10 Times the Brooklyn Nets missed on a superstar in the NBA Draft

2. Scottie Pippen/Reggie Miller – 1987

With the third pick in the draft that year, the Nets selected Dennis Hopson out of The Ohio State University. Little would they realize at the time, however, is that they passed up on not one, but two future hall-of-famers, Scottie Pippen and Reggie Miller.

Pippen ended up going fifth overall to the Seattle SuperSonics but was then traded to the Chicago Bulls.

Pippen proved to be the sidekick that Michael Jordan needed on both ends of the floor, as the seven-time All-Star has been on three All-NBA First Teams and two Second and Third Teams, eight All-NBA Defensive First Teams and two Defensive Second Teams.

Both players ended up winning six championships together and went a then-record 72-10 in the 1995-96 regular-season.

In the 1993-94 season, Pippen took his game to the next level and helped the Bulls finish with a 55-27 record despite the retirement of Jordan, which helped him finish third in the MVP voting, proving that he was more than capable of being the best player on a team.

However, the Bulls couldn’t get past the second round that year, and Jordan ended up coming back in 1995 to help lead the Bulls to three more titles.

Pippen is still one of the best players to ever step onto a basketball court and perhaps would’ve been more appreciated if he didn’t play with arguably the best basketball player to ever live.

Miller, on the other hand, ending up going 11th overall to the Indiana Pacers and established himself as one of the best three-point shooters of all-time throughout the course of his career, as he’s second on the all-time three-point makes list with 2,560 makes.

Miller’s most iconic moment came on May 7, 1995, as he scored eight points in 8.9 seconds in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, as the Pacers came back to win the game 107-105.

The Pacers were a regular in the playoffs during the 90s with Miller in the fold, as they went to the NBA Finals in 2000, but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games.

Miller has been on the All-NBA Third Team three times in his career and was a five-time All-Star.

Meanwhile, Hopson lasted only six years in the league; averaging only 10.9 points per game for his career.