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When the NBA announced its return-to-play plan in early June, the league set the 2020 NBA Draft Lottery for Tuesday, Aug. 25. In the ensuing weeks, non-bubble teams like the Atlanta Hawks have circled that date on the calendar as the next concrete NBA event to plan around but, on Tuesday, Shams Charania of The Athletic brought word that the lottery is actually moving up a few days.
The new date... is Thursday, Aug. 20.
Sources: NBA teams have been informed of new calendar date:
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 21, 2020
2020 Draft lottery: Aug. 20 — up from previous Aug. 25.
2020 Draft remains Oct. 16.
This isn’t the first change in the calendar, with the draft itself moving from Oct. 15 to Oct. 16, presumably to avoid the NFL and a previously scheduled presidential debate. This time, the rationale is a bit less clear but, for Hawks-based observers craving content during the hiatus, the shift of the lottery is undoubtedly a breath of fresh air.
Operationally, there is no effect on the Hawks and their planning, especially when the lottery is entirely out of their control. Still, the wait is a bit shorter now, and Atlanta’s front office — led by Travis Schlenk — will enter the night of Aug. 20 with a 12.5 percent chance at the No. 1 pick, a 36.62 percent chance at a top-three pick and a guarantee of a top-eight selection.
Stay tuned.