NBA Draft Pick Salaries: How Much Do Rookies Make?

*This post has been updated ahead of the 2024 NBA Draft*

The 2024 NBA Draft takes place on Thursday night on ABC and ESPN. Fans will learn which players will go to which teams and everyone will learn how much they'll be making on their rookie contracts. Similarly to the NFL, though, this is not a pure contract negotiation based on value. In fact, there is very little to negotiate at all. Rookie wage scales are determined by the NBA's collective barganining agreement with the NBA Players Association.

What is the rookie wage scale?

The rookie wage scale assigns a limit on total compensation for a team's rookie class with each draft slot assigned specific salary parameters. It was first introduced in 1995, after NBA veterans were getting mad that unproven rookies were receiving much richer deals. The tipping point was when Glenn Robinson, selected first in the 1994 NBA draft, managed to negotiate a 10-year, $68 million deal. The new CBA the following season introduced the "rookie salary cap," as it was called back then and the first round pick in the 1995 NBA draft, Joe Smith, signed a three-year deal worth only $8.3 million.

How much will the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft make?

The top pick in the 2024 NBA Draft will make about $10.5 million this upcoming season according to RealGM. Their salary then increases incrementally in their second and third seasons before they receive a 26 percent increase for their fourth-year team option. The total value of their contract will be about $33 million over three years with an option for the fourth year.

Salaries for each player drafted after the first pick will make progressively less until you get to the 30th pick in the draft, who will make about $2 million annually.

It is important to note that these are just average, estimated numbers. By the CBA rules, a rookie can sign anywhere from 80 percent to 120 percent of those numbers. Most high first-rounders get that 120 percent mark without much trouble but the further down the player is drafted the more room there is for negotiation.

How much do second-round picks in the NBA draft make?

The NBA rookie wage scale does not apply to second-round draft picks. Teams are free to sign these picks to whatever contract they can negotiate with the player and their agent. The salaries aren't necessarily fully guaranteed, and the players themselves aren't even guaranteed a full-time roster spot. Some teams like using their second-round picks to fill out their two-way contract spots.

As a point of reference, the second pick in the second round of the 2023 NBA draft, Jalen Pickett, signed a four-year $8.2 million contract with the Denver Nuggets, with $5.8 million guaranteed. The last pick in the second round, Chris Livingston, signed a four-year deal worth $7.6 million with the Milwaukee Bucks that included $3.01 million guaranteed. Any second-round rookies signing four-year deals can expect a salary in this range.

NBA Draft Pick Salary

Here's the breakdown of the average annual salary for the rookie season of each player picked in the 2024 NBA draft, separated by pick.