The NBA will allow teams to scout a series of high school events over the course of the 2023/24 season, beginning with the Nike EYBL Scholastic Showcase Games in Las Vegas later this week, reports ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
As Givony explains, after instituting the one-and-done rule, which prevents prospects from entering the draft directly out of high school, the NBA also put a series of “no-contact” rules in place in 2005, prohibiting its clubs from scouting high school players in person. However, front offices have long pushed the league office to loosen those rules and it seems the NBA is complying.
According to Givony, one reason the league is becoming more willing to permit teams to scout high school events and players is the fact that a number of prospects in recent years, including Shaedon Sharpe and Darius Bazley, have opted not to play competitive basketball during the year after high school. Others, such as James Wiseman and Darius Garland, have seen very limited action in their lone college season due to an injury or an eligibility issue.
Being able to scout those prospects at high school events would have given teams more information to base their evaluations on once they became draft-eligible.
This week’s event in Vegas, which will take place when teams are already in town for the in-season tournament final four, will feature top prospects Cooper Flagg and Tre Johnson facing off against one another as members of Montverde Academy and Link Academy, respectively.
Here are the 2023/24 high school events that were certified by the NBA for scouts in a memo sent to teams last month, according to Givony:
- Nike EYBL Scholastic Showcase Games (Dec. 8-9 in Las Vegas, NV)
- Sunshine Prep Showcase at IMG Academy (Dec. 14-17 in Bradenton, FL)
- Tarkanian Classic (Dec. 15-21 in Las Vegas, NV)
- City of Palms Classic (Dec. 18-23 in Fort Myers, FL)
- HoopHall Classic (Jan. 11-15, Springfield, MA)
- Throne National Championship (March 28-31 in New York City, NY)
- High School Boys Basketball Nationals (April 4-6 in Brownsburg, IN)