9 Biggest NBA Draft Busts in Last 5 Years

Feb 20, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Hasheem Thabeet (34) passes the ball during the fourth quarter against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. The Rockets defeated the Thunder 122-119. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA draft is always tricky. Scouts have to dig deep beyond the stats of a certain player before they make their selection. In a lot of ways, the draft is a mine field, full of potential busts that teams try to avoid. A player that comes off a successful collegiate career won’t necessarily make a great NBA player.

There are several ways a draft bust can occur. First of all, the player selected by a lottery team might have a disguised skill set that fools even the most experienced NBA scouts. On the surface a player might be athletically gifted, yet without the mental toughness or sufficient intellince to use that athleticism.

Mental toughness is often underrated when it comes to the draft, as players who are selected high in the lottery face immense pressure to impress and perform. When a player is used to a certain level of competition, moving up to the NBA is hard, and when things go wrong they simply crack under the pressure.

So who are the 9 biggest draft busts in the last five years? Continue reading to find out.

(The list includes players from 2008-, -09, -10,  -11 NBA drafts. It is too early to make a proper judgement of the 2012 class. This is not a ranking, so the players are listed in no particular order.)