Brent Yarina, BTN.com Senior Editor, June 28, 2012

With the 2012 NBA Draft on Thursday, I thought it would fun to consider all of the Big Ten draft classes since 2000. The new millennium got off to a strong start, with eight Big Ten products selected in the 2000 draft, including Jamal Crawford, Joel Przybilla, Morris Peterson and Michael Redd. See every Big Ten NBA draft pick from the past 12 drafts and get my thoughts on the best class and player in this post.

BIG TEN & NBA DRAFT SINCE 2000

Total picks: 50

Total first-round picks: 28

Year with most first-round picks: 2000 & 2007 – 4

Big Ten team with most picks: Michigan State & Ohio State – 11

Best class: 2000 – This one is pretty easy, although there was a time when it looked like the 2007 class might give it a run for its money. When all is said and done, though, Greg Oden's injuries robbed him of a stellar career and it's tough to complain about what Jamal Crawford, Morris Peterson and Michael Redd have done in the pros. Oh, and Brian Cardinal won an NBA ring last season, too.
Runner-up: 2001 – There were three misses, with Kirk Haston, Ken Johnson and Andre Hutson, but Jason Richardson and Zach Randolph make this class a strong one.

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Best player: Jason Richardson – Not nearly as explosive as he once was, Richardson long ago transformed his game from an athletic slasher to a shooter. And it's worked. Richardson's 1,520 career 3-pointers rank 15th in NBA history, and he's been an across-the-board contributor, averaging 17.5 points, five rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.4 blocks per game in a very underrated career.
Runner-up: Deron Williams – The former Illini is every bit as good as Richardson, if not the superior player. Check that, he is the better player, but Richardson has done it longer.

Best value pick: Michael Redd, Round 2, No. 43 – His best days behind him, NBA general managers must still kick themselves at the thought of letting the sweet-shooting lefty out of Ohio State fall until the 43rd pick of the 2000 draft. From 2003-09, despite a laundry list of injuries, Redd averaged at least 21.2 points per game every season. For his career, he's averaged 19 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game.
Runner-up: Zach Randolph, Round 1, No. 19 – The one-and-done Spartan could have used another year at the college level, but there's no doubt he would have been a high lottery pick if NBA GMs knew he'd become a guaranteed double-double.

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BIG TEN NBA DRAFT CLASSES

2000
Jamal Crawford, Michigan – Round 1, No. 8
Joel Przybilla, Minnesota – Round 1, No. 9
Mateen Cleaves, Michigan State – Round 1, No. 14
Morris Peterson, Michigan State – Round 1, No. 21
A.J. Guyton, Indiana – Round 2, No. 32
Michael Redd, Ohio State – Round 2, No. 43
Brian Cardinal, Purdue – Round 2, No. 44
Scoonie Penn, Ohio State – Round 2, No. 57

2001
Jason Richardson, Michigan State – Round 1, No. 5
Kirk Haston, Indiana – Round 1, No. 16
Zach Randolph, Michigan State – Round 1, No. 19
Ken Johnson, Ohio State – Round 2, No. 48
Andre Hutson, Michigan State – Round 2, No. 51

2002
Jared Jeffries, Indiana – Round 1, No. 11
Frank Williams, Illinois – Round 1, No. 25
Robert Archibald, Illinois – Round 2, No. 32
Marcus Taylor, Michigan State – Round 2, No. 52

2003
Brian Cook, Illinois – Round 1, No. 24
Rick Rickert, Minnesota – Round 2, No. 55

2004
Devin Harris, Wisconsin – Round 1, No. 5
Kris Humphries, Minnesota – Round 1, No. 14
Bernard Robinson, Michigan – Round 2, No. 46

2005
Deron Williams, Illinois – Round 1, No. 3
Luther Head, Illinois – Round 1, No. 24
Bracey Wright, Indiana – Round 2, No. 47

2006
Shannon Brown, Michigan State – Round 1, No. 25
Maurice Ager, Michigan State – Round 1, No. 28
Paul Davis, Michigan State – Round 2, No. 34
James Augustine, Illinois – Round 2, No. 41
Dee Brown, Illinois – Round 2, No. 46

2007
Greg Oden, Ohio State – Round 1, No. 1
Mike Conley Jr., Ohio State – Round 1, No. 4
Daequan Cook, Ohio State – Round 1, No. 21
Alando Tucker, Wisconsin – Round 1, No. 29
Carl Landry, Purdue – Round 2, No. 31
Adam Haluska, Iowa – Round 2, No. 43

2008
Eric Gordon, Indiana – Round 1, No. 7
Kosta Koufos, Ohio State – Round 1, No. 23
D.J. White, Indiana – Round 1, No. 29

2009
Byron Mullens, Ohio State – Round 1, No. 24
Goran Suton, Michigan State – Round 2, No. 50

2010
Evan Turner, Ohio State – Round 1, No. 2

2011
JaJuan Johnson, Purdue – Round 1, No. 27
Jon Leuer, Wisconsin – Round 2, No. 40
Darius Morris, Michigan – Round 2, No. 41
Jon Diebler, Ohio State – Round 2, No. 51
E'Twaun Moore, Purdue – Round 2, No. 55

2012
Meyers Leonard, Illinois – Round 1, No. 11
Jared Sullinger, Ohio State – Round 1, No. 21
Draymond Green, Michigan State – Round 2, No. 35
Robbie Hummel, Purdue – Round 2, No. 58

Brent Yarina is a web editor and blogger for BTN.com. Find all of his work here and follow him on twitter at @BTNBrentYarina.