2025 NBA Draft: Inside the First Steps of the Pre-Draft Process

From the end of the college season to the NBA Draft Combine, the first phase of the pre-draft process is when players, agents, and front offices roll up their sleeves and get to work, laying the groundwork for the intense lead-up to the draft. Here’s the breakdown:

Every spring, a new class of NBA hopefuls steps into the pressure cooker of the pre-draft process. For players, agents, and front office executives, it’s a stretch marked by intense evaluation, constant communication, and strategic maneuvering. Players aim to raise their stock, agents try to position them with precision, and front offices strive to make the most informed decisions possible. There’s a lot on the line for everyone involved. It’s a high-stakes game—and there’s little room for error.

Having grown up as a fly on the wall in a family full of NBA executives and then spending years as a sports agent before transitioning into scouting and draft analysis, I’ve seen this process from multiple vantage points for a long time. It’s layered, nuanced, and filled with moving parts. While every player’s journey is unique, the process itself tends to follow familiar patterns year after year.

A player’s body of work may lay the foundation, but it’s often the final stretch that seals their fate. The months leading up to the draft—filled with interviews, workouts, and the NBA Draft Combine—can be just as important as everything that came before.

In this piece, we’ll break down the first phase of the pre-draft process—from the end of the college season to the NBA Draft Combine—through the eyes of players, agents, and NBA front offices.

The Player: No Glitz, No Glam—Just the Grind

The transition into pre-draft training happens fast. The college season ends, and almost overnight, players relocate to specialized training facilities—typically arranged by their agents. These programs are built to sharpen skills, get players in peak physical condition, and prepare them for the gauntlet of workouts ahead. During this time, agents also begin helping players prepare for the interviews they’ll face with NBA teams—conversations that can be exhaustive and, at times, invasive. At this stage, it’s not about development—it’s about presentation. It’s about becoming the most polished, prepared version of yourself for NBA decision-makers.

And while it’s only a couple of months, there’s a lot on the line—and the pressure is high. This process is no joke. But this first phase happens entirely behind closed doors. It’s not the time for glitz and glam. It’s more like Rocky IV, when Rocky heads to Russia to prepare for the fight against Drago—no frills, just relentless work and discipline. Wake up, train, train again, eat, sleep, and do it again the next day. Rinse and repeat. There’s no way to sugarcoat it—it’s a grind.

The short-term goals are straightforward: tighten up your game, get your body right, and lock in mentally. Because what’s coming next is serious business—media interviews, team interviews, grueling workouts, and a constant wave of uncertainty. Many of these top college stars were recently the big man on campus, but now, they’re simply NBA hopefuls. And they’re all trying to stand out in a crowded field, fighting for the same thing: a spot in the league. And whether you’re projected to go in the lottery or just hoping to hear Adam Silver call your name, everyone wants more.

So the players’ job is singular—but far from easy: bust your butt, get ready, stay ready, and do everything you can to keep your anxiety in check. Because once this thing gets rolling, it doesn’t slow down—not until draft night. And you better be ready to get run through the ringer—mentally and physically. Your dream is within reach. But there’s still work to be done.

The Agent: Closing the Gap

Workouts and individual team visits—at least the bulk—typically don’t begin until after the NBA Draft Combine, held May 11–18 in Chicago. In the meantime, while players focus on training, agents are laying the groundwork—directly calling front office executives to gauge interest, understand how teams value their clients, and begin mapping out where each player fits within the draft ecosystem. It’s not about chasing rumors or leaning on mock drafts—it’s about having real conversations with decision-makers and key figures inside NBA front offices. That insight becomes the foundation for everything that follows: which workouts are prioritized, how players are positioned, and what messaging gets shared throughout the league.

From an agent’s perspective, this phase shouldn’t be about selling a narrative or trying to manufacture value, though many still do. It’s about gathering accurate information to assess a client’s true market properly. That starts by establishing direct lines of communication with key front office personnel across all 30 NBA teams to gain clarity on where a player actually stands. Once that baseline is set, everything else flows from it: structuring the workout schedule, prioritizing team visits, and managing exposure in a way that builds momentum organically.

But here’s the thing: while a player’s market isn’t solely defined by how he performs in the pre-draft process, these opportunities matter. Exposure only helps if a player makes the most of it—on the court, in interviews, and every interaction. A bad workout or poor impression won’t necessarily erase his value, but it can stall momentum. On the flip side, a strong showing can push things forward meaningfully. This stretch is all about the agents creating opportunities—and the players capitalizing on them.

It’s also important to remember that being projected in the first round doesn’t guarantee a player will end up there. Projections shift. Trades happen. Draft boards move. With so many moving parts, nothing is truly locked in until a team with a first-round pick is on the clock and ready to make the call. And yes, verbal guarantees exist—but let’s leave that part alone for now.

