The 78th NBA Draft tipped off Wednesday evening at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N. Y. The next round is scheduled for Thursday at the ESPN Seaport District Studios in Manhattan, making this the first time the review may be split in two weeks.
Contrary to what happened in 2023 when French girl Victor Wembanyama was chosen No. 1, there was no discussion first overall pick for this year. 1 by the San Antonio Spurs. Zaccharie Risacher, a second-year student from France, was the betting favorite to win No. 1 this time. Next off, the Washington Wizards selected Alex Sarr, a European- born athlete who played for OTE in the U. S. and the NBL in Australia.
Reed Sheppard ( Houston Rockets ), Stephon Castle ( Spurs ) and Ron Holland II ( Detroit Pistons ) rounded out the top five. In the first round, three French athletes were chosen from among the first six pulls and four overall.

What was already settled before the document was what the best pick likely receive: a four-year deal worth about$ 57 million.
Rookie contracts for initial- large picks are tied to the NBA pay cover, which is currently projected to become$ 141 million for the 2024- 25 season. The cover is expected to increase 3.7 % over last year, with quarterback offers up the same percentage—Wemby signed a four- time commitment worth$ 55.2 million. Budgeting on the 2023- 24 NBA season, which determines the ultimate cover find next time, may be completed this week.
Picks in the first round cause a significant decline in the value of the arrangements. With the 15th pick, the Miami Heat should be able to offer the Indiana center a deal worth$ 20 million over the course of four years. The final pick of the first round, Creighton guard Baylor Scheierman ( Boston Celtics ), will earn$ 12.8 million.
According to the NBA collective bargaining agreement, “protection for lack of skill and injuries or disease” is guaranteed for the first two years of these deals. Groups have two options for the ages three and four, though only a select few picks in each draft class are allowed to choose their options. If all of the 30 picks ‘ options were exercised, they would earn a total of$ 718 million in salary over the course of four years. This total will be padded even further by testimonials.
Clubs may offer at least 80 % of the “rookie level deal” per the terms of the CBA and can go as high as 120 % of the quarterback income gambling. Practically speaking, nearly all deals are concluded at the highest gambling value, and these contract projections reflect this.
Second-round picks do not have any salary restrictions, but they frequently agree to terms with league minimum or even two-way contracts that will pay different salaries for their time spent with the evolutionary NBA G League versus their parent NBA team. Next month’s largest second- square deal was the 34th pick—Colby Jones, who signed with the Sacramento Kings for$ 8.8 million over four decades. This year’s next round will have added suspense with Bronny James, son of LeBron, expected to find his NBA house next.
The first-round picks are given four-year deals and have their pacts tied to their review spot, similar to the NFL program. Caleb Williams, whom the Chicago Bears picked first overall, is set to earn$ 39.5 million, including a$ 26.6 million signing bonus—but Williams still has not signed his contract. The NFL “borrowed” funds against upcoming quarterback payment pools in 2021 to avoid a decline in rookie deals following the 2020 COVID- 19-induced revenue shortfall, which would have caused the gap in contract values between the two leagues for primary picks to 45 % from 18 % from 2020.
The previous salary structure for first-round picks was maintained by the new NBA CBA, which became effective this past season. The league and union discussed allowing players to re-enter the league after graduating from high school, but ultimately chose to stick with the current “one-and-done” policy. Making attendance at the annual NBA draft combine a requirement to be eligible for the draft, starting in 2024, was the biggest CBA change for upcoming draftees.
( The first round of updates to this article and the entire story have been updated with a new photo. )