Just the facts: UW has 30 NBA Draft picks. Where does that rank?
LARAMIE -- We asked this very same question back in late May. Only that time we were discussing Wyoming players to hear their names called in the NFL Draft.
On the hoops side of things, 30 former Wyoming Cowboys have gotten the call on draft day, the latest being Justin James, who was selected with the 40th overall pick in the second round in 2019.
So, who are the other 29?
Let's get a roll call:
Bill Strannigan - 5th round, No. 46 overall - St. Louis Bombers - 1947
Ron Livingstone - 5th round, No. 45 overall - New York Knicks - 1947
Keith Bloom - 10th round, No. 112 overall - Tri-Cities Blackhawks - 1950
Loy Doty - 8th round, No. 88 overall - Tri-Cities Blackhawks - 1950
Jerry Reed - 4th round, No. 38 overall - Baltimore Bullets - 1950
John Pilch - 2nd round, 14th overall - Baltimore Bullets - 1950
Cliff Haag - 7th round, No. 70 overall - Minneapolis Lakers - 1952
Moe Radovich - 3rd round, No. 24 overall - Philadelphia Warriors - 1952
Ron Rivers - 6th round, No. 53 overall - New York Knicks -1954
Harry Jorgensen - 10th round, No. 72 overall - Rochester Royals - 1955
Ed Huse - 12th round, No. 81 overall - St. Louis Hawks - 1956
Tony Windis - 5th round, No. 32 overall - Detroit Pistons - 1959
Flynn Robinson - 2nd round, No. 15 overall - Cincinnati Royals - 1965
Leon Clark - 2nd round, No. 18 overall - Boston Celtics - 1966
Mike Eberle - 16th round, No. 195 overall - Los Angeles Lakers - 1968
Harry Hall - 12th round, No. 159 overall - Chicago Bulls - 1969
Carl Ashley - 9th round, No. 146 overall - Phoenix Suns - 1970
Willie Roberson - 13th round, No. 202 overall - Detroit Pistons - 1971
Stan Boyer - 7th round, No. 123 overall - Golden State Warriors - 1975
Ken Ollie - 9th round, No. 188 overall - Utah Jazz - 1981
Charles Bradley - 1st round, No. 23 overall - Boston Celtics - 1981
Chris Engler - 3rd round, No. 60 overall - Golden State Warriors - 1982
Bill Garnett - 1st round, No. 4 overall - Dallas Mavericks - 1982
Mike Jackson - 4th round, No. 84 overall - Kansas City Kings - 1983
Tony Martin - 6th round, No. 123 overall - Golden State Warriors - 1984
Fennis Dembo - 2nd round, No. 30 overall - Detroit Pistons - 1988
Eric Leckner - 1st round, No. 17 overall - Utah Jazz - 1988
Theo Ratliff - 1st round, No. 18 overall - Detroit Pistons - 1995
Larry Nance Jr. - 1st round, No. 27 overall - Los Angeles Lakers - 2015
Justin James - 2nd round, No. 40 overall - Sacramento Kings - 2019
Did you notice a few prominent names are missing from this list?
Reggie Slater? Josh Davis? Tim Breaux? Justin Williams? Kenny Sailors?
Yeah, those guys never got the call, yet they combined to play 27 professional seasons.
JUST THE FACTS SERIES:
* 21 titles and counting
* Pokes, Rebels hang banners
* 2,000-point club
* Steppingstone U?
Let's see how the Cowboys draft numbers matchup against current Mountain West foes:
Air Force: 2
Boise State: 10
Colorado State: 22
Fresno State: 22
Nevada: 18
New Mexico: 39
San Diego State: 27
San Jose State: 13
UNLV: 53
Utah State: 25
Wyoming: 30
And, last but not least, let's check out the highest draft pick from each school and the number of first-round selections each has had:
Air Force: Tom Schneeburger - 9th round, No. 183 overall - Denver Nuggets - 1978; Zero first-round draft picks
Boise State: Chandler Hutchison - 1st round, No. 22 overall - Chicago Bulls - 2018; 1 first-round draft pick
Colorado State: Bill Green - 1st round, No. 8 overall - Boston Celtics - 1963; 2 first-round draft picks Celtics
Fresno State: Paul George - 1st round, No. 10 overall - Indiana Pacers - 2010; 5 first-round draft picks
Nevada: Kirk Snyder - 1st round, No. 16 overall - Utah Jazz - 2004; Luke Babbitt - 1st round, No. 16 overall - Minnesota Timberwolves - 2010; 3 first-round draft picks
New Mexico: Luc Longley - 1st round, No. 7 overall - Minnesota Timberwolves - 1991; 8 first-round draft picks
San Diego State: Michael Cage - 1st round, No. 14 overall - San Diego Clippers - 1984; 3 first-round draft picks
San Jose State: Darnell Hillman - 1st round, No. 8 overall - Golden State Warriors - 1971; 4 first-round draft picks
UNLV: Larry Johnson - 1st round, No. 1 overall - Charlotte Hornets - 1991; Anthony Bennett - 1st round, No. 1 overall - Cleveland Cavaliers - 2013; 16 first-round draft picks
Utah State: Nate Williams - 1st round, No. 1 overall - Cincinnati Royals - 1971; 2 first-round draft picks
Wyoming: Bill Garnett -- 1st round, No. 4 overall - Dallas Mavericks - 1982: 5 first-round draft picks
You think the Mountain West can produce some talent?
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