The NBA Should Fix Their Nearly Annual Draft Day Hat Problem

Remember Kobe Bryant’s incredible tenure with the Charlotte Hornets? Or Kawhi Leonard’s superb two-way play with the Indiana Pacers? Of course you don’t, because they never suited up for those teams. On their respective draft nights though, they put on those team’s hats. It was known that they were part of a trade, and wouldn’t play for those teams, but those deals weren’t official as the new league year hadn’t occurred yet. The first round of the 2025 NBA Draft consisted of many occurrences of draftees putting on a hat of a team they won’t be starting their career with.

The NBA Should Fix Their Nearly Annual Draft Day Hat Problem

Khaman Maluach Will Not Be Playing For The Houston Rockets

Khaman Malauch was the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. After his selection, he put on a Houston Rockets hat. His family was given a hat to display on their table. This unforgettable moment for Khaman and his family will feature pictures of him wearing the cap of a team everybody knows he won’t be playing for.

That’s because Houston traded that pick to the Phoenix Suns. It switched hands in the deal that put Kevin Durant in a Rockets jersey. Nobody believes that a Rockets team that has Alperen Sengun and Steven Adams (recently re-signed) would draft a center. The trade was announced on Sunday but can’t be made official until the new league year begins on July 6.

The thing is, prior to the 11th pick being announced, NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced that the Suns acquired Maluach in a proposed trade. So if Silver is going to state that to the audience at the draft, and all those watching at home, why not stop the charade and let Maluach wear a Suns hat? Even Steven A. Smith on the broadcast seemed very confused about Silver’s announcement.

This happens every year. It happened six picks after Maluach when the Memphis Grizzlies ‘drafted’ center Yang Hansen 16th overall. It was announced though by Shams Charania, and on the air,that Memphis dealt that pick. The 16th pick was instead going to the Portland Trail Blazers. Hansen wasn’t in the green room, but he was in the crowd and walked down once his name was called to put on a Grizzlies cap. Two picks after that, Silver announced that Hansen was acquired by Portland in a proposed trade.