An Actor, Hall of Famer & An Epic Bust: Chicago's No. 1 Draft Pick History
An Actor, Hall of Famer & An Epic Bust: Chicago's No. 1 Draft Pick History
The Chicago Blackhawks are on the 2023 NHL Draft clock. How have Chicago sports teams done when picking No. 1? Here's the list.
The Chicago Blackhawks will select a player No. 1 overall in the NHL Draft on June 28.
No one will be surprised if they take the No. 1 prospect in the class, Connor Bedard.
In fact, it may be the biggest shocker in professional sports draft history if they don’t take Bedard, who many feel is the best prospect since Connor McDavid in 2015.
For the city of Chicago, 2023 has been a year of No. 1 picks. Well, it should have been at least.
Long before the NHL Draft Lottery gave the Blackhawks the top pick in the draft, the Chicago Bears had received the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft due to their worst record in the NFL last season. But given the option of taking a player No. 1 or trading back in the draft, the Bears took the latter and sent the pick to the Carolina Panthers, who took Bryce Young.
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The Bears opted to not make Chicago sports history by taking a player No. 1. The Blackhawks won’t follow suit.
The team is preparing for just their second No. 1 draft selection in franchise history. The last time they had it, it worked out quite well.
Patrick Kane was the No. 1 pick in 2007. Kane helped the organization win three Stanley Cups in 2010, 2013 and 2015. He won the Calder Memorial Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy, the Art Ross Trophy, the Hart Memorial Trophy, the Ted Lindsay Award and made four all-star appearances.
Was he the most successful No. 1 pick in Chicago sports history? Who could Bedard be compared to? Here’s a list of the No. 1 draft picks professional teams from the city of Chicago have drafted.
Tom Harmon, Chicago Bears, No. 1 Pick In The 1941 NFL Draft
Michigan football legend Tom Harmon, famous for wearing No. 98 and playing running back for the Wolverines, was the No. 1 pick in 1941 by the Chicago Bears.
However, Harmon never signed with the Bears. Instead, he wanted to be a radio and movie star and signed with Columbia Pictures instead. Eventually he did play in the NFL, but for the Rams in 1946-1947.
The College Football Hall of Famer, 1940 Heisman Trophy Winner and World War II veteran was in a few movies, but it was his grandson who became the star—1986 People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive and NCIS star Mark Harmon.
Bob Fenimore, Chicago Bears, No. 1 Pick In The 1947 NFL Draft
OK, so the first time with the No. 1 pick for the Bears didn’t work out. But the second one did, right?
Right?
Uh, no.
Fenimore, a College Football Hall of Famer from Oklahoma A&M (now known as Oklahoma State), was an All-American with the Cowboys. The Bears took him No. 1 despite injuries that limited him in his final college season. Fenimore played one season for the Bears, rushing for 189 yards and one touchdown. His NFL career lasted 10 games.
Danny Goodwin, Chicago White Sox, No. 1 Pick In The 1971 MLB Draft
About 30 years after the first No. 1 pick in Chicago sports history, it was the White Sox who scored the top pick in the 1971 MLB Draft. The 1970 White Sox were 56-106, so they worked hard to earn that draft position.
And what was even better was one of the top draft prospects was in nearby Peoria, Illinois, Danny Goodwin. The White Sox selected Goodwin No. 1.
Alas, it was a disaster.
In a draft that featured, gulp, Jim Rice, George Brett, Mike Schmidt and even Keith Hernandez, the White Sox took Goodwin, who opted to play college baseball.
Goodwin was a three-time All-American at Southern University and was the 1975 College Player of the Year. He went No. 1 overall again in 1975 but never had the career to justify being the only player, in the history of Major League Baseball, to be selected No. 1 twice. He was out of the league by 1982.
Harold Baines, Chicago White Sox, No. 1 Pick In The 1977 MLB Draft
OK. Finally a hit.
The fourth athlete taken No. 1 by a Chicago sports team became a Hall of Famer in his sport.
Baines, a Maryland native, was taken No. 1 overall in 1977. He went two spots ahead of fellow Hall of Famer Paul Molitor. The draft also featured Ozzie Smith and Tim Raines.
