Starting 5, June 27: French connection leads NBA Draft Night 1

“C’est la France frère ”
 – Victor Wembanyama sums up the top of this year’s NBA Draft

THE LINEUP

What’s inside today’s edition?

French Connection: France makes history in the first six picks of the 2024 NBA Draft

Trio Of Teammates: The lottery included two Huskies, two Wildcats and a pair of Ignite

All-Access: All of Wednesday’s best moments – from the fits to the picks and the celebrations

Through The Lens: Some of our favorite frames from opening night of the Draft

Round 2 in 1 Minute: Historic second-round gems and today’s schedule

BUT FIRST … ⏰

The 2024 Draft continues this afternoon …

The 2024 NBA Draft presented by State Farm concludes today with the second round beginning at 4 ET on ESPN.

Draft Board & Results: Tap for all the picks & moves so far, and order for Day 2

1. FRANCE CEMENTS PLACE IN DRAFT HISTORY

France etched its name into history at the 2024 NBA Draft, becoming the first country outside the United States to produce three of the first top 10 picks in the modern Draft era (since 1966).

And Les Bleus only needed six picks to do it.

• 1st Overall Pick: Hawks select Zaccharie Risacher
• 2nd Overall Pick: Wizards select Alex Sarr
• 6th Overall Pick: Hornets select Tidjane Salaun

In terms of Draft Day records, that’s three players in six selections and a plethora of ‘firsts.’

• Back-To-Back: Risacher and Sarr are the first two French players to be selected with the top two picks in the history of the Draft
• More History: Risacher and last year’s No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama are the first consecutive top picks to hail from France
• No Brackets Necessary: Risacher and Wemby are also the first consecutive No. 1 overall picks without experience playing college basketball in the U.S.
• Ten de France: Risacher, Sarr and Salaun join Wemby, Bilal Coulibaly (No. 7, 2023), Killian Hayes (No. 7, 2020) and Frank Ntilikina (No. 8, 2017) as the only French top 10 picks

And France wasn’t finished. With the 25th overall pick, the Knicks selected Pacome Dadiet, ultimately ending the first round with a record four French players off the board.

• ️ Sarr: “It just shows the amount of talent that we have in France … I think our national team is really going to be good.”
• ️ Risacher: “That’s amazing. We are trying to represent our country, and I’m so glad to be a part of it. There is more players coming in.”

France’s spike in first-round picks is no surprise given the country’s growing presence in the NBA, which led to an all-time high 12 French players in the league last season.

And the NBA’s global growth extends beyond French borders.

Three picks after Salaun’s name was called, the Grizzlies selected Canadian Zach Edey with the ninth overall pick, marking the fourth international player to be taken in the top 10.

• No Foreign Concept: At least two international players have been selected in the top 10 in 12 consecutive Drafts, and Risacher is the 15th international player to go first overall
• International Affair: In total, nine international players from six countries were selected in the first round
• Big Picture: The NBA’s 2003-04 opening night rosters featured 73 players born outside the U.S. Entering the 2023-24 season, that number was at 125 – the 10th straight year with 100+ players

2. TEAMMATES HIGHLIGHT LOTTERY 

In addition to the five international picks, the lottery featured a pair of Huskies, a pair of Wildcats and a double dose of Ignite.

UConn Connection: Eighty days after winning a national championship together at UConn, Stephen Castle (No. 4 to San Antonio) and Donovan Clingan (No. 7 to Portland) were both drafted in the top 10 – the first time since 2012 that UConn has had multiple lottery picks in a Draft.

•  Castle On Being Drafted Top 10 with Clingan: “It really means the world to me and I wouldn’t trade this for anything.”
• Clingan On Castle: “I love that kid to death. I’m extremely happy for him.”

Big Blue Backcourt: For the 16th straight Draft, Kentucky has produced at least one lottery pick … and this year they had two. Reed Sheppard (No. 3 to Houston) and Rob Dillingham (No. 8 to San Antonio, traded to Minnesota) went from college roommates to top 10 picks.

• ️ Dillingham On Sheppard: “He’s a great dude. He always pushed me and he always helped me. Me seeing him and we going together, it’s just crazy to even see, and I’m thankful.”

Final Ignition: The four-year run of the G League Ignite program has come to an end, but not before producing two more lottery picks in Ron Holland II (No. 5 to Detroit) and Matas Buzelis (No. 11 to Chicago) both headed to the Central Division.

• ️ Holland On Buzelis: “I’m super proud of [Matas], just knowing and seeing the man that he is becoming. I’m really super excited to see where his NBA career goes and super excited to compete against him as well.”

Rounding Out The Lottery: Cody Williams (No. 10 to Utah) will face his brother Jalen (of OKC) next season as the two are now division rivals.

