draft lottery

To determine the draft order the NBA uses a draft lottery, introduced in 1985. Those teams that failed to qualify for the playoffs the previous season are eligible for the lottery. The lottery determines the first three teams to select in the draft. The remaining teams, including those that qualified for the playoffs the preceding season, draft according to their win-loss record of the previous season, so that teams with poorer records draft earlier than those with better records. Teams may trade draft picks with each other, either for different picks or for players. The NBA draft consists of only two rounds, with a total of 60 players chosen. Those players not selected in the draft can be invited to try out for a team and are sometimes signed as free agents.