1982 NBA draft
The 1982 NBA draft took place on June 29, 1982, at the Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. Brent Musburger reported for CBS in the days leading up to the draft that the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks were working on a wider-ranging deal that would have sent Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to New York, Bill Cartwright to the Utah Jazz, and either the #1 or #2 pick from Utah to Los Angeles, with the Lakers then planning to select both Ralph Sampson and James Worthy. When Sampson decided to forgo entering the draft and to return for another season at the University of Virginia, the deal fell apart and the Lakers picked Worthy with the #1 overall choice.Draft
| Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
| 1 | 1 | ^ | SF | United States | Los Angeles Lakers | North Carolina |
| 1 | 2 | * | PF | United States | San Diego Clippers | DePaul |
| 1 | 3 | ^ | SF | United States | Utah Jazz | Georgia |
| 1 | 4 | | SF | United States | Dallas Mavericks | Wyoming |
| 1 | 5 | | C/PF | United States | Kansas City Kings | Texas |
| 1 | 6 | | SG | United States | New York Knicks | Minnesota |
| 1 | 7 | | SG | United States | Chicago Bulls | San Francisco |
| 1 | 8 | Clark Kellogg | PF | United States | Indiana Pacers | Ohio State |
| 1 | 9 | | PF | United States | Detroit Pistons | Wichita State |
| 1 | 10 | | SG | United States | Atlanta Hawks | Purdue |
| 1 | 11 | Fat Lever* | PG | United States | Portland Trail Blazers | Arizona State |
| 1 | 12 | | PG | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers | Boston College |
| 1 | 13 | + | SG | United States | New Jersey Nets | Georgetown |
| 1 | 14 | | PG | United States | Golden State Warriors | Oregon State |
| 1 | 15 | | SF | United States | Phoenix Suns | Bradley |
| 1 | 16 | | SG | United States | Houston Rockets | Baylor |
| 1 | 17 | | SG | United States | Kansas City Kings | Georgia Tech |
| 1 | 18 | + | SF | United States | Detroit Pistons | Rice |
| 1 | 19 | | PG | United States | Denver Nuggets | Houston |
| 1 | 20 | | SF | United States | Milwaukee Bucks | Tulsa |
| 1 | 21 | | SF | United States | New Jersey Nets | Alabama |
| 1 | 22 | | C | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | California |
| 1 | 23 | | C | United States | Boston Celtics | Cleveland State |
| 2 | 24 | | SG | United States | San Antonio Spurs | UAB |
| 2 | 25 | | SG | United States | Washington Bullets | Saint Joseph's |
| 2 | 26 | # | SF | United States | Chicago Bulls | Missouri |
| 2 | 27 | | PF | United States | Milwaukee Bucks | BYU |
| 2 | 28 | | PF | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers | Kansas |
| 2 | 29 | | F/C | United States | New York Knicks | Arkansas |
| 2 | 30 | | C | United States | Chicago Bulls | San Francisco |
| 2 | 31 | | F/C | United States | Chicago Bulls | Fresno State |
| 2 | 32 | | PF | United States | San Diego Clippers | UC Santa Barbara |
| 2 | 33 | | SF | United States | Portland Trail Blazers | James Madison |
| 2 | 34 | | SF | United States | New York Knicks | Duke |
| 2 | 35 | | SG | United States | Golden State Warriors | Louisville |
| 2 | 36 | | SF | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | Bradley |
| 2 | 37 | | C | United States | Portland Trail Blazers | Jackson State |
| 2 | 38 | Wayne Sappleton | F | United States | Golden State Warriors | Loyola |
| 2 | 39 | # | PF | United States | Phoenix Suns | UC Irvine |
| 2 | 40 | | G | United States | Indiana Pacers | Wake Forest |
| 2 | 41 | | G | United States | Washington Bullets | USC |
| 2 | 42 | | SG | United States | Houston Rockets | Texas Tech |
| 2 | 43 | | SG | United States | Indiana Pacers | Portland |
| 2 | 44 | | F | United States | Washington Bullets | USC Upstate |
| 2 | 45 | | F/C | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | Chattanooga |
| 2 | 46 | # | G | United States | Boston Celtics | Kansas |
Notable post-second round picks
These post-second round picks have appeared in at least one regular or postseason game in the NBA.
| Round | Pick | Player | Pos. | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
| 3 | 47 | | G | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers | Marquette |
| 3 | 48 | | SG | United States | San Diego Clippers | Long Beach State |
| 3 | 50 | | PF | United States | Dallas Mavericks | Connecticut |
| 3 | 51 | | PF/C | United States | Kansas City Kings | Wake Forest |
| 3 | 54 | | PG | United States | San Diego Clippers | Vanderbilt |
| 3 | 55 | | PG | United States | Utah Jazz | Louisville |
| 3 | 56 | | PF | United States | Atlanta Hawks | Detroit |
| 3 | 60 | | C | United States | Golden State Warriors | Wyoming |
| 3 | 63 | | C | United States | Houston Rockets | NC State |
| 3 | 65 | | SF | United States | Seattle SuperSonics | Oregon |
| 3 | 69 | | PG | United States | Boston Celtics | Northeastern |
| 4 | 72 | + | C | United States | Utah Jazz | UCLA |
| 4 | 74 | | SG | United States | Kansas City Kings | UCLA |
| 4 | 76 | | C | United States | Chicago Bulls | Connecticut |
| 4 | 78 | | SG | United States | Detroit Pistons | Western Michigan |
| 4 | 82 | | SF/SG | United States | New Jersey Nets | Arkansas |
| 4 | 86 | | PF | United States | Phoenix Suns | South Alabama |
| 6 | 138 | | SG | United States | Boston Celtics | Richmond |
| 7 | 140 | | PG | United States | San Diego Clippers | Colorado State |
| 8 | 166 | | PF | United States | Kansas City Kings | Kansas State |
| 10 | 221 | | F | United States | Phoenix Suns | Idaho State |
