The 2022 NBA Draft began with some uncertainty over which of the
top prospects Orlando would select first overall. The Magic
ultimately chose Duke forward Paolo Banchero. Oklahoma City
followed by selecting Gonzaga center Chet Holmgren second, while
Houston selected Auburn forward Jabari Smith Jr. third.
Sacramento selected Iowa forward Keegan Murray fourth before
Detroit took Purdue guard Jaden Ivey fifth. The lottery also
included Bennedict Mathurin, Shaedon Sharpe, Dyson Daniels,
Jeremy Sochan and Johnny Davis.
Draft night featured substantial movement. Oklahoma City acquired
the rights to Ousmane Dieng, Detroit acquired Jalen Duren,
Memphis acquired Jake LaRavia and David Roddy, Minnesota acquired
Walker Kessler and Wendell Moore Jr., Houston acquired TyTy
Washington Jr., and Denver acquired Peyton Watson.
The 2022 draft contained 58 actual player selections rather than
the normal 60. Second-round selections belonging to Milwaukee and
Miami had been forfeited as league penalties.
58 selections: The 2022 NBA Draft included 30
first-round selections and 28 second-round selections. Milwaukee
and Miami each lost a second-round pick as the result of NBA
penalties, reducing the number of players selected from 60 to 58.
Paolo Banchero: Orlando selected Duke forward
Paolo Banchero with the first overall pick. He became the fourth
No. 1 selection in Magic history after Shaquille O'Neal in 1992,
Chris Webber in 1993 and Dwight Howard in 2004.
Rookie of the Year: Banchero immediately became
the centerpiece of Orlando's rebuilding effort and won the
2022-23 NBA Rookie of the Year Award.
Chet Holmgren: Oklahoma City selected Gonzaga
center Chet Holmgren second overall. Holmgren missed his entire
first scheduled NBA season because of a foot injury before making
his regular-season debut in 2023.
Jabari Smith Jr.: Houston selected Auburn forward
Jabari Smith Jr. third overall. Smith had been widely discussed
as a possibility for the first selection before Orlando chose
Banchero.
Keegan Murray: Sacramento selected Iowa forward
Keegan Murray fourth. Murray went on to set the NBA rookie record
for three-pointers made in a season during the 2022-23 campaign.
Jaden Ivey: Detroit selected Purdue guard Jaden
Ivey fifth overall. The Pistons later added another lottery pick
on draft night by acquiring the rights to Jalen Duren.
Jalen Williams: Oklahoma City selected Santa
Clara wing Jalen Williams with the 12th pick. Williams developed
into one of the most productive players from the class and became
an NBA All-Star.
Jalen Duren: Charlotte selected Memphis center
Jalen Duren at No. 13. His draft rights were ultimately sent to
Detroit in a three-team transaction involving Charlotte, Detroit
and New York.
Ousmane Dieng: New York selected Ousmane Dieng
11th overall and traded his rights to Oklahoma City in exchange
for three protected future first-round selections.
Christian Braun: Denver selected Kansas wing
Christian Braun with the 21st pick. As a rookie, Braun became
part of the Nuggets team that won the 2023 NBA championship.
Walker Kessler: Memphis selected Auburn center
Walker Kessler 22nd before trading his rights to Minnesota.
Kessler was subsequently included in Minnesota's July 2022
trade with Utah for Rudy Gobert.
Memphis trades: The Grizzlies acquired the
rights to Jake LaRavia at No. 19 and David Roddy at No. 23.
Memphis also acquired second-round guard Kennedy Chandler.
Minnesota trades: Minnesota acquired Walker
Kessler at No. 22 and Wendell Moore Jr. at No. 26 during its
series of draft-night transactions.
Peyton Watson: Oklahoma City selected UCLA
forward Peyton Watson with the 30th and final pick of the first
round before sending his draft rights to Denver.
Andrew Nembhard: Indiana opened the second round
by selecting Gonzaga guard Andrew Nembhard at No. 31. He quickly
became a significant rotation player for the Pacers.
Jaden Hardy: Sacramento selected G League Ignite
guard Jaden Hardy 37th overall before trading his rights to the
Dallas Mavericks.
Family connections: Several selections came from
prominent basketball families. Jabari Walker is the son of former
NBA player Samaki Walker, Ron Harper Jr. is the son of five-time
NBA champion Ron Harper, and Patrick Baldwin Jr. played in college
for his father, Patrick Baldwin Sr.
International selections: The class included
Ousmane Dieng, Dyson Daniels, Nikola Jović, Gabriele Procida,
Khalifa Diop, Ismaël Kamagate, Matteo Spagnolo, Karlo Matković,
Yannick Nzosa, Gui Santos, Luke Travers and Hugo Besson among its
international prospects.
Final selection: Indiana selected French guard
Hugo Besson with the 58th and final pick before his draft rights
were traded to Milwaukee.
