NBA 2K League Draft Returns January 26
January 12, 2023
The NBA 2K League announced that the 2023 NBA 2K League Draft will be livestreamed from New York City on Thursday, Jan. 26 at 8 p.m. ET, and will air on the NBA 2K League’s Twitch and YouTube channels. The invite-only Draft party will feature VIP guests, including select draft prospects, returning NBA 2K League players, social media influencers and celebrities.
“A pinnacle moment every offseason and a marquee event for 2K and basketball fans alike, we are thrilled to bring the NBA 2K League Draft back live to New York City for the first time since 2020,” said NBA 2K League President Brendan Donohue. “We started with over 100,000 tryouts across 3v3 and 5v5 competitions, players all aspiring to be drafted by one of our 25 teams. On Draft night, we will introduce you to this draft class and their amazing stories, welcome our newest franchise from Australia – NBL Oz Gaming – and we will watch our reigning 3v3 champions Pistons GT and 5v5 champions Bucks Gaming take first steps in their title defenses.”
Debuting this past offseason, the NBA 2K League Become a Pro Series saw incredible interest with a record-setting 101,000 tryouts from 126 countries. The draft pool will also consist of unretained players, players who earned draft eligibility as part of the NBA 2K League Draft Prospect Series, select competitors from the NBA 2K League’s APAC, Australian and European Invitationals, and high-performing players in the 2K community as determined by league and team officials. See below for more information on some of the notable 2023 NBA 2K League draft prospects. The complete draft pool will be announced at a later date.
All 25 NBA 2K League teams, including the league’s expansion team representing Australia, NBL Oz Gaming, will have completed their five-person rosters for both 3v3 and 5v5 competitions at the end of the three-round draft. Hawks Talon GC will have the first overall pick, Nets GC will have the second overall selection, and Lakers Gaming will have the third overall pick. During the offseason, 78 players who competed in the 2022 season were retained by their teams and one player was selected as the first-ever NBL Oz Gaming player in the NBA 2K League Australian Invitational, leaving 47 roster spots to be filled during the draft. For the complete draft order, click here.
The broadcast will feature NBA 2K League President Brendan Donohue announcing select picks, interviews with VIP guests in attendance at the Draft party, live look-ins with draft prospects, NBA 2K League operations headquarters and select “war rooms” where teams will be strategizing and drafting from their respective markets, and clips from NBA 2K League original content series “Draft Hopefuls”.
The NBA 2K League will announce additional information related to the 2023 season in the coming months, including season structure, schedule and location, prize pool, and open qualifiers.