The rookies I remember having immense hype, the kind where the draft is considered a sweepstakes for who will get them:
Shaquille O’Neal (1992) Tim Duncan (1997) LeBron James (2003) Zion Williamson (2019) Victor Wembanyama (2023)
Three out of four have had top 10-15 all time careers. I hope Zion gets it together to have at least a Hall of Fame career.
Who am I forgetting / who was there before 1992?
Maybe I’m missing the boat on Oden myself. Guess it depends on the circles you were/weren’t in and how clued in you were with the consensus. No question he was very hyped though. Deservedly.