Blast from the past: Do you remember these 7 NBA players?

Fans of a certain age surely remember the name Mickael Pietrus. The France native was drafted 11th overall by the Warriors in the 2003 NBA Draft and had a very solid 10-year NBA career.

Of course, there are others in his draft class who are remembered for more remarkable careers. Players like LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade were all selected ahead of Pietrus and are in the Basketball Hall of Fame (in James’ case, it is safe to say he will be enshrined in Springfield as soon as he is eligible).

But today isn’t about those stars. It’s about the Mickael Pietrus’ of the world, the ones who make you go, “Oh yeah, I remember that guy”.

We hope this trip down memory lane gives you a pleasant dose of nostalgia.

Evans is likely the most touted player on this list. A former five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American game MVP, Evans was selected fourth overall by the Sacramento Kings following a spectacular one year stopgap at Memphis in John Calipari’s final season before bolting for Kentucky.

Over 10 NBA seasons, which included stints with the Kings (twice), Pelicans, Grizzlies and Pacers, Evans averaged 15.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.8 assists. He never lived up to his rookie season, in which he won Rookie of the Year and averaged a career-high 20.1 points. Evans is now 34 years old and last played professionally in Venezuela in 2023.

The prototypical journeyman, Jack played for eight franchises in 13 NBA seasons, never lasting in one city for longer than three years. As a college sophomore, Jack led Georgia Tech to the Final Four, falling to UConn in the National Championship. Jack was drafted 22nd overall by Portland in 2005 and averaged 10.8 points and 4.6 assists over 867 career NBA games.

Some of his career accomplishments include being a finalist for Sixth Man of the Year twice, a pair of triple-doubles and a career-high of 35 points. Jack is currently an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons.

Budinger’s NBA career only lasted seven seasons but he made the most of it. Another former five-star recruit, Budinger played three seasons at Arizona winning Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and eventually becoming first-team All Pac-10. Budinger was drafted in the second round by Houston, where he played for three seasons.

The former dunk contest runner-up made over $18 million in his career and retired seven years ago at the age of 29 to focus on a volleyball career. Budinger averaged just under eight points per game over his NBA career, never quite cracking double figures in a season.

Born and raised in Seattle, the 6-foot-6 lefty played collegiately in his home city at the Univeristy of Washington before being drafted in the first round of the 2012 NBA Draft by the Grizzlies. Wroten didn’t last as long in the league as some of these other players, but he did have some success over his four NBA seasons.

Traded by Memphis after his rookie season in which he averaged under eight minutes in 35 games, Wroten got some pretty high usage on some really bad 76ers teams. He averaged 13.8 points in three seasons in Philadelphia. After his NBA career ended, Wroten played for six teams overseas from 2018-2022. Today, he is 30 years old.

Moore was not as highly touted coming out of high school as some of the other players mentioned, but he may have had the most productive college basketball career, playing four years at Purdue and scoring over 2,000 points.

As for Moore’s NBA career? Drafted in the second round by the Celtics in 2011, Moore played 10 seasons in the league with five different teams. He averaged 7.9 points overall, including 12.5 in 2017-18 with the Pelicans. In that season, he was a finalist for Most Improved Player.

One of the more disappointing top draft picks, Thabeet was selected by Memphis with the second overall pick in 2009. To cite his career numbers runs the risk of saddening Grizzlies fans, but they must be cited: 2.2 points and 2.7 rebounds over five NBA seasons. He never scored more than 13 points in an NBA game.

Even more depressing? Thabeet was selected ahead of eventual NBA MVPs James Harden and Stephen Curry. On the bright side, at least the Tanzania native accumulated an estimated $16.8 million in NBA career earnings.

Last but not least, how about a shout-out to the second-shortest player in NBA history? At 5-foot-5, only Muggsy Bogues was smaller in stature than Boykins, who went unselected in the 1998 NBA Draft. Boykins played 13 seasons in the league and was often a spark plug off the bench. Boykins finished top 10 in Sixth Man of the Year voting in four straight seasons, from 2003-2006.

Boykins scored at least 30 points seven times and was a fan favorite wherever he played. He is currently 47 years old and has spent the past three seasons as an assistant coach at UTEP under Joe Golding.

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