As the 2022 NBA Draft gets closer to starting, one major difference you may notice this year is that there are only 58 draft selections as opposed to the usual 60. The reason for that is because two teams, the Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat, were each forced to forfeit their next available second-round picks, which happens to be in this year’s draft.
During the 2020 offseason, the NBA stripped the Bucks of their 2022 second-round pick after an investigation found that they had early discussions with Sacramento Kings restricted free agent Bogdan Bogdanovic. The league’s CBA prohibits teams from contacting potential free agents before the start of free agency, and after an investigation, the NBA determined that Milwaukee violated that rule. It was originally reported that Milwaukee and the Sacramento Kings agreed to a sign-and-trade for Bogdanovic, but he ultimately ended up with the Atlanta Hawks.
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The Heat’s situation is similar to the Bucks. After Kyle Lowry agreed to join Miami shortly after the start of free agency in 2021, the league launched an investigation and concluded that the Heat were guilty of tampering with Lowry to get him to sign with Miami.
The league has also revoked a second-round pick from the Chicago Bulls for tampering with Lonzo Ball during the 2021 offseason, but because the Bulls don’t own any second-round selections in the 2022 NBA Draft, they won’t have to pay their punishment just yet.
