9. Emeka Okafor

Published in Top 50 Charlotte Hornets
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The second overall draft pick of the Charlotte Bobcats and the first-ever pick for the Charlotte Bobcats gets a bad rap in many circles. Many articles have been written calling him a bust, but the fact remains that Okafor averaged a double-double every season of his run in Charlotte and was also the Rookie of the Year.

Okafor would appear on many end-of-season top-ten lists for rebounding and blocking, and while he is out of the NBA, it was due to a herniated disc. The big man never had a season with advanced metrics, and while he was never a dominant force in professional basketball, he was certainly above average. That isn’t a bad thing to have from your center for five years!

The Bullet Points

Position: Center, Power Forward
Acquired: Drafted in the 1st Round, 2nd Overall in the NBA Draft 6/24/04.
Departed: Traded to the New Orleans Hornets for Tyson Chandler 7/28/09.
Games Played: 330
Per Game Averages: 34.0 MP
.506 eFG%
596 FT%
14.0 PTS
10.7 RB
0.9 AST
0.8 STL
1.7 BLK

No Playoff Games
Advanced Stats: 17.7 PER
.532 TS%
4.4 VORP
26.2 WS

No Playoff Games
Major Accolades and Awards: Rookie of the Year (2005)
First Team All-Rookie (2005)