2024 NBA Draft: How to watch, pick order and Bronny James projections

The Athletic has live coverage of the 2024 NBA Draft.

It’s NBA Draft week, and for the first time, this year’s draft will span two days.

As fans eagerly await their team’s selections before yelling, cheering or staring blankly as they internalize their franchise’s decisions, let’s get prepped on the basics, introduce the most sought-after prospects and attempt to pinpoint if Bronny James — one of the most talked about prospects this year — could end up in your team’s colors.

Date and time

The first round of the 2024 NBA Draft kicks off at 8 p.m. ET on June 26. The second and final round starts at 4 p.m. ET on June 27.

The first round will be at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., home of the Brooklyn Nets, while the second round will take place at ESPN’s Seaport District Studios in New York.

How to watch

The first round will air live on ABC and can be streamed on ABC and ESPN. The second round will be broadcast and streamed on ESPN. ESPN Radio will also provide national coverage of the draft.

Who are the top prospects?

Nothing is standing in the way of the Atlanta Hawks, who hold the No. 1 pick, from getting their guy. The question looming is whether there’s an indispensable guy to get.

This draft lacks the wunderkinder and rip-roaring talents of past drafts. There is no 7-foot-4 sensation like Victor Wembanyama, who was a surefire choice for the top pick last year. We could see a solid number of draft-night trades from teams that value the trading block or have a solid enough idea where their diamond in the rough might fall.

As far as the top of the order, league sources tell The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie they’re still unsure of Atlanta’s plans as the team has several potential options to sort through.

Here are the top five prospects on Vecenie’s big board:

Alexandre Sarr, Perth Wildcats (Australia): The 19-year-old, 7-foot big has an elite blend of size and flexibility. He runs the floor incredibly well and will be a threat in transition on both ends.

Reed Sheppard, Kentucky: The 20-year-old, 6-2 guard is as smart as any player in this draft. He has elite basketball IQ and processing ability, seemingly seeing the court unfold a full second before it happens.

Stephon Castle, Connecticut: The 19-year-old, 6-6 guard moves well off the ball and possesses great spatial awareness. He finds the open areas of the court through well-timed cuts and catching his defender snoozing. He runs well off screens and shakes his man to find scoring opportunities.

Donovan Clingan, Connecticut: The 20-year-old, 7-2 center has elite size and length for a big, even by NBA standards. His 9-7 standing reach makes him one of the most imposing players in the league. He’s not an elite athlete but moves fluidly and covers ground quickly if well-conditioned.

Zaccharie Risacher, JL Bourg (France): The 19-year-old, 6-9 forward moves well off the ball and does well in triple-threat situations, but a lot of his value comes from the threat of his jumper. Riascher knocked down shots at an effective rate this past season, hitting 38.7 percent from the arc. He’s also converted 40.7 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s and 34.8 percent of 3s off the dribble.

The next five prospects who round out Vecenie’s top 10:

• Cody Williams, Colorado
• Devin Carter, Providence
• Carlton “Bub” Carrington, Pittsburgh
• Dalton Knecht, Tennessee
• Ron Holland, G League Ignite

Big names from the last college basketball cycle, such as Duke’s Kyle Filipowski, Purdue’s Zach Edey and Marquette’s Tyler Kolek, rank Nos. 16, 17 and 21, respectively, on Vecenie’s final big board.

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Bronny James prepares to shoot during the draft combine in May. (Kamil Krzaczynski / NBAE via Getty Images)

Where is Bronny James projected to go?

Bronny James, the son of NBA all-time leading scorer LeBron James, was a four-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American guard out of high school who committed to USC. He suffered cardiac arrest at a USC practice in July, delaying his on-court debut for the Trojans until Dec. 10 against Long Beach State.

He started six of 25 games played for the Trojans, averaging 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.1 assists. In May, Bronny decided to remain in the 2024 NBA Draft, forgoing his remaining college eligibility. Bronny received over 10 workout invitations but was expected to only visit a few teams, including the Phoenix Suns and LeBron’s Los Angeles Lakers.

