NBA
Why is the 2024 NBA Draft being held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn?
The long-standing home of the NBA Draft will once again play host to the league’s big event
With the Barclays Center the home of the NBA Draft for more than a decade now, it came as no surprise when it was announced that, once again, it would play host to the league’s big event.
Barclays Center is the long-time home of the NBA Draft
The Barclays Center will host the 2024 NBA Draft on Wednesday, June 26th.
As fans will know, aside from the 2020 NBA Draft, which was held virtually as a result of the covid-19 pandemic, Barclays Center has been the host arena for the NBA Draft each and every year since 2013. Prior to that, the annual event was held at the Prudential Center in Newark for two years.
If you’d like some perspective, it was actually at the 2011 NBA Draft held in Newark when the now iconic Kyrie Irving was selected No. 1 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers. Incidentally, it’s not the first time the Nets’ home has had hosting duties.
Back when they were the New York Nets and playing at the Continental Airlines arena, the now Brooklyn Nets played host to what is considered by many to be the greatest NBA Draft of all time being held in Brooklyn. The famous 1996 NBA Draft saw the likes of generally Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, and Stephon Marbury all drafted into the NBA.
The 2024 NBA Draft format
Regarding the format of the Draft now taking place over two nights, it remains largely unchanged: the first round will still have five minutes between draft picks, while the second round will extend from two minutes to four minutes between picks. Each NBA team has one selection in the first round and one in the second round.
A notable peculiarity of the 2024 Draft is that, instead of the usual 60 teams making selections, there will only be 58. The Philadelphia 76ers and the Phoenix Suns have forfeited their picks due to recent violations of player signing rules.
The league were forced to step in and act after it became apparent that two two franchises had violated the rules regarding talking to players outside of the restricted period - known as ‘tampering’ - which is strictly forbidden.
As has always been the case in the NBA Draft, the format will follow a scheme wherein players will be able to hear their names called, walk across the stage, and pick up their team’s draft cap in the symbolic moment that indicates their acceptance of their new careers in the NBA.