Alright, so you wanna know how to dodge the NBA draft? Let me tell you, it’s not as simple as just saying “nah, I’m good.” I actually looked into this, spent some time digging, and here’s what I found out from my own little experiment.
Phase 1: The “Am I Even Draftable?” Check
First things first, I had to be brutally honest with myself. I mean, I love basketball, play pickup games whenever I can, but am I really NBA material? Probably not. Still, I wanted to be thorough, so I started by researching the eligibility rules.
- You gotta be 19 years old during the draft year. Check.
- If you’re a US player and not “international” , you need to be at least one year removed from your high school graduation. Okay, also check.
So, technically, I could have been eligible a long time ago. That’s the easy part.
Phase 2: The “Going Under the Radar” Strategy
My plan was, and this is where it gets interesting, to be so utterly unremarkable that no scout would ever even glance my way. Here’s what I did:
- Played zero high-level competitive basketball. No AAU, no college ball, nothing that would show up on any scouting report. I stuck to my local YMCA.
- Avoided posting any highlight reels online. My social media is mostly just food pics and cat videos, nothing that screams “future NBA star.”
- Never, ever contacted any teams, agents, or anyone even remotely connected to the NBA. Complete radio silence.
Basically, I became a basketball ghost. A regular dude who just happens to shoot hoops for fun. My skills? Decent, but not even remotely NBA-level. I made sure of that, No all-star games
Phase 3: The “Declare and…Withdraw?” Option (Just in Case)
Now, there is a way to technically “dodge” the draft even if you somehow, miraculously, got on their radar. You can declare for the draft and then withdraw your name before the deadline. It’s like a “just kidding!” move. But honestly, this was never going to be necessary for me.
I did look into the deadlines, just for kicks. You have to submit an Early Entry Eligibility Form something like 60 days before the draft. And then you have a withdrawal deadline, usually about 10 days before the draft itself. But again, this was purely academic for me.
The Result: Successfully Undrafted!
So, did it work? Of course it did! I’m living proof that you can avoid the NBA draft. I was never on any draft boards, never got a call, never had to make any tough decisions. My “strategy” of being completely average and staying off the grid worked like a charm.
Was this a practical experiment? Maybe not. But it was a fun thought exercise. And it gave me a new appreciation for just how incredibly talented and dedicated those NBA players really are. It’s a whole different universe from my casual Sunday afternoon games.
