Why is the NBA Draft Held at Barclays Center? Full History of NBA Draft Locations

Barclays Center will host the 2024 NBA Draft.

Jun 23, 2022; Brooklyn, NY, USA; A general view as NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks before the first round of the 2022 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

The 2024 NBA Draft will open on June 26 with the Atlanta Hawks on the clock with the first pick. The event will, once again, be held at Barclays Center. It is the 11th time the arena has hosted the draft and, other than the 2020 COIVD year, the NBA has held the event there annually since 2013.

The history of NBA draft hosts is fascinating as the event has moved around a lot over the years before settling in the greater New York area. Now it is firmly entrenched at Barclays Center. The NBA has never explicitly stated why the arena has been chosen, but it's easy to read between the lines and come up with an answer.

Why Is the NBA Draft at Barclays Center?

Barclays Center is located in Brooklyn not far from the NBA's headquarters in Manhattan. The league's global HQ is at 645 Fifth Avenue, Olympic Tower, New York, New York. It also has a headquarters in Secaucus, New Jersey, which is home to the NBA Replay Center.

It makes sense for the league to have the draft close it its headquarters. On top of that, given that it's also a televised event, having it in a major city is a smart idea to get as many players in attendance as possible. Having a packed green room full of potential draftees available to be interviewed is a key part of the broadcast. It's much easier to get those players to New York than it would be if it was in a smaller city like Sacramento.

History of NBA Draft Locations

The NBA draft has been at Barclays center every year -- excepting 2020 -- since 2013. Before that it was at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey for two years because apparently the Nets are great hosts. Prior to the two years in New Jersey, Madison Square Garden played host to the event every year from 2001 to 2010.

Before 2001, the draft moved around every year from 1992 to 2000, like the NFL draft does now. From 1981 to 1991 it was held at the Felt Forum in New York City. A look at all the NBA draft locations since 1981 are below.

Year(s)	Location	City
1981-1991	Felt Forum	New York City, New York
1992	Memorial Coliseum	Portland, Oregon
1993	The Palace of Auburn Hills	Auburn Hills, Michigan
1994	Hoosier Dome	Indianapolis, Indiana
1995	SkyDome	Toronto, Ontario
1996	Continental Airlines Arena	East Rutherford, New Jersey
1997	Charlotte Coliseum	Charlotte, North Carolina
1998	General Motors Palace	Vancouver, British Columbia
1999	MCI Center	Washington, D.C.
2000	Target Center	Minneapolis, Minnesota
2001-2010	Madison Square Garden	New York City, New York
2011-2012	Prudential Center	Newark, New Jersey
2013-2019	Barclays Center	Brooklyn, New York
2020	ESPN Studios	Bristol, Connecticut
2021-2024	Barclays Center	Brooklyn New York

2024 NBA Draft Will Be Two Day Event

The 2024 NBA Draft will be a two-day event for the first time and will move to a secondary location for the second night. The first round will be broadcast on June 26 from Barclays Center, and the second round will be held on June 27 at ESPN's Seaport District Studios in Manhattan.

Teams will have five minutes to make selections in the first round, but will be given four minutes to make second-round picks. That is increased from two minutes previously.

The Hawks will have the No. 1 pick. The Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs and the Detroit Pistons will round out the top five.