The 1980 NBA draft was the 34th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The draft was held on June 10, 1980, at the Sheraton Centre Hotel & Towers, before the 1980–81 season. In this draft, 23 NBA teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The first two picks in the draft belonged to the teams that finished last in each conference, with the order determined by a coin flip. The Boston Celtics, who obtained the Detroit Pistons' first-round pick in a trade, won the coin flip and were awarded the first overall pick, while the Utah Jazz were awarded the second pick. The Celtics then traded the first pick to the Golden State Warriors before the draft. The remaining first-round picks and the subsequent rounds were assigned to teams in reverse order of their win–loss record in the previous season. An expansion franchise, the Dallas Mavericks, took part in the NBA Draft for the first time and were assigned the eleventh pick in each round. A player who had finished his four-year college eligibility was automatically eligible for selection. Before the draft, five college underclassmen announced that they would leave college early and would be eligible for selection. The draft consisted of 10 rounds comprising the selection of 214 players. This draft has the distinction of being the first NBA Draft to be televised.

Draft selections and draftee career notes

Joe Barry Carroll from Purdue University was selected first overall by the Golden State Warriors. Darrell Griffith from the University of Louisville was selected second by the Utah Jazz. He went on to win the Rookie of the Year Award in his first season. Kevin McHale from the University of Minnesota was selected third by the Boston Celtics. McHale spent his entire 13-year career with the Celtics and won three NBA championships. He also won two consecutive Sixth Man of the Year Award and was also selected to one All-NBA Team, seven All Star Games and six All-Defensive Teams. For his achievements, he has been inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame. McHale was also named to the list of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History announced at the league's 50th anniversary in 1996. Carroll, 8th pick Andrew Toney, 11th pick Kiki Vandeweghe and 25th pick Jeff Ruland are the only other players from this draft who was selected to an All-Star Game. Nine players drafted went on to have a coaching career in the NBA. Kevin McHale served as the interim head coach for the Timberwolves in and in the before working as head coach of the Houston Rockets for four and a half seasons. Mike Woodson, the 12th pick, coached the Atlanta Hawks for six seasons. Larry Drew, the 17th pick, worked as Woodson's assistant before he was promoted to the head coaching position in. Bill Hanzlik, the 20th pick, coached the Denver Nuggets in the, compiling an 11–71 record, the worst full-season record for a rookie coach in NBA history. Butch Carter, the 37th pick, coached the Toronto Raptors for two and a half seasons. Terry Stotts, the 38th pick, coached both the Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks for two seasons, and the Portland Trail Blazers for nine seasons. Kurt Rambis, the 58th pick, who played nine years for the Los Angeles Lakers, served as the team's interim head coach in. After working as the Lakers assistant coach for seven years, Rambis received his first permanent head coaching position with the Minnesota Timberwolves in. Two other players, Kiki Vandeweghe and Kenny Natt, had brief spells as interim head coaches in the NBA, each of which lasted less than one season. Woodson would later go on to be the first person in NBA history to become head coach of the team that drafted him when he took over as head coach of the New York Knicks on an interim basis in March 2012.

Key

Draft

Notable undrafted players

These players were not selected in the 1980 draft but played at least one game in the NBA.

Trades

Draft-day trades

The following trades involving drafted players were made on the day of the draft.

Pre-draft trades

Prior to the day of the draft, the following trades were made and resulted in exchanges of picks between the teams.

Early entrants

College underclassmen

For the third year in a row, no underclassmen that qualified for entry in the NBA draft would withdraw their entry into the event, with this year's draft seeing an improvement with seven official players that qualified for the event. The following college basketball players successfully applied for early draft entrance. Bobby Turner of the Louisville Cardinals was granted an exemption to stay eligible for the draft despite him not declaring after he dropped out prior to his senior season (with him ultimately being selected by the New York Knicks in the seventh round this year).