2015 NBA draft
The 2015 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2015, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN. National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. The draft lottery took place on May 19, 2015.
The Minnesota Timberwolves won the draft lottery to earn the first overall pick in the draft. It marked the first time in Timberwolves history that they would receive the first overall pick through the lottery. The player selected would also be the third consecutive number one pick on the Timberwolves roster, joining Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett - who were traded to Minnesota for forward Kevin Love. This draft also gave the Los Angeles Lakers the second overall pick after jumping over the Philadelphia 76ers and the New York Knicks within the draft lottery.
Highlights from the draft include the first Dominican to be the first overall pick, the highest number of Kentucky Wildcats selected in the draft lottery, which tied the North Carolina Tar Heels in 2005 for most players selected in the lottery by one school; the tied record for most Kentucky players selected in the draft, the second Latvian to have been drafted in the first round, the first former high school player to have skipped college to play in China that was selected in the draft, and the first Indian to have been selected in the NBA, who was also the first player since 2005 to have been drafted directly from high school.
Other noteworthy announcements that came out of the draft included the official announcement of the passing of the last pioneer of the original NBA, Harvey Pollack, around the third pick and the resignation of the league's president of basketball operations Rod Thorn that became official in August after the end of the first round.
Draft selections
| Player | Team | |||||
| 1 | 1 | *~ | C | Minnesota Timberwolves | Kentucky | |
| 1 | 2 | + | PG | United States | Los Angeles Lakers | Ohio State |
| 1 | 3 | C | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | Duke | |
| 1 | 4 | + | PF/C | New York Knicks | Baloncesto Sevilla | |
| 1 | 5 | SG/SF | Orlando Magic | FC Barcelona | ||
| 1 | 6 | PF | United States | Sacramento Kings | Kentucky | |
| 1 | 7 | PG | Denver Nuggets | Guangdong Southern Tigers | ||
| 1 | 8 | SF | United States | Detroit Pistons | Arizona | |
| 1 | 9 | PF | United States | Charlotte Hornets | Wisconsin | |
| 1 | 10 | SF | United States | Miami Heat | Duke | |
| 1 | 11 | C | United States | Indiana Pacers | Texas | |
| 1 | 12 | PF | Canada | Utah Jazz | Kentucky | |
| 1 | 13 | + | SG | United States | Phoenix Suns | Kentucky |
| 1 | 14 | PG | United States | Oklahoma City Thunder | Murray State | |
| 1 | 15 | SG | United States | Atlanta Hawks | Kansas | |
| 1 | 16 | PG | United States | Boston Celtics | Louisville | |
| 1 | 17 | SG | United States | Milwaukee Bucks | UNLV | |
| 1 | 18 | SF | United States | Houston Rockets | Wisconsin | |
| 1 | 19 | PG | United States | Washington Wizards | Notre Dame | |
| 1 | 20 | PG | United States | Toronto Raptors | Utah | |
| 1 | 21 | SF | United States | Dallas Mavericks | Virginia | |
| 1 | 22 | PF | United States | Chicago Bulls | Arkansas | |
| 1 | 23 | SF | United States | Portland Trail Blazers | Arizona | |
| 1 | 24 | PG | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers | Duke | |
| 1 | 25 | PF | United States | Memphis Grizzlies | LSU | |
| 1 | 26 | # | C | San Antonio Spurs | Partizan Belgrade | |
| 1 | 27 | PF | United States | Los Angeles Lakers | Wyoming | |
| 1 | 28 | SG | United States | Boston Celtics | Georgia State | |
| 1 | 29 | PF | United States | Brooklyn Nets | Syracuse | |
| 1 | 30 | PF | United States | Golden State Warriors | UCLA | |
| 2 | 31 | SG/SF | Minnesota Timberwolves | Anadolu Efes | ||
| 2 | 32 | PF | United States | Houston Rockets | Louisville | |
| 2 | 33 | PF | United States | Boston Celtics | LSU | |
| 2 | 34 | SF | United States | Los Angeles Lakers | Stanford | |
| 2 | 35 | C | Spain | Philadelphia 76ers | Baloncesto Sevilla | |
| 2 | 36 | PF/C | United States | Minnesota Timberwolves | Syracuse | |
| 2 | 37 | SF/PF | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | Bowling Green | |
| 2 | 38 | SG | United States | Detroit Pistons | Villanova | |
