The NBA released some key numbers to remember ahead of Thursday's NBA Draft:
The 2021 NBA Draft will take place on Thursday, July 29 at 8 p.m. ET at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. ABC will televise the first round of the NBA Draft for the first time, and ESPN will air both rounds.
Twenty draft prospects are scheduled to attend and have their once-in-a-lifetime experience on the biggest stage. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum will announce the selections for the first and second rounds, respectively.
Here is a by-the-numbers look at this year’s NBA Draft:
History
· 4
– Since the NBA Draft Lottery began in
1985, four first overall picks have won an NBA
championship with the team that drafted them: David Robinson (San
Antonio Spurs; first pick in 1987), Tim Duncan (Spurs; first pick
in 1997), LeBron James (Cleveland Cavaliers; first pick in 2003)
and Kyrie Irving (Cavaliers; first pick in 2011). James won an
NBA championship in his second stint with Cleveland.
· 6
– Since the two-round format was adopted in 1989,
Kentucky holds the record for the university with the most picks in
an NBA Draft – six each in 2012 and 2015.
· 8 – Barclays
Center will host the NBA Draft for
the eighth time. It last hosted the event in
2019 prior to the pandemic.
· 11
– A college freshman has been the No. 1 overall pick
in the NBA Draft in each of the
last 11 years.
· 15
– This marks the 15th consecutive year that Adam Silver will
announce draft selections as either deputy commissioner (seven
years) or commissioner (eight years including 2021).
· 1947 – The NBA
Draft will be held in July for the first time
since 1947, the
year of the inaugural draft.
Prospects
· 1
– In 2020-21, USC forward-center Evan Mobley became
the first player to win the Pac-12 Player of the
Year, Defensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year awards
in the same season.
· 3
– Florida State forward Scottie Barnes, NBA G League
Ignite guard Jalen Green and Gonzaga guard Jalen Suggs have
won three gold medals together with USA Basketball
in international play: 2019 FIBA U-19 Basketball World Cup, 2018
FIBA U-17 Basketball World Cup and 2017 FIBA U-16 Americas
Championship.
· 4
– Four 2021 NBA Draft prospects were teammates
on the Montverde (Fla.) Academy team that went 25-0 during the
2019-20 high school season: Scottie Barnes, Oklahoma State guard
Cade Cunningham, Arkansas guard Moses Moody and North Carolina
center Day'Ron Sharpe.
· 7.6
– Adelaide 36ers guard Josh Giddey (Australia) led
Australia’s National Basketball League in assists
with 7.6 per
game in the 2020-21 season.
· 19
– Besiktas forward Alperen Sengun (Turkey), the
2020-21 Turkish League MVP,
turned 19 on
July 25.
· 48
– Tennessee guard Keon Johnson set the NBA
Combine record with a max vertical jump
of 48 inches.
· 75
– Last season, Cade Cunningham became Oklahoma
State’s first consensus All-America First Team selection
in 75 years.
Teams
· 2
– The Houston Rockets franchise is set to
select second overall in the NBA Draft for the first
time in 51 years. In 1970, the then San Diego Rockets selected
five-time NBA All-Star Rudy Tomjanovich with the No. 2 pick.
· 3
– The Oklahoma City Thunder
has three picks in both the first round (Nos. 6,
16 and 18 overall) and the second round (Nos. 34, 36 and 55
overall).
· 4
– The Toronto Raptors are poised to
pick fourth overall in the NBA Draft for the first
time since selecting newly elected Naismith Memorial Basketball
Hall of Famer Chris Bosh at that spot in 2003.
· 7
– The Golden State Warriors’ first pick in the NBA
Draft is at No. 7 overall, a spot where they have
selected five-time NBA All-Star Chris Mullin (1985), two-time Kia
NBA MVP Stephen Curry (2009) and NBA champion Harrison Barnes
(2012) during the NBA Draft Lottery era.
· 49
– The Cleveland Cavaliers are set to pick third
overall in the NBA Draft for the first time
in 49 years.
· 51
– The Detroit Pistons are poised to make the
first pick in the NBA Draft for the first time
in 51 years. In 1970, the Pistons used
the top pick to select eight-time NBA All-Star Bob Lanier, a
longtime ambassador for the NBA Cares program.
Family Ties
· 9.2
– Auburn guard Sharife Cooper’s sister,
Te’a Cooper, is currently
averaging 9.2 points per game with the Los Angeles
Sparks in her second WNBA season.
· 10
– Michigan forward Franz Wagner (Germany) and his
brother, Orlando Magic forward-center Moritz Wagner, were both
All-Big Ten Team selections with the
Wolverines.
