The Iowa Hawkeyes in NBA Draft History

With the NBA Draft upon us, BTPowerhouse continues to look at the draft histories of Big Ten programs. Today we take a look at the Iowa Hawkeyes who, depending on tonights happenings, could be well on their way back to their Eighties Era Draft Party.

Iowa Hawkeyes Currently in the NBA:

Keep fighting the good fight Reg:

My, my, my Reggie Evans.

This is the type of story every "on the fringe senior" dreams of. Undrafted in 2002, Evans signed with the Seattle SuperSonics on a one year deal. After starting 60 games and averaging almost seven boards and 2.58 of the hardest fouls west of the Mississippi, he re-signed for a multi-year contract. During his 13-year career Evans has carved out a niche as an insufferable rebounder that's purely resentless on the glass.

The "Hardhat and Lunch Pail" type, if you will.

When talking about Devyn Marble, well, lets just hope 2015 is a little more stable for the former All-Big Ten player. Marble was sent down to the D-League and called back on three separate occasions before having season ending retina surgery. The good news is that the Orlando Magic seem to look invested in the young guard, so things can only look brighter now...right?

Hawkeyes in the NBA Draft

Since 1980, the Hawkeyes have had an astonishing 15 players selected in the first two rounds of the NBA Draft and an additional 13 players in the third round or later (the league went from ten rounds through 1984, down to seven rounds until 1989 when they brought it down to two).

First Round Picks

Second Round Picks

Two quick things:

1. Boy could George Raveling recruit 'em. B.J. Armstrong, Roy Marble and Ed Horton are still the three best Iowa teammates in the school's history and that's before talking about their other teammates that were drafted in Kevin Gamble and Les Jepsen. The three of these program benchmarks are Iowa staples, whose statues of Black and Old Gold marble are deep within the Hawkeye Pantheon.

Below are some highlights from their 98-97 win at North Carolina to start their season at 13-0:

Marble was the definition of a "swing man" in the purest way (he shot 52.5% from field and averaged 20.5 points as a senior), Armstrong was tenacious with fantastic vision around the court and a knack for seeing passing lanes before they were even there (or basically, the opposite of the Cully Payne jump pass). And my lord, Ed Horton. It's not even fair. While both Marble and Horton had very short lived NBA careers, Horton was a monster for Iowa with a body that was more Georgetown Patrick Ewing than Joe Barry Caroll. Horton played the most minutes on the team (mind you, he was a 6'8", 230 pound power forward) on top of averaging a double-double his senior year (18.3 points and 10.6 rebounds).

2. I miss Adam Haluska

Hope for the future?

Besides Adam Woodbury spurning the NBA to then be drafted by the WWE because "The Hawkeye 'Bow Drop" is the next greatest finishing move outside of "The People's Elbow"?

It has to be Aaron White, who is looking to be the second player in the Fran McCaffery era to be drafted. While White seems to be an all and out lock for the second round, where and when he will go is up for debate among the mock drafts floating around the web. With his high efficiency as a scorer, ability to fill the lane and cut to the hoop and surprising athleticism he can be a beneficial role player for any team.

Another player that might have surprised some GM's and scouts alike is Gabe Olaseni. The senior big brings major plus defensive capabilities that will surely turn heads. But the 23-year old slides when it comes putting the ball in the basket. With Olaseni picking up the game late in his career, he's behind most players that are up for selection tonight, but his raw athleticism, natural length at 6'10" and habitual effort will be hard to ignore late, late, late in the draft or early in free agency.

If I had to put a few sheckles on it, I'd say Olaseni misses out on hearing his name called, but gets an onslaught of offers for Summer League the minute they turn the lights off at the Barclays Center.