The Cleveland Cavaliers selected Andrew Wiggins with the first pick of the 2014 NBA Draft, making him the second Canadian in a row selected with the top pick.
Cleveland, who have now had three No 1 picks in the last four years, selected Anthony Bennett to much surprise this year and the decision to take 6ft 8in Kansas guard Wiggins, 19, also raised eyebrows.
His Jayhawks team-mate centre Joel Embiid had been the consensus best player in a deeply talented draft, but the Cameroon-born teenager has had recent foot and back injuries that scared the Cavaliers off.
Wiggins is a supreme athlete who already plays excellent defence, but his shooting and scoring will have to improve if he is to become the star Cleveland need.
Embiid, who has drawn favourably comparisons to Hakeem Olajuwon, eventually went at No 3 to the Philadelphia 76ers, after Duke scoring machine Jabari Parker had been picked by the Milwaukee Bucks, a team who Parker was desperate to play for.
At No 4 Aaron Gordon, another elite athlete, was surprisingly taken by the Orlando Magic, with talented 6ft 6in Australian point guard Dante Exum taken by the Utah Jazz.
The Boston Celtics selected point guard Marcus Smart - a move that could lead to a trade down the line for either Smart or All-Star Rajon Rondo, who sat out much of last year with injury.
Julius Randle, who had been predicted to go in the top three at the start of the season, went to the Los Angeles Lakers at seven, while Michigan's Nik Stauskas went to the Sacremento Kings.
Noah Vonleh, another player some had predicted to go in the top five, was picked by the Charlotte Hornets and Philadelphia rounded out the top 10 with Elfrid Payton.
However, the point guard was traded for to the Orlando Magic for Dario Saric, a Croatian power forward who will not play in the NBA for at least two years.
Other notable moves include Doug McDermott heading to the Chicago Bulls after a trade with the Denver Nuggets and Shabazz Napier ending up with the Miami Heat.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies