NBA DRAFT MINIMUM AGE EXPECTED TO BE LOWERED TO 18

Wayne Lumbasi

The NBA is expected to reverse a rule in place since 2005 and lower the age limit for the NBA draft from 19 to 18. This regulation may be amended by the NBA and the NBA Players Association as early as 2024.

Players like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Dwight Howard made the transition from high school to the NBA when they were 18 years old before 2005.

Currently, every player entering the NBA Draft must be at least 19 years old during the calendar year of the draft and at least one NBA season away from graduating from high school.

The new age limit would reduce it by a year, let 18-year-olds play in the NBA, and do away with the requirement that players be at least one year away from high school graduation. That would enable athletes to enter the NBA right out of high school.