![]() ![]() He had a great start to his career, developing into a strong scorer in short stints with the Celtics, Denver Nuggets, Orlando Magic, and Chicago Bulls. 6 overall pick Ron Mercer, a guard known for his tremendous mid-range game. In 1997, Rick Pitino’s Boston Celtics drafted No. Ron Mercer Forward Ron Mercer of the Kentucky Wildcats sits on the bench | Andy Lyons/Allsport Patterson also spent three seasons at Kentucky, averaging 16.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game in college.Ģ2. He’s also played for the Sacramento Kings and Toronto Raptors - the latter is his current team - in his seven NBA seasons, averaging 7.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game so far in his career. Patterson was drafted a year later, going No. 14 overall to the Houston Rockets in 2010. Power forward Patrick Patterson was Meeks’ teammate during his time at Kentucky. Patrick Patterson Patrick Patterson of the Toronto Raptors shoots the ball as Tyler Zeller of the Boston Celtics defends | Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images Meeks played three years at Kentucky, averaging 23.7 points in his final year before declaring for the draft. His best year was in 2013 –14 with the Los Angeles Lakers, when he averaged 15.7 points per game and hit 162 threes. In recent years, he’s become a solid role player and an excellent three-point shooter. The Milwaukee Bucks drafted Jodie Meeks, a current NBA guard, in the second round of the 2009 draft. Jodie Meeks Jodie Meeks of the Los Angeles Lakers controls the ball against Randy Foye of the Denver Nuggets | Doug Pensinger/Getty Images McCarty left Kentucky for the NBA after three seasons, averaging 9.2 points and 5.1 rebounds. ![]() McCarty played eight of his 10 NBA seasons as a Celtic, averaging 5.7 points per game while he was there. That’s where he made a name for himself as a defender and a guy who could hit the occasional spot-up three-pointer. You can just hear those Boston accents saying “Walter McCarty.” He was drafted No. 19 overall by the New York Knicks in 1997 and dealt to the Celtics after his rookie season. Walter McCarty Walter McCarty of the Boston Celtics waits for a free throw in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the New Jersey Nets | Ezra Shaw/Getty Imagesįorward Walter McCarty was born to play in Boston with the Celtics. Here are the 25 best NBA players to come from Kentucky. In truth, the Wildcats have done that since before Calipari arrived, too. Since becoming the head coach back in 2009, Kentucky has made several deep runs in the NCAA tournament and has won one championship.Ĭalipari has done more than just win, though, becoming the master of developing NBA players. The University of Kentucky has always had one of the better basketball programs in men’s college basketball, but they’ve become increasingly great by the year under the leadership of head coach John Calipari. John Calipari poses with Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist | Elsa/Getty Images ![]()
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