NBA Draft Combine
The NBA Draft Combine, also known as the NBA Combine, is an annual event organized by the NBA where top college basketball players and international prospects showcase their skills and physical abilities in front of NBA teams, scouts, and executives leading up to the NBA Draft.
The NBA Draft Combine typically takes place in May, after the conclusion of the college basketball season. It is held in Chicago, Illinois, and spans several days. The primary purpose of the combine is to provide a standardized platform for evaluating prospects and gathering additional information about their basketball abilities, physical measurements, and athletic performance.
During the NBA Draft Combine, participants go through a series of activities, including:
Measurements: Prospects are measured for height, weight, wingspan, and body composition. These measurements help provide a standardized reference for their physical attributes.
Athletic Testing: Players undergo various athletic tests, such as vertical leap, shuttle run, sprinting drills, and agility tests. These tests assess their speed, quickness, explosiveness, and overall athleticism.
Skills Drills: Participants engage in individual skill workouts to showcase their shooting, ball-handling, passing, and defensive abilities. These drills are designed to assess their basketball skills and fundamentals.
Medical Evaluations: Prospects undergo medical examinations, including physicals and injury evaluations. NBA team medical staff assesses the players' health and potential injury concerns.
Interviews: NBA teams have the opportunity to interview prospects to gather more information about their background, character, basketball IQ, and other factors that may influence their draft stock.
The NBA Draft Combine provides a centralized platform for NBA teams to evaluate prospects side-by-side, compare their performances, and gather additional information to make more informed draft decisions. The results and evaluations from the combine, along with players' college performance and other factors, play a significant role in shaping their draft stock and potential selection in the NBA Draft.