Thomas Robinson of Kansas, the Big 12 Player of the Year and a consensus All-America first team choice, led nine Big 12 players selected in the 2012 NBA Draft. It marks the fourth time in the last five years that seven or more conference standouts have been selected.
Robinson’s pick made it seven straight drafts that at least one league athlete has been chosen among the top six. The Big 12 has had 18 top 10 choices in its short 16-year history, including eight in the past seven years. Overall, 40 players have been drafted in the last five years, the most of any conference in the nation.
Iowa State continued the Big 12 choices as Royce White was drafted 16th by the Houston Rockets, the second time in the last three years that ISU has had a first-round selection. Perry Jones III of Baylor rounded out the first-round picks after being chosen at No. 28 by the Oklahoma City Thunder. The next two Big 12 draftees were also from Baylor, as Quincy Acy (No. 37, Toronto Raptors) and Quincy Miller (No. 38, Denver Nuggets) went back-to-back. It is the first time in school history that three Bears were chosen in the same draft.
This year’s draft is the 15th time in 16 years the Big 12 has had at least one first-round choice. A total of 87 players from the Big 12 have been selected since the first season in 1996-97. Kansas has had 23 players chosen – the most of any team in the Conference. Texas is next with 16, followed by Iowa State (8), Oklahoma (7), Missouri (7), Baylor (5), Oklahoma State (5), Texas A&M (5), Colorado (4), Texas Tech (3), Kansas State (2) and Nebraska (2).
The Big 12 has had at least four players drafted in each of the last nine years. In addition, there has been at least one league athlete among the top 10 overall selections in 12 of 16 seasons.
BIG 12 IN THE 2012 NBA DRAFT
Rd/Pick Player, Position School Team
1/5 Thomas Robinson, F Kansas Sacramento Kings
1/16 Royce White, F Iowa State Houston Rockets
1/28 Perry Jones, F Baylor Oklahoma City Thunder
2/37 Quincy Acy, F Baylor Toronto Raptors
2/38 Quincy Miller, F Baylor Denver Nuggets
2/39 Khris Middleton, F Texas A&M Detroit Pistons
2/41 Tyshawn Taylor, G Kansas Portland Trail Blazers
2/44 Kim English, G Missouri Detroit Pistons
2/59 Marcus Denmon, G Missouri San Antonio Spurs