiid, Andrew Wiggins and the Morris twins. For Villanova, they are led by Kyle Lowery and have a group of solid role players including Mikal Bridges and Dante DiVincenzo.
Arizona, another reputable program, has a group that includes DeAndre Ayton, Andre Iguodala and Aaron Gordon. The Texas Longhorns are led by perennial All-Star Kevin Durant and have a good core with centers Jarrett Allen and Myles Turner.
4. North Carolina and USC (11 players)
Last year’s NCAA runner-up, North Carolina, also is well represented in the league. With the third-most NCAA championships in its illustrious history, this does not come as a surprise. Notable alumni in the NBA include Harrison Barnes, Reggie Bullock and Danny Green.
USC is made up of a group of mostly solid veterans. This includes All-Stars DeMar DeRozan and Nikola Vucevic as well as Taj Gibson and Dewayne Dedmon among others. They also have a few up-and-coming players like the Mobley brothers for the Cleveland Cavaliers.
3. UCLA (12 players)
With UCLA’s long-standing basketball history, it comes as no surprise that the program has produced a high number of NBA players. Given its reputation in the college basketball world and its prime location in the country, UCLA has proven that despite its lack of championships over the past few decades, they are still able to bring in some of the best players.
UCLA has a wide variety of players in the league including All-Stars like Jrue Holiday, Kevin Love, Zach Lavine and Russell Westbrook. They also have role players like Lonzo Ball and Kevon Looney to fortify their group.
2. Duke (25 players)
Now comes the cream of the crop. Duke not only has over 20 players in the league but has more than doubled the next closest team on this list. The Blue Devils not only get a lot of players into the NBA, but they also have some of the league’s top players as well.
Among Duke alumni in the NBA are All-Stars Kyrie Irving, Brandon Ingram, Jayson Tatum and Zion Williamson. As is well documented, the program has also produced a number of top NBA Draft picks which include RJ Barrett, Marvin Bagley III and Wendell Carter Jr. That is truly just scratching the surface of how many Blue Devils are in the NBA and how skilled they are, but Duke is still behind one other program.
1. Kentucky (27 players)
Another reputable program with many well-known NBA players, the Kentucky Wildcats reign supreme on this list. With 27 players, the Wildcats beat out the Blue Devils by a hair but show their dominance over the rest of the college basketball world in terms of producing NBA talent.
Notable Wildcats alumni include perennial All-Stars Anthony Davis, Devin Booker and Karl Anthony-Towns. The list is not top-heavy though as they have talent all over the NBA including big names like Bam Adebayo, De’Aaron Fox, Jamal Murray, Julius Randle and John Wall. They also recently drafted players like Shaedon Sharpe, Tyrese Maxey and TyTy Washington to bring the team into the future.
