Player Invitations
A select group of twelve outstanding players has received the highly coveted invitations to attend the 2024 NBA Draft, earning their seats in the prestigious green room. These players include Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr, Donovan Clingan, Reed Sheppard, Matas Buzelis, Stephon Castle, Dalton Knecht, Tidjane Salaun, Ron Holland, Cody Williams, Devin Carter, and Ja’Kobe Walter. This group represents the first batch of 12 invites issued this Tuesday.
It is expected that an additional 11-12 invitations will be sent out in waves starting next week, expanding the elite group of prospects who will experience the draft from this special vantage point.
Green Room Details
The green room serves as an exclusive staging area situated in front of the NBA Draft podium. Here, the invited players, along with their families and agents, nervously await the moment when Commissioner Adam Silver announces their name as a new member of an NBA team.
This year, each player will be allowed to invite six people to sit at their individual tables. This marks a reduction from the ten allowed last year, a change that might affect the atmosphere in the green room as players have to make more selective decisions about their guests. Receiving an invitation to the green room is generally seen as a positive indicator of a player’s draft stock, essentially a nod from the league recognizing their potential to be among the top picks.
However, history has shown that this isn't always an accurate predictor of immediate success. There have been instances where prospects, despite their green room invitation, fell to the second round. Notable examples of this include Bol Bol, Deyonta Davis, Nic Claxton, Maciej Lampe, and Rashard Lewis, among others.
Draft Details
In a landmark change, this year’s NBA Draft will span two days for the first time. The first round is set to take place on June 26 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, while the second round will be held on June 27 in Lower Manhattan. This split format raises concerns and places added scrutiny on the final set of players invited to the green room. The objective will be to avoid a situation where invited players and their families have to endure an additional day of anxious waiting to hear their name called.
Last year’s final batch of invitations was not sent out until two days before the draft, contributing to the high tension and frenzied preparation for the young athletes involved. Ensuring all invited players are called on the first day could be considered a compassionate approach to the proceedings.
All twelve players from the initial batch of invites this year are projected to be lottery picks, which is a significant endorsement of their abilities and potential impact on the NBA.
Uninvited Projected Lottery Picks
Intriguingly, two projected lottery picks—Kentucky’s Rob Dillingham and Serbian point guard Nikola Topic—have yet to receive an invitation to the green room. Their absence from the initial list is noticeable and has specific reasons behind it.
Dillingham has not yet completed all the necessary requirements to be eligible for selection in the draft, as stipulated by the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement. An ankle injury prevented Dillingham from participating in athletic testing and shooting drills at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago in mid-May. This injury also hindered him from attending private workouts with NBA teams. According to his agent, Lucas Newton of Klutch Sports, Dillingham’s ankle has now recovered, and he plans to complete these required activities at the Lakers’ practice facility on Friday.
On the other hand, Nikola Topic’s situation involves more uncertainty. At the NBA Draft Combine in Treviso, Italy, he was found to have a partially torn ACL. This discovery likely casts a shadow over his draft stock until team doctors can fully evaluate the injury. Their evaluations will be critical in deciding on the best course of action regarding surgery and a subsequent recovery plan.
These situations highlight how health and eligibility issues can impact the draft prospects of even the most promising young athletes. As the draft approaches, all eyes will be on these players to see if they can overcome these hurdles and reclaim their spots as top lottery picks.