After a pandemic-riddled draft process in 2020 that forced the cancelation of the combine and pushed the draft back all the way to November, the NBA is returning the entire process closer to its normal summer schedule in 2021.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the lottery will take place on June 22 this summer, which will fall right in the heart of combine week scheduled for June 21-27. The draft will take place a month later, on July 29, which is directly after the conclusion of the NBA playoffs.
It’s unclear right now when free agency will begin, but typically the end of the playoffs paves the way to the draft, which then paves the way to free agency. That would likely make it possible for free agency to begin in August. After that part of the NBA calendar was pushed back to November of last year, it is likely another major calendar event that will get reset as the league tries to get the entire schedule back on track.
Also still unclear right now is how the combine and the lottery will be handled with respect to protocols. Because of the pandemic last year, the league punted altogether on the combine and encouraged against holding in-person workouts, making it tricky for teams and prospects to familiarize themselves during the process. The lottery was held out of necessity, but done so remotely.