| 2 | 39 | # | SF | Charlotte Hornets | Estudiantes de Bahía | |
| 2 | 40 | SG | United States | Miami Heat | Tennessee | |
| 2 | 41 | SF | United States | Brooklyn Nets | Notre Dame | |
| 2 | 42 | # | PG | Canada | Utah Jazz | Boston College |
| 2 | 43 | PG | United States | Indiana Pacers | Oregon | |
| 2 | 44 | PG | United States | Phoenix Suns | Kentucky | |
| 2 | 45 | # | PG | United States | Boston Celtics | William & Mary |
| 2 | 46 | SG | United States | Milwaukee Bucks | UCLA | |
| 2 | 47 | # | C | Philadelphia 76ers | Žalgiris Kaunas | |
| 2 | 48 | C | United States | Oklahoma City Thunder | Kentucky | |
| 2 | 49 | # | PF | United States | Washington Wizards | Iowa |
| 2 | 50 | # | SG | Sweden | Atlanta Hawks | FC Barcelona |
| 2 | 51 | # | PG | United States | Orlando Magic | Eastern Washington |
| 2 | 52 | # | C | India | Dallas Mavericks | IMG Academy |
| 2 | 53 | # | SF | United States | Cleveland Cavaliers | St. John's |
| 2 | 54 | # | SF | Spain | Utah Jazz | Gipuzkoa Basket |
| 2 | 55 | # | PF | San Antonio Spurs | Massachusetts | |
| 2 | 56 | SF | United States | New Orleans Pelicans | Michigan State | |
| 2 | 57 | # | PG | Denver Nuggets | Baloncesto Sevilla | |
| 2 | 58 | # | SG/SF | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | North Carolina |
| 2 | 59 | # | PF | Atlanta Hawks | Olympiacos | |
| 2 | 60 | # | PF | Philadelphia 76ers | Red Star Belgrade |
Notable undrafted players
These players were not selected in the 2015 NBA draft, but have appeared in at least one regular-season or playoff game in the NBA.| Player | Pos. | Nationality | School/club team |
| PF | United States | Kansas | |
| SF/SG | Argentina | Regatas Corrientes | |
| PG | United States | Duke | |
| SG | United States | Iowa State | |
| PF | United States | Wisconsin | |
| SG | United States | Florida | |
| SG | United States | VCU | |
| SF/SG | United States | Radford | |
| SG | United States | Kentucky | |
| SG | France | Denain Voltaire | |
| SF | United States | UTEP | |
| SF | United States | Colorado State | |
| PG | United States | Arizona | |
| SF | United States | Green Bay | |
| SF | United States | Holy Cross | |
| SG | Westchester CC | ||
| PF | Senegal | Ohio | |
| SF/SG | United States | San Diego State | |
| SF | United States | Baylor | |
| C | Paris-Levallois | ||
| PG | United States | Stanford | |
| SG | United States | Dayton | |
| SF | Marquette | ||
| SF | United States | UTEP | |
| PG | United States | VCU | |
| C/F | United States | UC Santa Barbara | |
| PF | United States | UNLV |
Eligibility and entrants
The draft was conducted under the eligibility rules established in the league's new 2011 collective bargaining agreement with its players union. The CBA that ended the 2011 lockout instituted no immediate changes to the draft, but called for a committee of owners and players to discuss future changes. Since the 2011 CBA, the basic eligibility rules have been:- All drafted players must be at least 19 years old during the calendar year of the draft. In terms of dates, players eligible for the 2015 draft must be born on or before December 31, 1996.
- Any player who is not an "international player", as defined in the CBA, must be at least one year removed from the graduation of his high school class. The CBA defines "international players" as players who permanently resided outside the United States for three years prior to the draft, did not complete high school in the U.S., and have never enrolled at a U.S. college or university.
Early entrants
A player who has hired an agent will forfeit his remaining college eligibility, regardless of whether he is drafted. Also, while the CBA allows a player to withdraw from the draft twice, the NCAA then mandated that a player who declared twice lost his college eligibility. The aforementioned 2016 NCAA rule change also allowed players to declare for more than one draft without losing college eligibility.
This year, a total of 48 collegiate players and 43 international players declared as early entry candidates before the April 26 deadline. On June 15, the withdrawal deadline, 34 early entry candidates withdrew from the draft and one early entry candidate is added, leaving 47 collegiate players and 11 international players as the early entry candidates for the draft.
