Golden State Warriors all-time draft bust starting 5

Small Forward: Fred Hetzel, 1965

From 2018 we take a long trip back in time to 1965, when the Warriors franchise first looked to Davidson College in search of a star. Armed with the first pick of the draft, the San Francisco Warriors drafted forward Fred Hetzel out of Davidson.

The 1965 draft wasn't a bust overall for the Warriors, as they also drafted Hall of Fame forward Rick Barry in the Top 5, but they swung and missed with their top pick. It's not that Hetzel was terrible, but he fell well short of what a team is looking for from their first overall pick.

The 6'8" Hetzel lasted just three seasons with the Warriors and six seasons overall in the NBA. He shot 40.7 percent from the field in three seasons in San Francisco, feasting on a high volume of shots to score points but otherwise holding back a Warriors offense that hummed when Hetzel wasn't on the court. Perhaps recognizing that, the Warriors didn't protect Hetzel in the 1968 expansion draft and he was taken by the new Milwaukee Bucks. He bounced around the league over the next few seasons before leaving the NBA for good.

In the allitime annals of No. 1 overall picks, Hetzel isn't the biggest bust; players like Anthony Bennett and Dick Ricketts would like a word. Still, the Warriors ended up winning quite a few games in the late 1960s; if they had added a real contributor with the top pick they may have made more noise than they did.

Honorable Mentions: Bob Portman was the seventh pick in 1969 and made it just four years in the league, averaging 5.7 points and only 13.3 minutes per game; Bill Mlkvy was the Warriors' fourth pick in 1952 but played just one season in the league.