Editing 2002 NBA draft (section)

==Early entrants==
===College underclassmen===
This year would mark a bit of a step down in terms of the number of underclassmen entering the NBA draft when compared to last year. While it would be the second time the number of underclassmen would exceed the number of draft picks available in the NBA, this year only saw a total of 72 underclassmen from college and overseas declare their initial entry into the NBA draft. However, it would exceed the amount of withdrawn players with 24 players doing exactly that, leaving a total of 48 eligible underclassmen available for the draft this year. The following [[college basketball]] players successfully applied for early draft entrance.<ref name=tdr>{{cite web |title=2002 Underclassmen |url=https://www.thedraftreview.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=3049:2002-underclassmen&catid=136&Itemid=384 |website=The Draft Review | date=August 4, 2007 |access-date=December 23, 2022}}</ref>

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* {{flagicon|USA}} Lee Benson – F, [[Brown Mackie College#Athletics|Brown Mackie]] (freshman)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Rodney Bias – F, [[Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball|Alabama]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Cordell Billups – G, [[Pierce College (Washington)|Pierce (Washington)]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Carlos Boozer]] – F, [[Duke Blue Devils men's basketball|Duke]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Curtis Borchardt]] – C, [[Stanford Cardinal men's basketball|Stanford]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Caron Butler]] – F, [[Connecticut Huskies men's basketball|Connecticut]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Mike Dunleavy Jr.]] – F, [[Duke Blue Devils men's basketball|Duke]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Drew Gooden]] – F, [[Kansas Jayhawks men's basketball|Kansas]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Rod Grizzard]] – G, [[Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball|Alabama]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Marcus Haislip]] – F, [[Tennessee Volunteers men's basketball|Tennessee]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Rashid Hardwick – C, [[Eastern Oklahoma State College|Eastern Oklahoma State]] (freshman)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Adam Harrington (basketball)|Adam Harrington]] – G, [[Auburn Tigers men's basketball|Auburn]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Casey Jacobsen]] – G, [[Stanford Cardinal men's basketball|Stanford]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris Jefferies]] – F, [[Fresno State Bulldogs men's basketball|Fresno State]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Jared Jeffries]] – F, [[Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball|Indiana]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|NGR}} Muhammed Lasege – C, [[Louisville Cardinals men's basketball|Louisville]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Tito Maddox]] – G, [[Fresno State Bulldogs men's basketball|Fresno State]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Kei Madison – F, [[Okaloosa-Walton College|Okaloosa-Walton]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Roger Mason Jr.]] – G, [[Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball|Virginia]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Smush Parker]] – G, [[Fordham Rams men's basketball|Fordham]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Travis Robinson – F, [[Jacksonville Dolphins men's basketball|Jacksonville]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Kareem Rush]] – G, [[Missouri Tigers men's basketball|Missouri]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Jamal Sampson]] – F/C, [[California Golden Bears men's basketball|California]] (freshman)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Jerry Sanders – F, [[Northern Illinois Huskies men's basketball|Northern Illinois]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Eddie Shelby – G, [[Utah Tech Trailblazers men's basketball|Dixie State]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Bobby Smith – G, [[Robert Morris Eagles men's basketball|Robert Morris]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Melvin Steward – G, [[Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds|Eastern New Mexico]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Marcus Taylor]] – G, [[Michigan State Spartans men's basketball|Michigan State]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Terrell Taylor – G, [[Creighton Bluejays men's basketball|Creighton]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Dajuan Wagner]] – G, [[Memphis Tigers men's basketball|Memphis]] (freshman)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Adrian Walton]] – G, [[Fordham Rams men's basketball|Fordham]] (freshman)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Joseph Ward – F, [[Fort Hays State Tigers|Fort Hays State]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Omar Weaver – F/G, [[Riverside City College#Athletics|Riverside CC]] (freshman)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Chris Wilcox]] – F, [[Maryland Terrapins men's basketball|Maryland]] (sophomore)
* {{flagicon|USA}} Troy Wiley – F, [[Rhode Island Rams men's basketball|Rhode Island]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Frank Williams (basketball)|Frank Williams]] – G, [[Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball|Illinois]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} George Williams – F, [[Houston Cougars men's basketball|Houston]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Jay Williams (basketball)|Jay Williams]] – G, [[Duke Blue Devils men's basketball|Duke]] (junior)
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Qyntel Woods]] – G/F, [[Northeast Mississippi Community College#Athletics|Northeast Mississippi CC]] (sophomore)
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===High school players===
This would be the eighth straight year in a row where at least one high school player would declare their entry into the NBA draft directly out of high school after previously only allowing it one time back in [[1975 NBA draft|1975]]. It would also mark the first time a player directly out of high school would win the [[NBA Rookie of the Year|NBA Rookie of the Year Award]] with [[Amar'e Stoudemire]] earning the honor one year before [[LeBron James]] would enter the NBA. The following high school players successfully applied for early draft entrance.<ref name=tdr />

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* {{flagicon|USA}} [[DeAngelo Collins]] – F, [[Inglewood High School (California)|Inglewood High School]] ([[Inglewood, California]])
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Lenny Cooke]] – G, Mott Adult High School ([[Flint, Michigan]])
* {{flagicon|LIT}} Giedrius Rinkevicius – C, [[Bridgton Academy]] ([[Bridgton, Maine]])
* {{flagicon|USA}} [[Amar'e Stoudemire]] – F, [[Cypress Creek High School (Orlando, Florida)|Cypress Creek High School]] ([[Orlando, Florida]])
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===International players===
The following international players successfully applied for early draft entrance.<ref name=tdr />

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* {{flagicon|GER}} [[Peter Fehse]] – F, Halle ([[Basketball Bundesliga|Germany]])
* {{flagicon|BRA}} [[Nenê Hilario]] – F, [[Club de Regatas Vasco da Gama (basketball)|Vasco de Gama]] ([[Campeonato Brasileiro de Basquete|Brazil]])
* {{flagicon|FRY}} [[Nenad Krstic]] – [[KK Partizan|Partizan]] ([[YUBA League|FR Yugoslavia]])
* {{flagicon|FRY}} [[Mladen Šekularac]] – F, [[KK FMP (1991–2011)|FMP]] ([[YUBA League|FR Yugoslavia]])
* {{flagicon|GEO|1990}} [[Nikoloz Tskitishvili]] – F, [[Pallacanestro Treviso|Benetton Treviso]] ([[Lega Basket Serie A|Italy]])
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