Blake Griffin benched 22 reps in 2009. / photo: Keith Allison – Wikimedia (cropped)
How much can NBA prospects bench press for reps? Most years this century the NBA draft combine has included a bench press test. Unlike the NFL draft combine, in which prospects bench 225 lbs. (102 kg.) for reps, NBA prospects bench 185 lbs. (84 kg.) for reps. Not every top basketball prospect participates in the combine. Most notably, Lebron James, with nothing more to gain, opted out of the NBA draft combine in 2003 before being chosen first. However, a surprising number of legends over the past two decades have gone horizontal to show how many reps they could bench with 185 before joining the NBA. Some put up big numbers, some—including one future Hall of Famer—couldn’t eke out even a single rep.
Let’s look at the NBA combine bench press records and how NBA All-Stars performed in this bench press test.
NBA COMBINE BENCH PRESS RECORDS
28 NBA prospects bench pressed 185 lbs. for 22 or more reps. Here’s the honor roll, with no new additions since 2010. Those who subsequently played in the NBA are highlighted in yellow. Only one, 6-time NBA All-Star Blake Griffen, made an All-Star roster.
27 REPS
2003 Jason Keep
26 REPS
2006 Kenny Adeleke
2006 JP Batista
2005 Joey Graham
2008 Josh Duncan
25 REPS
2007 Russell Carter
2003 Brandon Hunter
2006 Paul Miller
2003 Theron Smith
2006 Shelden Williams
24 REPS
2008 Joey Alexander
2006 Brandon Bowman
2002 J.R. Bremer
2002 Chris Burgess
2003 Sam Hoskin
2000 Justin Love
23 REPS
2010 Luke Harangody
2001 Nate James
22 REPS
2010 Trevor Booker
2008 Takais Brown
2010 Derrick Caracter
2001 Maurice Evans
2000 Gabe Muonee
2004 Chris Garnett
2002 Udonis Haslem
2004 Kris Humphries
2009 Blake Griffin
2004 Emeka Okafor
NBA-ALL STAR BENCH PRESS PERFORMANCES
In addition to Blake Griffin, at least 54 others who benched at the combine went on to earn NBA All-Star status. Of these, Al Horford put up a big 20, Kevin Love got 18 reps, and James Harden 17. Steph Curry weighed in at 185 and then benched 10 reps with his exact bodyweight. Kawhi Leonard is now noted for his strength, but only managed three reps back in 2011. And long-armed Kevin Durant is one of the prospects who infamously failed to eke out a single rep, though it didn’t matter in the long run, as Durant was drafted second and has had a Hall of Fame career.
Al Horford 20 reps (2007)
Kevin Love 18 reps (2008)
James Harden 17 reps (2009)
Chris Kaman 15 reps (2003)
Paul Millsap 15 reps (2006)
Jameer Nelson 15 reps (2004)
Victor Oladipo 15 reps (2013)
Deron Williams 15 reps (2004)
Jimmy Butler 14 reps (2011)
Richard Jefferson 14 reps (2001)
David Lee 14 reps (2005)
Carlos Boozer 13 reps (2002)
Kyle Korver 13 reps (2003)
Damian Lillard 13 reps (2012)
Jeff Teague 13 reps (2009)
Isaiah Thomas 13 reps (2011)
Gilbert Arenas 12 reps (2001)
Joe Johnson 12 reps (2001)
Joakim Noah 12 reps (2007)
Michael Redd 12 reps (2000)
Amare Stoudemire 12 reps (2002)
Russell Westbrook 12 reps (2008)
David West 11 reps (2003)
Steph Curry 10 reps (2009)
Danny Granger 10 reps (2005)
Gordon Hayward 10 reps (2010)
Donovan Mitchell 10 reps (2017)
Chris Paul 10 reps (2005)
Glen Rice 10 reps (2013)
Derrick Rose 10 reps (2008)
Andre Drummund 10 reps (2012)
Chris Bosh 9 reps (2003)
Draymond Green 9 reps (2012)
Dwayne Wayde 9 reps (2003)
LaMarcus Aldridge (2006)
Bradley Beal 8 reps (2012)
Devin Booker 8 reps (2015)
DeAndre Jordan 8 reps (2008)
Nikola Vucevic 8 reps (2009)
Carmelo Anthony 7 reps (2003)
Brook Lopez 7 reps (2008)
Rudy Gobert 7 reps (2013)
Dwight Howard 7 reps (2004)
Kemba Walker 7 reps (2007)
Jrue Holiday 6 reps (2009)
Luol Deng 5 reps (2004)
DeMar DeRozan 5 reps (2009)
Klay Thompson 5 reps (2011)
Paul George 4 reps (2010)
Andre Iguodala 4 reps (2004)
Kawhi Leonard 3 reps (2011)
Caron Butler 2 reps (2012)
Tyson Chandler 2 reps (2001)
Kevin Durant 0 reps (2007)
Check out Joey Graham, Blake Griffin, Dwight Howard, and seven more on The Barbell’s 10 Strongest NBA Players Ever
And to boost your own bench: How to Bench Press with Maximum Strength: Definitive Guide
