History on This Day: Andrew Bynum became the youngest to play in NBA

On Nov. 2, 2005, Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum became the youngest player ever to appear in a regular-season game.

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On Nov. 2, 2005, Los Angeles Lakers center Andrew Bynum became the youngest player ever to appear in a regular-season game at 18 years, six days, breaking Jermaine O’Neal’s 10-year old record by 46 days.

The record set by Bynum still stands today and was aided in large part because the eventual two-time NBA champion entered the NBA draft straight out of high school. His draft class was the last in which high school players were eligible to enter the NBA draft.

Bynum logged just five minutes during his NBA debut, recording two rebounds and two blocks while he missed both of his field-goal attempts in a win over the Denver Nuggets. He would go on to make 46 appearances that season, averaging 1.6 points and 1.7 rebounds per game.

Since he entered the NBA straight out of high school, Bynum was the second-youngest player during his second season. He became a full-time starter that season and would go onto have a strong six-year run after that point, earning All-Star and All-NBA Second Team honors in 2012.

Bynum last played during the 2013-14 season with the Indiana Pacers.

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