• Devin Carter (No. 13 to Sacramento) will face his father Anthony – a 13-year veteran and current Grizzlies assistant coach – as he begins his own NBA journey
• Bub Carrington (No. 14 to Portland, traded to Washington) closed out the lottery and joined No. 2 pick Sarr to help the Wizards rebuild
• Trade Tracker: Check out every trade made over the course of the night

3. ALL-ACCESS PASS TO NIGHT ONE

On Wednesday night in Brooklyn, 30 hoops dreams became reality at the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft. Our all-access cameras and mics were there every step of the way to capture these once-in-a-lifetime moments.

Fits & Arrivals: Before any names are called, the outfit must be on point.

• Top 5 picks Ron Holland and Alex Sarr rate each other’s Draft fits
• Gallery: The best fits from Wednesday night
• Arrivals: The draftees reach the Barclays Center
• Picture Day: The Class of 2024 hits the stage for a group photo

The Wait & The Moment: The draftees took their seats inside Barclays, waiting to hear their name called by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.

• The Reactions: The slow-mo cam was focused on Zaccharie Risacher as his name was called as the No. 1 overall pick
• Strike A Pose: After being selected, the draftees posed for the cameras in the Draft hat of their new squad

All About Family: Night one was filled with heartwarming moments.

• Honoring Mom: No. 7 pick Donovan Clingan honored his late mother with photos of her on the inside lining of his Draft suit. “Got my mom over here on my side at all times … I know she’s proud.”
• My Brother’s Keeper: No. 16 pick Jared McClain dedicated his Draft to his brother, Jayce, who stepped back from his own playing career to invest in his brother’s NBA dreams. “I’m just blessed to be a part of this journey. It’s just a big part of my purpose,” said Jayce.

• The Latest Sibling Duo: When Cody Williams was selected 10th overall by the Utah Jazz, he and brother Jalen of the OKC Thunder unleashed the handshake of the night
• Shared Moment: This was the second Draft for the Sarr brothers. Olivier went undrafted in 2021 before reaching the NBA via the G League. “I went to his draft and I know how it feels to go undrafted. For me to be able to be a top pick now is special,” said Alex. “It’s truly special to have someone like him in my corner.”

• A Family Achievement: When No. 11 pick Matas Buzelis was selected by his hometown Chicago Bulls, his entire family in attendance was feeling the emotions of the accomplishment
• Double Up: The Sheppard family celebrated Reed going to Houston with the third pick while also celebrating his mom’s birthday

4. SOME OF OUR FAVORITE NIGHT 1 PICS

Zaccharie Risacher

Alex Sarr

Reed Sheppard

Stephon Castle

Ron Holland II

Tidjane Salaun

Rob Dillingham

5. ROUND 2 IN 1 MINUTE

For the first time ever, the NBA Draft moves into a second day today — starting at 4 ET on ESPN.

Teams will have four minutes between picks in Round 2 – an increase from the second round’s traditional two minutes.

Why? Because every pick matters.

• Second-Round Stars: Since the Draft expanded to two rounds in 1989, 21 second-round picks have been named NBA All-Stars
• All-NBA: Since 1989, 11 second rounders have been named to the Kia All-NBA Team, with multiple selections for Nikola Jokić (6), Gilbert Arenas (3), DeAndre Jordan (3), Marc Gasol (2), Manu Ginobili (2) and Draymond Green (2)
• Denver’s Ace: The Nuggets selected Jokic with the 41st pick in the 2014 Draft. In 2023-24, the Joker became just the ninth player in NBA history to win three Kia NBA MVP awards
• All-Around Honors: In addition to Jokic, 15 other second-round picks have earned annual Kia Performance Awards since 1989 (MVP, DPOY, ROTY, Sixth Man of the Year and Most Improved Player), including three-time Sixth Man winner Lou Williams

And the top five career points per game list among second-rounders since 1989 boasts some notable names.

• The List: Nikola Jokic (20.95), Gilbert Arenas (20.66), Michael Redd (19.03), Monta Ellis (17.84) and Isaiah Thomas (17.49)

Watch Guide: Will any of today’s picks join the list?

• Where: Live from ESPN’s Seaport District Studios in New York
• With Who: Hosted by Malika Andrews alongside analysts Stephen A. Smith, Bob Myers and Jonathan Givony, insiders Adrian Wojnarowski and Bobby Marks, and reporter Monica McNutt
• Who Could Go? Tap in to catch up on Draft Prospects, with names like Duke’s Kyle Filipowski, Kansas’ Johnny Furphy, USC’s Bronny James and Marquette’s Tyler Kolek still available