| Player | Class | |
| Kansas | Freshman | |
| Virginia | Junior | |
| Arizona | Junior | |
| IMG Academy | Postgraduate | |
| Kentucky | Freshman | |
| Kentucky | Junior | |
| Wisconsin | Junior | |
| Florida | Junior | |
| Boston College | Junior | |
| Louisville | Junior | |
| Kentucky | Sophomore | |
| Kentucky | Sophomore | |
| Eastern Washington | Junior | |
| Arizona | Sophomore | |
| Georgia State | Junior | |
| UTEP | Sophomore | |
| Tennessee Tech | Junior | |
| Kentucky | Sophomore | |
| Arizona | Freshman | |
| Duke | Freshman | |
| NC State | Junior | |
| UCLA | Freshman | |
| Kentucky | Freshman | |
| LSU | Sophomore | |
| Syracuse | Freshman | |
| LSU | Sophomore | |
| Westchester CC | Sophomore | |
| Duke | Freshman | |
| Kansas | Freshman | |
| Manhattan | Junior | |
| Murray State | Sophomore | |
| Nebraska | Junior | |
| Arkansas | Sophomore | |
| Arkansas | Junior | |
| Louisville | Sophomore | |
| Ohio State | Freshman | |
| West Georgia | Sophomore | |
| Houston | Junior | |
| Florida State | Junior | |
| North Carolina | Junior | |
| Kentucky | Freshman | |
| Texas | Freshman | |
| Washington | Sophomore | |
| UNLV | Freshman | |
| Florida | Sophomore | |
| Duke | Freshman | |
| UNLV | Sophomore |
| Player | ||
| Hapee Fresh Fighters | ||
| Olympiacos Piraeus | ||
| Spain | Baloncesto Sevilla | |
| FC Barcelona Lassa | ||
| France | JSF Nanterre | |
| Korea University | ||
| Partizan Belgrade | ||
| Anadolu Efes | ||
| Baloncesto Sevilla | ||
| Baloncesto Sevilla | ||
| Estudiantes de Bahía | ||
| TBB Trier |
Automatically eligible entrants
Players who do not meet the criteria for "international" players are automatically eligible if they meet any of the following criteria:- They have completed 4 years of their college eligibility.
- If they graduated from high school in the U.S., but did not enroll in a U.S. college or university, four years have passed since their high school class graduated.
- They have signed a contract with a professional basketball team outside of the NBA, anywhere in the world, and have played under that contract.
- They are least 22 years old during the calendar year of the draft. In terms of dates, players born on or before December 31, 1993, are automatically eligible for the 2015 draft.
- They have signed a contract with a professional basketball team outside of the NBA within the United States, and have played under that contract.
| Player | Note | Ref. | |
| Bàsquet Manresa | Left college in 2014, playing professionally since 2014–15 season | ||
| Delaware 87ers | Left college in 2014, playing professionally since 2014–15 season | ||
| Westchester Knicks | Left college in 2014, playing professionally since 2014–15 season | ||
| Guangdong Southern Tigers | Graduated from high school in 2014, playing professionally since 2014–15 season | ||
| Los Angeles D-Fenders | Left college in 2014, playing professionally since 2014–15 season | ||
| Rio Grande Valley Vipers | Left college in 2014, playing professionally since 2014–15 season |
Combine
The invitation-only NBA Draft Combine was scheduled to occur in Chicago from May 12 to 17. The on-court element of the combine was scheduled for May 14 and 15.Draft lottery
The NBA conducted an annual draft lottery to determine the draft order for the teams that did not make the playoffs in the preceding season. Every NBA team that missed the NBA playoffs had a chance at winning a top three pick, but teams with worse records had a better chance at winning a top three pick. After the lottery selected the teams that receive a top three pick, the other teams received an NBA draft pick based on their winning percentage from the prior season. The table below shows each non-playoff team's chances of receiving picks 1–14.The 2015 NBA lottery was held on May 19. The Minnesota Timberwolves, who had the worst record in the NBA and the highest chance to win the lottery at 25%, won the lottery. The Los Angeles Lakers moved from the fourth spot to second, while the Philadelphia 76ers got the third pick. The only team that moved down from their original draft position altogether was the New York Knicks, who moved from the projected second pick to the fourth pick.
| ^ | Denotes the actual lottery result |
Draft ceremony
In the first round of the NBA draft, each team has up to five minutes to decide which player they would like to select. The team can also propose a trade with another team before making their selection. The NBA commissioner will announce the selection and the player, wearing a basketball cap sporting the team's logo, comes up to the stage to be congratulated and presented to the audience. In the second round, each team has up to two minutes to make their picks while the deputy commissioner assumes the commissioner's role.The NBA annually invites around 15–20 players to sit in the "green room", a special room set aside at the draft site for the invited players plus their families and agents. When their names are called, the player leaves the room and goes up on stage. Other players who are not invited are allowed to attend the ceremony, sit in the stands with the fans and walk up on stage when they are drafted. The 19 players who accepted invitations to attend the draft were Devin Booker, Willie Cauley-Stein, Sam Dekker, Jerian Grant, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Stanley Johnson, Frank Kaminsky, Kevon Looney, Trey Lyles, Emmanuel Mudiay, Jahlil Okafor, Kelly Oubre Jr., Cameron Payne, Bobby Portis, Kristaps Porziņģis, D'Angelo Russell, Karl-Anthony Towns, Myles Turner, and Justise Winslow. International prospect Mario Hezonja did not attend because he was still involved with his then-team FC Barcelona at the time. Three other players, R.J. Hunter, Tyus Jones, and Delon Wright all had invitations as well, but they declined their invitations for undisclosed reasons.