Every sports league has different lengths for its draft.
Of the major North American sports, none is longer than the MLB Draft, which used to last as long as 101 rounds and now lasts 20 rounds. The NHL and NFL Drafts each last seven rounds, sitting right in the middle. The WNBA and MLS each only have three rounds.
Then there’s the NBA Draft. The NBA Draft is the shortest of the bunch, lasting only two rounds. And that’s not two rounds with a supplemental draft or compensatory picks attached — it’s an even two rounds: 60 picks, two for each team.
Teams are of course more than able to trade their picks and stack up as many as they’d like. Otherwise, the team is limited only to a pair of picks.
The NBA Draft hasn’t always been limited to two rounds. It used to be as many as seven rounds. Why is it shorter now? Here’s what you need to know.
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Why is the NBA Draft two rounds?
The NBA Draft has been two rounds since 1989. The previous year, it had been three rounds, and in 1987, it was up to seven rounds. In the past, it had reached as many as 21 rounds. So, why the change?
The NBA Players Association reached a deal with the league to shorten the draft to only two rounds, in part to help allow undrafted players to have the option to try out with other teams, according to the NBA. Before that, players could be selected by teams and would be stuck without a chance to show off their talents to other teams, even if they had little chance to actually reach the NBA.
That all comes down to what is ultimately the biggest reason for the NBA Draft being short: roster size. MLB rosters are 26 players and each team has up to four minor-league teams for players taken in the draft. NFL roster sizes are 53 during the regular season, plus 16 practice squad players, and 90 during the preseason. NHL rosters reach 23 players, and like MLB, they also have a minor league team.
NBA teams can have up to 15 players on the active roster with three more on two-way contracts. There are G League teams that can have up to 10 players on rosters and reach as high as 13. Because of that, organizations have fewer spots for new players entering the league.
Even with only two rounds, players who are taken in the second round are still not guaranteed to reach the NBA. Most players still wind up reaching the league in some form, but impact talent at that point in the draft is not as common as in the first round.
At this point, there is little reason for the NBA to expand the draft beyond two rounds. Undrafted players still sign with NBA teams and have more flexibility to choose with whom they work out and wind up signing, while teams can still look to add players they like who are left as free agents after the draft.
With such small rosters, a two-round draft makes more sense than the previous format of having seven-plus rounds where most players were guaranteed not to reach the teams.