The NBA Draft Green Room is an exclusive invite-only space for top prospects expected to be early first-round picks. For the 2025 draft on June 25 at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, 13 players received invitations.
These selections reflect strong interest from NBA front offices. The league organizes the list after polling team presidents and general managers with first-round picks, asking them to name 25 players they believe are likely to be selected early.
Duke standout Cooper Flagg, widely projected as the No. 1 pick, headlines this year’s elite group set to attend in New York.
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The NBA Draft Green Room offers a front-row seat to basketball’s biggest night, reserved for top prospects expected to be selected early.
“The green room is a staging area in front of the NBA draft podium where players, their families and agents await commissioner Adam Silver’s announcement of players’ names upon selection,” according to ESPN.
Each player may bring up to six guests to their table.
13 players invited to the NBA Draft green room thus far:
Cooper Flagg
Dylan Harper
Ace Bailey
VJ Edgecombe
Tre Johnson
Khaman Maluach
Jeremiah Fears
Kon Knueppel
Kasparas Jakucionis
Egor Demin
Carter Bryant
Derik Queen
Asa NewellNoa Essengue is still playing, not yet invited pic.twitter.com/OYdXVMRr3y
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) June 10, 2025
For the 2025 NBA Draft, which begins June 25 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, the first group of invitees includes Flagg, Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey, VJ Edgecombe, Tre Johnson, Khaman Maluach, Jeremiah Fears, Kon Knueppel, Kasparas Jakucionis, Egor Demin, Carter Bryant, Derik Queen, and Asa Newell.
The NBA determines these invitations by consulting teams with first-round picks, asking executives to vote on the 25 players they believe will be selected earliest. This process is designed to minimize the risk of a player waiting too long in front of a national TV audience.
While receiving an invitation signals strong draft positioning, it does not guarantee a first-round selection. Notable examples of players who slipped to the second round despite being in the Green Room include Bol Bol, Deyonta Davis, Nic Claxton, Maciej Lampe, and Rashard Lewis.
Last year, Johnny Furphy and Kyle Filipowski were among the initial invitees but were ultimately drafted in the second round.
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Since the draft was split into two days beginning last year, with the first round on June 25 and the second on June 26, there is heightened attention on who receives an invitation.
The league aims to prevent situations where a player must wait until the following day to hear their name called.
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