Baines played 22 seasons (1980-2001) and spent 14 seasons with the White Sox. He was a six-time All-Star, a Silver Slugger and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019.
He finished his career with 2,866 hits and 384 home runs.
Shawon Dunston, Chicago Cubs, No. 1 Pick In The 1982 MLB Draft
The Chicago Cubs were the next team to get a crack at No. 1.
They took Brooklyn, New York-native Shawon Dunston with the first pick in 1982. Dunston made two All-Star teams with the Cubs, pairing with Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg for a dynamite double-play combo in the 1980s and 1990s.
Dunston played for the Cubs from 1985-1995 and retired in 2002 after bouncing around the league and playing for six different teams from 1996-2002.
Dunston was selected ahead of No. 5 pick Dwight Gooden. The draft did feature future hall of farmer Barry Larkin and one of the greatest players ever, Barry Bonds, but both decided to play college baseball.
Elton Brand, Chicago Bulls, No. 1 Pick In The 1999 NBA Draft
In the first draft after the first season without Michael Jordan since 1994, the Bulls took Duke star Elton Brand No. 1. The Bulls had gone 13-37 in the lockout-shortened 1998-1999 season.
Of all of the No. 1 picks, Brand was the first Chicago top pick to win Rookie of The Year when he did so in 2000.
He averaged 20.1 points and 10 rebounds his rookie year and started 80 games.
Brand played just two seasons for the Bulls before the team traded him on draft day in 2001 so they could pick Tyson Chandler with the No. 2 pick.
The 1999 NBA Draft did feature one future hall of famer. With the penultimate pick in the draft, the San Antonio Spurs took Manu Ginobili.
Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks, No. 1 Pick In The 2007 NHL Draft
Kane was named to the NHL’s Top 100 All-Time Players list in 2017. He played 15 seasons with the Blackhawks before he left via free agency and signed with the New York Rangers.
Is he the greatest No. 1 pick in Chicago sports history?
Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls, No. 1 Pick In The 2008 NBA Draft
The last player to be taken No. 1 by a Chicago sports team was Derrick Rose. Like Patrick Kane, Rose was a successful pick and destined to be an all-time great for the Bulls.
After a star freshman season at the University of Memphis, the Chicago-native won Rookie of the Year and in 2011 snapped LeBron James' historic MVP run when he was voted the league’s top player. James had won the previous two MVPs and would win the next two.
Rose made three All-Star Games and was All-NBA selection in 2011.
And then the injury happened.
Rose played in just 39 games in the follow-up season to his MVP year with a knee injury. Then he tore his ACL the following season and played in just 10 games. He was never the same player after the knee injuries.
Rose played seven seasons with the Bulls before bouncing around the league. He played the 2022-2023 season with the New York Knicks, his age 34 season.
How To Watch The Chicago Blackhawks Make The No. 1 Pick In The NHL Draft?
ESPN is broadcasting the 2023 NHL Draft in Nashville at 7 p.m. EST on June 28.
2023 NHL Draft Order: The First Round
Here's what the first round looks like:
- Chicago Blackhawks
- Anaheim Ducks
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- San Jose Sharks
- Montreal Canadiens
- Arizona Coyotes
- Philadelphia Flyers
- Washington Capitals
- Detroit Red Wings
- St. Louis Blues
- Vancouver Canucks
- Arizona Coyotes (from Ottawa Senators)
- Buffalo Sabres
- Pittsburgh Penguins
- Nashville Predators
- Calgary Flames
- Detroit Red Wings (from New York Islanders via Vancouver Canucks)
- Winnipeg Jets
- Chicago Blackhawks (from Tampa Bay Lightning)
- Seattle Kraken
- Minnesota Wild
- Columbus Blue Jackets (from Los Angeles Kings)
- New York Rangers
- Nashville Predators (from Edmonton Oilers)
- St. Louis Blues (from Toronto Maple Leafs)
- San Jose Sharks (from New Jersey Devils)
- Colorado Avalanche
- Toronto Maple Leafs (from Boston Bruins via Washington Capitals)
- St. Louis Blues (from the Dallas Stars)
- Carolina Hurricanes
- Montreal Canadiens (from the Florida Panthers)
- Las Vegas Golden Knights