Ariel Hukporti has done a lot of advertising for himself, and has his fingers crossed in Ludwigsburg. Photo: Eibner / Sascha Walther.
During the off-season, at least at the beginning of the summer, the eyes of all basketball fans turn to the United States. The NBA Draft will take place there, this year on June 26 and 27. With Ariel Hukporti, a Ludwigsburg player can also have legitimate hopes in this year’s NBA talent draw. The 22-year-old center has been on the radar of numerous scouts for years and was recently in the USA for workouts.
2.13 meters tall, 114 kilograms heavy, 22 years old: Ariel Hukporti’s physical measurements and data are well known, his athletic and physical talent is obvious anyway, and the NBA has been the declared goal of the cheerful big man since 2016 at the latest. Eight years ago, Hukporti joined the yellow and black youth program, dominated the U16 and U19 Bundesliga, became Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Season, NBBL MVP and MVP of the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders Global Camp, celebrated his BBL debut and finished runner-up with both the MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg in Germany (2020) and Melbourne United in Australia (2024).
The greatest success of his experienced but still young professional career is set to come this week and will involve the transfer – or at least the precursor to it – to the NBA. Hukporti, who was released by the Swabians in the final phase of the season for NBA and draft workouts, is aiming for the 78th NBA Draft. But how does it actually work?
The principle: In the annual talent draw, the 30 NBA teams secure the rights to two players each, divided into two rounds, who want to move to the NBA. They are all between 19 and 22 years old and/or at the end of their college careers. Older (professional) players can no longer be drafted.
The sequence: The order in which the 30 teams can select their favorite (still available) player varies, but is basically socialist: the weakest first. While in the first round, the 14 teams that missed the playoffs are selected first and after a lottery, the 16 teams that reached the playoffs follow. In the second round, there is a different, non-drawn order – with identical signs. First, the weakest teams are selected, and last, the best teams are selected. Since some clubs traded the rights with each other, the actual draft order does not correspond to the exact final NBA table. Since Philadelphia and Phoenix were sanctioned for rule violations in recent months, both franchises lost their picks in the second round without replacement, so only 60 and not 58 players will be drafted.
The contract: While the first 30 players selected receive a guaranteed contract as a rookie (and usually move to the NBA), the players ranked 31 to 60 often do not receive a guaranteed contract and must first prove themselves in the NBA G League or at international clubs. For the talents of the first round, the salary is already set in advance.
Example: In the 2023/2024 season, the first pick in the draft received $10.1 million, the 15th pick received $3.4 million, and the 30th pick received $2.01 million.
The perspective: The actual decision as to which club will draft which player will only be made during the NBA Draft. Of course, there have been discussions about this for months in offices, (player) agencies and media houses. The so-called ‘mock drafts’ give a good insight into what can be expected on draft night. It seems clear that Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr, Reed Sheppard and Donovan Clingan are the most sought-after players on the market this year.
In the consensus board, which reflects the market value, interest and a certain ranking of all (available) players, Ariel Hukporti is currently ranked 64th – and if he stays that way, he would narrowly miss out on the jump into the NBA.
Should this scenario occur, the 22-year-old could still move to the United States afterwards. Although he would not have a guaranteed contract, he would also not be contractually bound to a location. A prominent example of this path is Maxi Kleber, who was not considered in the 2014 NBA Draft, but nevertheless moved to Dallas in 2017, has since played 406 games for the Mavericks and recently became runner-up.
The Germans: In addition to Hukporti, another German, Tristan da Silva, is in this year’s draft. According to all forecasts, the 23-year-old brother of ex-RIESE Oscar da Silva will be drafted in the first round. Also well-known in Germany are Pacôme Dadiet and Juan Nunez, who have laced up their sneakers for Ulm in recent years and also have great chances going into the draft evenings.
Evening because this year, for the first time, the talent draw will be held on two evenings rather than one. The first round will take place on the night from Wednesday to Thursday, the second round on the night from Thursday to Friday.
The transfer: DAZN will broadcast the 2024 NBA Draft live from New York on its platform. The first round will take place at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn (June 27th; from 2:00 a.m.), the second round in the ESPN studios in Manhattan (June 27th; from 10:00 p.m.).
2024-06-25 14:48:13
#NBA #Draft #MHP #RIESEN #Ludwigsburg
