| Year | Team | Player | School/Club |
| 2021 | Detroit Pistons | Cade Cunningham | Oklahoma State |
| 2020 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Anthony Edwards | Georgia |
| 2019 | New Orleans Pelicans | Zion Williamson | Duke |
| 2018 | Phoenix Suns | Deandre Ayton | Arizona |
| 2017 | Philadelphia 76ers | Markelle Fultz | Washington |
| 2016 | Philadelphia 76ers | Ben Simmons | LSU |
| 2015 | Minnesota Timberwolves | Karl-Anthony Towns | Kentucky |
| 2014 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Andrew Wiggins | Kansas |
| 2013 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Anthony Bennett | UNLV |
| 2012 | New Orleans Pelicans | Anthony Davis | Kentucky |
| 2011 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Kyrie Irving | Duke |
| 2010 | Washington Wizards | John Wall | Kentucky |
| 2009 | Los Angeles Clippers | Blake Griffin | Oklahoma |
| 2008 | Chicago Bulls | Derrick Rose | Memphis |
| 2007 | Portland Trail Blazers | Greg Oden | Ohio State |
| 2006 | Toronto Raptors | Andrea Bargnani | Benetton Treviso |
| 2005 | Milwaukee Bucks | Andrew Bogut | Utah |
| 2004 | Orlando Magic | Dwight Howard | Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy |
| 2003 | Cleveland Cavaliers | LeBron James | St. Vincent-St. Mary |
| 2002 | Houston Rockets | Yao Ming | Shanghai Sharks |
| 2001 | Washington Wizards | Kwame Brown | Glynn Academy |
| 2000 | New Jersey Nets | Kenyon Martin | Cincinnati |
| 1999 | Chicago Bulls | Elton Brand | Duke |
| 1998 | Los Angeles Clippers | Michael Olowokandi | Pacific |
| 1997 | San Antonio Spurs | Tim Duncan | Wake Forest |
| 1996 | Philadelphia 76ers | Allen Iverson | Georgetown |
| 1995 | Golden State Warriors | Joe Smith | Maryland |
| 1994 | Milwaukee Bucks | Glenn Robinson | Purdue |
| 1993 | Orlando Magic | Chris Webber | Michigan |
| 1992 | Orlando Magic | Shaquille O’Neal | LSU |
| 1991 | Charlotte Hornets | Larry Johnson | UNLV |
| 1990 | New Jersey Nets | Derrick Coleman | Syracuse |
| 1989 | Sacramento Kings | Pervis Ellison | Louisville |
| 1988 | Los Angeles Clippers | Danny Manning | Kansas |
| 1987 | San Antonio Spurs | David Robinson | Navy |
| 1986 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Brad Daugherty | North Carolina |
| 1985 | New York Knicks | Patrick Ewing | Georgetown |
| 1984 | Houston Rockets | Hakeem Olajuwon | Houston |
| 1983 | Houston Rockets | Ralph Sampson | Virginia |
| 1982 | Los Angeles Lakers | James Worthy | North Carolina |
| 1981 | Dallas Mavericks | Mark Aguirre | DePaul |
| 1980 | Golden State Warriors | Joe Barry Carroll | Purdue |
| 1979 | Los Angeles Lakers | Magic Johnson | Michigan State |
| 1978 | Portland Trail Blazers | Mychal Thompson | Minnesota |
| 1977 | Milwaukee Bucks | Kent Benson | Indiana |
| 1976 | Houston Rockets | John Lucas | Maryland |
| 1975 | Atlanta Hawks | David Thompson | NC State |
| 1974 | Portland Trail Blazers | Bill Walton | UCLA |
| 1973 | Philadelphia 76ers | Doug Collins | Illinois State |
| 1972 | Portland Trail Blazers | LaRue Martin | Loyola Chicago |
| 1971 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Austin Carr | Notre Dame |
| 1970 | Detroit Pistons | Bob Lanier | St. Bonaventure |
| 1969 | Milwaukee Bucks | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | UCLA |
| 1968 | San Diego Rockets | Elvin Hayes | Houston |
| 1967 | Detroit Pistons | Jimmy Walker | Providence |
| 1966 | New York Knicks | Cazzie Russell | Michigan |
| 1965 | San Francisco Warriors | Fred Hetzel | Davidson |
| 1964 | New York Knicks | Jim Barnes | Texas-El Paso |
| 1963 | New York Knicks | Art Heyman | Duke |
| 1962 | Chicago Zephyrs | Bill McGill | Utah |
| 1961 | Chicago Packers | Walt Bellamy | Indiana |
| 1960 | Cincinnati Royals | Oscar Robertson | Cincinnati |
| 1959 | Cincinnati Royals | Bob Boozer | Kansas State |
| 1958 | Minneapolis Lakers | Elgin Baylor | Seattle |
| 1957 | Cincinnati Royals | Hot Rod Hundley | West Virginia |
| 1956 | Rochester Royals | Si Green | Duquesne |
| 1955 | St. Louis Hawks | Dick Ricketts | Duquesne |
| 1954 | Baltimore Bullets | Frank Selvy | Furman |
| 1953 | Philadelphia Warriors | Ernie Beck | Penn |
| 1952 | Milwaukee Hawks | Mark Workman | West Virginia |
| 1951 | Baltimore Bullets | Gene Melchiorre | Bradley |
| 1950 | Boston Celtics | Chuck Share | Bowling Green |
| 1949 | Providence Steamrollers | Howie Shannon | Kansas State |
| 1948 | Providence Steamrollers | Andy Tonkovich | Marshall |
| 1947 | Pittsburgh Ironmen | Clifton McNeeley | Texas-El Paso |
