The NBA reflects elite talent from all walks of life, especially in recent years. The league drafts players from college, the G-League, overseas, and has a significant population of undrafted players.

Unfortunately in recent years, the population of players from HBCUs has dropped significantly. Robert Covington, who attended  Tennessee State University, is the only HBCU graduate in the league. While Covington is a great player in his own right, his presence as the only HBCU representative in the league is disappointing, especially considering the history of former players. Here's a list of five former players who hailed from HBCUs:

Rick Mahorn

NBA Champion Rick Mahorn made history as the first player drafted from Hampton University. Mahorn dominated as a Hampton Pirate between 1976 and 1980, averaging 20.3 points per game over his collegiate career. He sets records at the school that have yet to be broken, including total points in a game (48), scoring average (20.3), total career rebounds (1,465), and total rebounds in a game (28). His 12.3 career rebounding average also ranks second-all time at Hampton.

After his freshman year, Mahorn was an All-CIAA player every season. His junior year, he was named the conference's player of the year and was an All-American for the Associated Press.

The Washington Bullets drafted Mahorn with the 35th pick in the 1980 NBA Draft. He spent his first five years in Washington before going to Detroit, where he helped the “Bad Boys” Pistons win their first championship in 1989. A year later, he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers and achieved an All-Defensive Team accolade. Mahorn went on to play until he retired at age 40 after the 1998-99 season.

Earl Monroe

Earl “The Pearl” Monroe was easily the best player to come from Winston-Salem State university, which has had six total players in the NBA. Monroe attended Winston-Salem between 1964 and 1967. In his final year as a Ram, Monroe averaged a whopping 41.5 points per game and led his team to an NCAA Division II title.

Monroe's success at Winston-Salem earned him the No. 2 pick in the 1967 NBA Draft. Selected by the Baltimore Bullets, Monroe averaged 24.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.3 assists in his first year, earning him the Rookie of the Year award. Monroe spent a little over four years in Baltimore before they traded him to the rival New York Knicks. In New York, Monroe, along with fellow HBCU grads Willis Reed and Dick Barnett, led the Knicks to their most recent title in 1973. The Hall of Famer spent the rest of his career in New York, retiring in 1980.

Willis Reed

Monroe's running mate in New York, Willis Reed was a product from Grambling State University. Reed attended the university between 1961 and 1964. In just his first year, Reed led the Tigers to an NAIA Championships. Over his career, he averaged 18.78 points and 15.2 rebounds. He was a first team All-American, two time NAIA All-American, and three time NAIA Champion All-Tournament team.

The New York Knicks selected Reed in the second round of the 1964 NBA Draft. Like Monroe, Reed would go on to win the Rookie of the Year Award. Reed spent the entirety of his 10-year career with the Knicks. He was an All-Star his first seven years in the league. In 1970, Reed and a young Walt Frazier led the Knicks to their first title in franchise history. Just a few seasons later, New York captured their second title in 1973.

Reed was one of the more accomplished players in NBA history. The Hall of Fame center was a five time All-NBA player, a two time Finals MVP, an All-Defensive player and league MVP in 1970, and made the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team. He passed away earlier this year on March 21.

Charles Oakley

Another New York Knicks legend, Charles Oakley hailed from Virginia Union University. Oakley's bruising style helped him prevail over his opponents. In his senior year in 1985, Oakley's 24 points and 17.3 rebounds per game powered Virginia Union to an impressive 31-1 record. The Panthers went on to win the CIAA National Championship, and Oakley won the NCAA Division II Player of the Year award.

The Chicago Bulls, wanting to pair another star with a budding Michael Jordan, quickly set their sights on Oakley coming out of college. Although the Cleveland Cavaliers drafted him ninth in the 1985 NBA Draft, the Bulls had already agreed to a trade to land Oakley. They later dealt him again to the New York Knicks.

Oakley helped establish the Knicks as the successor to the “Bad Boys” Detroit Pistons with a domineering, physical style of basketball. He earned his sole All-Star nomination in 1994, the same year the Knicks made it to the NBA Finals. Unfortunately, they fell short in Game 7 to Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets.

In addition to this All-Star accolade, Oakley won the Rookie of the Year award in 1986 and made the All-Defensive team twice. He bounced around teams at the end of his career, eventually retiring with Houston in 2004 at 40 years old.

Ben Wallace

Last, but certainly not least, on this list is Ben Wallace. Wallace also attended Virginia Union and fueled the Panthers to multiple championships. At Virginia Union, Wallace was a two time First Team All-CIAA selection, first team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), and MVP of the CIAA Tournament. Speaking of the tournament, he led the Panthers to the CIAA Championship in 1995 and 1996.

Unlike the other players on this list, Ben Wallace went undrafted. However, the Washington Bullets picked him up as a free agent. Wallace's defensive prowess helped him earn a full-time roster spot in Washington, where he spent his first three years in the league. Wallace had a quick stint in Orlando before spending the majority of his career with the Detroit Pistons.

Wallace was a menace on the glass, averaging 13 rebounds in 2002, then improved to 15.4 rebounds in 2003. Between 2002 and 2004, he averaged at least three blocks. Wallace's defensive acumen aided the Pistons as they secured their third championship in 2004 against the Shaq-Kobe Lakers.

Wallace played Chicago and Cleveland before finishing his career with the Pistons. He retired in 2012, ending his 16-year career. Wallace was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2021. Over his career, he led the league in rebounding twice and blocks once, was a four time All-Star, made five All-NBA teams and six All-Defensive teams, and won Defensive Player of the Year four times.