Washington received another No. 1 overall draft selection again on Tuesday night.
No, it wasn’t the NFL’s Washington Commanders; this was the NBA’s Washington Wizards. With the top overall selection, the Wizards chose AJ Dybantsa. He played his college ball (all one year of it) at Brigham Young University (BYU). Dybantsa becomes the third Washington player selected No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft.
John Wall, a point guard from Kentucky, was the top selection in 2010, and earlier in 2001, Kwame Brown was chosen by the Wizards without having gone to college. But did you know there were actually other players in this Wizards franchise history taken with the top draft choice?
But first, this is Commanders Wire, so what about the Washington NFL franchise? When did the Washington Commanders/Football Team/Redskins have the top overall selection in the NFL draft? Well, it has actually only occurred twice in the history of the franchise, which dates all the way back to 1932, when they were first the Boston Braves.
In 1948, Alabama’s legendary running back Harry Gilmer was selected first overall by the Washington Redskins. Gilmer had been an SEC Player of the Year, a national leader in punt returns, and a Rose Bowl MVP when Alabama had defeated USC. He played for the Redskins from 1948-1954, being a Pro Bowler twice. He played his last two seasons for the Detroit Lions after being traded from Washington.
~ In Memoriam ~
Ernie Davis, “The Elmira Express”#Syracuse halfback
December 14, 1939 – May 18, 1963
The first Black Heisman Trophy winner, tragically felled by leukemia at the age of 23 — never to play a down in the NFL.pic.twitter.com/KnuEAnvtl9
— Kevin Gallagher (@KevG163) May 18, 2024
In 1962, the Redskins had the first overall selection and used it to choose Syracuse All-American running back Ernie Davis. In 1961, Davis became the first African American to win the Heisman Trophy. He then made history again as the first African American to be the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft.
Ten days following the draft, the Redskins traded Davis to the Cleveland Browns for Bobby Mitchell and Leroy Jackson. The Browns made the trade, planning to have a dynamic backfield with Davis joining the NFL’s top runner at the time, Jim Brown. Mitchell had a tremendous career in Washington and was later voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Davis, however, was later diagnosed with acute monocytic leukemia. He died in 1963 at the age of 23, never playing a down in the NFL. What a tragic story for Davis and his family.
Back to the Wizards/Bullets getting the top overall draft pick.
In 1951, the Baltimore Bullets selected Gene Melchiorre from Bradley. Two years later, in 1953, the Baltimore Bullets selected Ray Felix. Felix had been playing for an American Basketball League team in Manchester, Connecticut. The next season, yes, the Bullets were still choosing first; they selected Frank Selvy from Furman U. But that Bullets franchise folded after the 1954 season.
In 1961, the Chicago Packers selected future Hall of Famer Walt Bellamy with the top overall pick in the draft. The following season, the Packers became the Zephyrs and selected Bill McGill with the top overall pick. In 1963, the franchise relocated to Baltimore and took on the old Baltimore name, ‘Bullets.’
The Baltimore Bullets became the Capital Bullets in 1973 and then the Washington Bullets in 1974.
As for some of the other notable No. 1 overall draft picks in Washington, these names may be familiar to you: Alexander Ovechkin, Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Washington Commanders: How many times have they held the No. 1 pick?