LeBron James has said in the past that he wishes to suit up alongside his son in the NBA. Team sources told The Athletic in late April that the Lakers are open to drafting Bronny and offering LeBron, who has a player option for next season, a three-year extension to keep the superstar in L.A.

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Lakers open to 3-year extension for LeBron, drafting Bronny

In Vecenie’s most recent mock draft, he has the Lakers doing just that: drafting Bronny with the 55th pick. Bronny is listed as the 72nd-ranked prospect on Vecenie’s big board.

Full draft order

The NBA Draft Lottery in May helped determine the full order of picks. It goes as follows:

1. Atlanta Hawks
2. Washington Wizards
3. Houston Rockets (from Brooklyn)
4. San Antonio Spurs
5. Detroit Pistons
6. Charlotte Hornets
7. Portland Trail Blazers
8. San Antonio Spurs (from Toronto)
9. Memphis Grizzlies
10. Utah Jazz
11. Chicago Bulls
12. Oklahoma City Thunder (from Houston)
13. Sacramento Kings
14. Portland Trail Blazers (from Golden State via Boston and Memphis)
15. Miami Heat
16. Philadelphia 76ers
17. Los Angeles Lakers
18. Orlando Magic
19. Toronto Raptors (from Indiana)
20. Cleveland Cavaliers
21. New Orleans Pelicans (from Milwaukee)
22. Phoenix Suns
23. Milwaukee Bucks (from New Orleans)
24. New York Knicks (from Dallas)
25. New York Knicks
26. Washington Wizards (from LA Clippers via Dallas and Oklahoma City)
27. Minnesota Timberwolves
28. Denver Nuggets
29. Utah Jazz (from Oklahoma City via Toronto and Indiana)
30. Boston Celtics
31. Toronto Raptors (from Detroit via New York and LA Clippers)
32. Utah Jazz (from Washington via Detroit and Brooklyn)
33. Milwaukee Bucks (from Portland via Sacramento)
34. Portland Trail Blazers (from Charlotte via Denver, Oklahoma City and New Orleans)
35. San Antonio Spurs
36. Indiana Pacers (from Toronto via Philadelphia, LA Clippers and Memphis)
37. Minnesota Timberwolves (from Memphis via Los Angeles Lakers, Washington and Oklahoma City)
38. New York Knicks (from Utah)
39. Memphis Grizzlies (from Brooklyn via Houston)
40. Portland Trail Blazers (from Atlanta)
41. Philadelphia 76ers (from Chicago via Boston, San Antonio and New Orleans)
42. Charlotte Hornets (from Houston via Oklahoma City)
43. Miami Heat
44. Houston Rockets (from Golden State via Atlanta)
45. Sacramento Kings
46. LA Clippers (from Indiana via Memphis and Milwaukee)
47. Orlando Magic
48. San Antonio Spurs (from Los Angeles Lakers via Memphis)
49. Indiana Pacers (from Cleveland)
50. Indiana Pacers (from New Orleans)
51. Washington Wizards (from Phoenix)
52. Golden State Warriors (from Milwaukee via Indiana)
53. Detroit Pistons (from New York via Philadelphia and Charlotte)
54. Boston Celtics (from Dallas via Sacramento)
55. Los Angeles Lakers (from LA Clippers)
56. Denver Nuggets (from Minnesota via Oklahoma City)
57. Memphis Grizzlies (from Oklahoma City via Houston and Atlanta)
58. Dallas (from Boston via Charlotte)

Why are there 58 picks, and not 60?

Two teams — the 76ers and Suns — were docked second-round picks for tampering in free agency.

Philadelphia lost its 2023 and 2024 second-rounders after the league found it engaged P.J. Tucker and Danuel House Jr. in free-agency discussions prior to the date when talks were permitted in 2022.

Phoenix forfeited its pick over early free-agency discussions with Drew Eubanks in 2023.

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(Photo: Timothy A. Clary / AFP via Getty Images)