· 12
– Houston guard Quentin Grimes’ brother,
NHL veteran Tyler Myers, was
selected 12th overall in the 2008 NHL Entry
Draft.
· 33
– Boise State forward Derrick Alston Jr.’s
father, Derrick Sr., was the 33rd overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft and
played three seasons in the league.
· 1984
– Tennessee guard Jaden Springer is the son of Gary
Springer, who was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in
the 1984 NBA
Draft.
· 1992
– Loyola Maryland forward Santi Aldama
(Spain) is the son of Santiago Aldama Alesón, who
was a member of the Spanish National Team that competed
against the Dream Team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
· 2015
– Gonzaga guard Joel Ayayi (France) is
the brother of Valeriane Ayayi Vukosavljevic, who
played in the WNBA in 2015.
Global Game
· 1
– Australia’s Josh Giddey is poised to become
the first NBA
Academy graduate to be drafted into the NBA. Giddey attended
NBA Global Academy in Canberra, Australia.
· 6 – If
NBA G League Ignite forward Jonathan Kuminga is drafted in the
top six, he would
be the highest-drafted player from the Democratic Republic of the
Congo since Dikembe Mutombo was drafted fourth overall in 1991.
· 9
– Last year, a
record nine players from or with ties to Nigeria were
drafted: Isaac Okoro, Onyeka Okongwu, Aaron Nesmith, Precious
Achiuwa, Zeke Nnaji, Udoka Azubuike, Desmond Bane, Daniel Oturu and
Jordan Nwora.
· 13
– Thirteen international players have been
selected No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft, most recently Phoenix Suns
center Deandre Ayton (Bahamas) in 2018.
· 27
– A record 27 international players were selected in the
2016 NBA Draft, including a record 15 in the first round and a
record-tying 12 in the second round.
· 68
– Sixty-eight former Basketball Without Borders
campers have been drafted into the NBA. This year’s class
features a number of potential draftees with BWB experience,
including Gonzaga guard Joel Ayayi (France; BWB Europe 2017),
Western Kentucky forward-center Charles Bassey (Nigeria; BWB Global
2017 & 2018), Paris Basket guard Juhann Begarin (France; BWB Europe
2019; BWB Global 2020), Zalgiris Kaunas guard Rokas Jokubaitis
(Lithuania; BWB Europe 2017), Adelaide 36ers guard Josh Giddey
(Australia; BWB Asia 2018; BWB Global 2020), Texas forward-center
Kai Jones (Bahamas; BWB Americas 2017), Seton Hall forward Sandro
Mamukelashvili (Georgia; BWB Global 2017), KK Mega Basket
forward-center Filip Petrusev (Serbia; BWB Europe 2017; BWB Global
2018), Alabama guard Josh Primo (Canada; BWB Global 2020) and
Oostende forward Amar Sylla (Senegal; BWB Africa 2018; BWB Global
2019).
· 215/25
– The NBA Draft will reach fans live
in 215 countries and territories
in 25 languages on their televisions, computers,
mobile devices and tablets.
NBA G League
· 4
– Four former five-star high school prospects
who helped lead NBA G League Ignite to the 2021 NBA G League
Playoffs are entered in the NBA Draft: Jalen Green,
Jonathan Kuminga, guard Daishen Nix and forward Isaiah
Todd.
· 24
– Twenty-four of the 60 players who were
selected in the 2020 NBA Draft played in the NBA G League during
the 2020-21 season, including five first-round selections.
· 49
– Daishen Nix has a chance to join Carlos
Boozer, Mario Chalmers and Trajan Langdon as NBA players who grew
up in the 49th state – Alaska.
ESPN
· 1
– The NBA Draft will air on both ABC and ESPN for
the first time ever.
· 5 – Five virtual
technology cameras will be used for the telecast.
· 12 – ABC
and ESPN’s on-air talent will
feature 12 reporters.
· 19
– ESPN will present the NBA Draft for
the 19th consecutive year.
NBA TV
· 4
– NBA TV’s NBA Draft night coverage will
include four former first-round picks: Rex Chapman,
No. 8 in 1988; Brian Shaw, No. 24 in 1988; Jim Jackson, No. 4 in
1992; and Brendan Haywood, No. 20 in 2001.
Partners
· 38 – Wilson
was last used as the official basketball of the
NBA 38 years
ago. Last seen on the court in the 1983 NBA Finals, Wilson
basketballs will adorn the green room at the NBA Draft and will
join the latest draft class on the court for the 2021-22
season.
· 75 – The
NBA Draft Cap from New Era features the commemorative
NBA 75th Anniversary Season logo and marks the
first league-licensed product to carry the logo.