Things get especially tricky for players projected near the end of the first round. While all first-round picks receive guaranteed contracts, slipping into the second round presents different circumstances. Second-round contracts are fully negotiable, introducing far greater risk. For underclassmen with remaining college eligibility, the rise of NIL has added yet another layer of complexity. Why roll the dice on uncertain draft positioning and unpredictable contract terms when you can return to school, earn real money, and continue to develop? It’s a significant shift, and every player and agent must weigh carefully.

Another key point: there’s a big difference between a team showing interest and a team with the pick you’re targeting being ready to draft your player. The pre-draft process is about closing that gap, not by selling a phony story, playing games, or trying to leverage a team, but by giving front offices the access, information, and confidence they need to pull the trigger for the right reasons.

At the core of it all, I believe this: as an athlete, you should want a fair shot—an opportunity you’ve earned, and compensation that reflects your value. And that’s exactly what an agent should be fighting for.

The Front Office: A Lot Done, A Lot to Do

Inside NBA front offices, the season never truly ends. As May approaches, most teams already have a general sense of which players they’re targeting—but now the deep dive begins. Evaluations are being compiled, draft boards are coming into focus, and travel schedules are being finalized for the G League Elite Camp, the NBA Draft Combine, and a full slate of pre-draft workouts.

But nothing is final—not even close. Most teams don’t lock in their boards until the day before—or sometimes even the day of—the draft. A lot can change between now and the end of June. There’s still critical information to gather, questions to answer, and plenty of work left to do.

At this stage, front offices are vetting everything. On-court evaluations continue through film, private workouts, and the Combine—but by spring, the lens begins to widen. How does the player carry himself in interviews? How does he interact off the court? Background checks go deep. Some teams even hire private investigators to build full background profiles. If there are skeletons in the closet, they’ll likely be found.

Analytics also play a major role. Teams dig into nearly every data point imaginable, searching for patterns and insights that either reinforce or challenge what the eye test reveals.

And then there are the medicals—comprehensive evaluations that can swing a decision one way or another. No detail is too small when you're considering investing millions of dollars in a player.

That brings us to the Combine, pro days, individual workouts, and team visits—key components of the pre-draft process, though not all are created equal. In my opinion, the NBA Draft Combine, interviews, and individual team workouts carry the most weight.

Live competition at the Combine and private workouts provide a meaningful stage to evaluate how players perform in competitive settings. Interviews and team visits, meanwhile, offer a deeper look into the intangibles, such as personality, mindset, maturity, and professionalism. More than anything, they help teams get a genuine feel for who the player is as a person.

These are job interviews. Talent is a prerequisite, of course, but there also needs to be some common sense involved: Does this player fit within our team culture? That part of the process isn’t much different from hiring in any other industry.

All of that carries weight. But pro days? One-on-zero workouts? In most cases, they’re fluff.

Teams attend largely out of courtesy—to stay in good standing with agents, especially those they’ll need to work with in free agency. Players and trainers often put a lot of stock into these individual workouts, but in my opinion, not much is accomplished. It’s like the first week of school—everyone shows up on their best behavior, looking sharp and well-rehearsed.

If your scouting department has done its job throughout the season, there shouldn’t be many surprises. You can often learn just as much, if not more, by watching a player during pregame workouts and warmups during the season than from a 30-minute scripted workout designed to showcase strengths and hide weaknesses.

That said, agents and trainers want to show off the progress that’s been made. And I get it—I guess. But as a decision-maker, I’d be more focused on how a player performs in real competition—and whether he fits our team’s identity and long-term vision. Talent is only part of the equation—Fit, mindset, and growth trajectory matter just as much, if not more.

By this point in the process, teams should have already identified who has NBA-level talent. The real question is: Who are the people we want in the trenches with us as we build a championship team?

Less of a Ladder, More of a Puzzle

In this first phase, players work to present the best version of themselves. Agents focus on establishing market value and creating opportunities. Front offices ramp up their efforts, trying to gather enough information to make sound, multi-million-dollar decisions come draft night.

Overall, the pre-draft process isn’t linear. It’s less of a ladder and more of a puzzle.

The most dramatic and revealing phase begins with the NBA Draft Combine (May 11–18) and continues through the team workout circuit leading up to the draft (June 25–26). This is when real movement happens. Players rise, fall, solidify their status, and sometimes choose to withdraw from the draft altogether. It’s the stretch where the gap between perception and reality begins to close.

And this is only the beginning. Once the Combine hits, the games begin—rumors swirl, smokescreens go up, and everyone’s looking for an edge. The closer we get to draft night, the more intense it gets. 

More insights coming soon—stay tuned.