NBA Draft 2021: Key dates for lottery, combine, draft night

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The NBA 2020-21 regular season is over, and teams that missed the postseason will begin to turn their attention to the NBA Draft Combine and NBA Draft Lottery starting in June. 

Here are the key dates to know leading up to draft night:

When is the early entry application deadline?

The deadline for an early-entry player to apply for the 2021 NBA Draft is Sunday May 30, at 11:59 p.m. ET. The deadline for early-entry players to withdraw from the draft in Monday, July 19 at 5 p.m. ET 

When is the NBA Draft Combine this year?

The 2021 NBA Draft combine is scheduled to take place from Monday, June 21 to Sunday, June 27. ESPN Networks will broadcast the combine, featuring five-on-five games and strength and agility testing.

When is the 2021 NBA Draft Lottery?

The 2021 NBA Draft Lottery will take place on June 22. ESPN will broadcast the lottery starting at 8:30 p.m. ET

When is the 2021 NBA Draft?

The 2021 NBA Draft will take place on July 29 at 8:00 p.m. ET. The first round will be broadcast by ESPN and ABC, and the second round will air on ESPN.

What are the NBA Draft Lottery odds to win the No. 1 pick?

With Sunday's games complete, teams not in the postseason now know their odds of securing the No. 1 pick and the right to potentially draft Oklahoma State's Cade Cunningham.

Here are the odds for each team:

1. Houston Rockets: 14 percent

2. Detroit Pistons: 14 percent

3. Orlando Magic: 14 percent

4. Cleveland Cavaliers: 11.5 percent (tie)

4. Oklahoma City Thunder: 11.5 percent (tie)

6. Minnesota Timberwolves: 9 percent

7. Toronto Raptors: 7.5 percent

8. New Orleans Pelicans: 4.5 percent (tie)

8. Sacramento Kings: 4.5 percent (tie)

8. Chicago Bulls: 4.5 percent (tie)

11. Charlotte Hornets: 1.8 percent

12. San Antonio Spurs; 1.7 percent

13. Indiana Pacers: 1 percent

14. Memphis Grizzlies: 0.5 percent

This season features plenty of ties. When two teams are tied in the lottery, a coin flip is used to determine where each team will fall if neither lands the top four picks.

The Warriors will get the Minnesota Timberwolves' pick if it falls outside of the top three. If the Houston Rockets fall outside of the top four, the Oklahoma City Thunder can swap Miami's first-round pick for it. The Orlando Magic receive the Chicago Bulls' pick if it falls outside of the top four after the Nikola Vucevic trade.

The final four spots in the lottery will be decided after the NBA play-in tournament. If the Hornets, Spurs, Pacers or Grizzlies reach the playoffs, the teams they replace will be placed in the lottery based on their regular-season records.

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