NBA:Draft

NBA RealGM — League Rules

Two rounds, 30 picks each. Every undrafted player enters free agency.

When

The draft runs in the off-season, after re-signing and before free agency. For 2027 it was August 9. See Off-Season.

A draft is named for the year it is held, and feeds the following season. The 2026 draft produces players for the 2027 season, so a pick made in it is written (2030, 2031x) — see rookie contracts below.

Draft order

The lottery

14 non-playoff teams enter the lottery, and the top 4 picks are drawn. The rest fall into place by record, as in the real NBA.

Seed	Combinations	Chance at #1
1	140	14.0%
2	140	14.0%
3	140	14.0%
4	125	12.5%
5	105	10.5%
6	90	9.0%
7	75	7.5%
8	60	6.0%
9	45	4.5%
10	30	3.0%
11	20	2.0%
12	15	1.5%
13	10	1.0%
14	5	0.5%

Drawn using the ZenGM universal draft lottery simulator.

First round

Lottery teams take the order the draw gives them. Everyone else is ordered by record, worst first.

Ties are broken in this order:

	Two teams tied	Three or more tied
1st	Head-to-head matchup	Division record
2nd	Division record	Total categories
3rd	Total categories	Points scored
4th	Points scored	—

Second round

Reverse order of the standings, ignoring the lottery result.

Rookie contracts

A drafted player is signed the moment he is selected. His salary counts against your cap as soon as the pick is posted — there is no separate signing step, so enter the draft already holding room for every pick you intend to make.

First round

4 guaranteed years plus a 5th-year team option, at the salary for that slot:

Pick	Salary	Pick	Salary	Pick	Salary
1	$3,617,100	11	$1,495,200	21	$918,900
2	$3,236,600	12	$1,420,400	22	$882,200
3	$2,906,200	13	$1,349,400	23	$847,000
4	$2,606,200	14	$1,282,000	24	$813,000
5	$2,372,800	15	$1,217,800	25	$780,500
6	$2,155,100	16	$1,157,000	26	$754,700
7	$1,967,400	17	$1,099,100	27	$732,400
8	$1,802,400	18	$1,044,200	28	$728,400
9	$1,656,800	19	$997,100	29	$723,100
10	$1,573,900	20	$957,300	30	$717,800

A 2026 first-rounder is written (2030, 2031x) — guaranteed through the four seasons 2027–2030, with 2031 as the option.

Second round

$495,000. One guaranteed year plus four team options — five seasons in total.

A 2026 second-rounder is written (2027, ~2031x).

Draft-and-stash

A drafted player who does not come to the NBA immediately is paid his slot salary straight away, but his contract has no end date until he arrives:

Juan Nunez $495,000 (----)

When the contract starts

He arrives	Contract
On or before the end of week 9 — the off-season included	Starts immediately
After the end of week 9	Your choice: start it immediately, counting the rest of this season as year 1 regardless of games played — or defer to next season, making him ineligible for the remainder of this one including the playoffs

Coming over means joining an NBA or G League roster. Verify arrival dates against basketball-reference.com.

Waiving a stashed player before he comes over carries a one-year cap hit rather than the usual calculation — see Waivers.

Trading picks

Picks may be traded up to two years out, once the window opens at check-in. See Trades.

How to post

Selections are made in the draft thread in the NBA: Draft Room forum, in this format:

Patrick Ewing | C | Georgetown (NYK)

Name | Position | School (NBA team).

Then add him to your roster post with his contract:

Patrick Ewing (NYK - C) $3,617,100 (2030, 2031x)

See also

• Contracts — reading option years and the (----) stash notation
• Salary Cap — pick salaries count from selection
• Option Years — exercising a rookie's option
• Free Agency — where undrafted players go
• Trades — trading picks