2023 NBA draft eligibility requirements: age, one-and-done rule and more

The 2023 NBA draft is perhaps the most-anticipated in 20 years.

In 2003, high school phenom LeBron James was drafted to the Cleveland Cavaliers as the No. 1 overall pick.

This year, Victor Wembanyama is giving the NBA's all-time scorer a run for his money with the hype surrounding his impending selection as the No. 1 overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs.

G-League star Scoot Henderson is also ready to show he's NBA-ready and Alabama freshman Brandon Miller will be among those who hear their names called on draft night Thursday in New York.

But can anybody enter the draft?

Here are the rules of eligibility for the NBA draft:

Is there an age requirement for the NBA draft?

Yes, the NBA's collective bargaining agreement says that all players must be at least 19 years old during the calendar year of the draft.

What is the NBA one-and-done rule?

Gone are the days when LeBron James, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant went straight from high school to the NBA. The league allowed players to enter the draft straight out of high school from 1995 through 2005.

After that, the NBA instituted what has become known as the "one-and-done rule." The collective bargaining agreement says that "at least one (1) NBA Season has elapsed since the player’s graduation from high school (or, if the player did not graduate from high school, since the graduation of the class with which the player would have graduated had he graduated from high school)" in order for a player to be eligible for the NBA draft.

Therefore, it's become popular for players to only play college basketball for a year before entering the draft. Some don't play college basketball, but use their off-year elsewhere. Scoot Henderson played in the G-League and is expected to be one of the top picks in the draft.

Commissioner Adam Silver considered scrapping the one-and-done rule, but in March, USA TODAY Sports learned that the eligibility requirement will remain in place for the next collective bargaining agreement, which was ratified in April.

What defines an international player in NBA?

Victor Wembanyama is one of the most-heralded international players in recent memory.

Pau Gasol, Yao Ming and Tony Parker were all international players.

Finals MVP Nikola Jokić hails from Serbia and fellow two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo is also an international player from Greece.

According to the collective bargaining agreement, an international player is defined as one "(i) who has maintained a permanent residence outside of the United States for at least the three (3) years prior to the Draft, while participating in the game of basketball as an amateur or as a professional outside of the United States; (ii) who has never previously enrolled in a college or university in the United States; and (iii) who did not complete high school in the United States."

Is there a limit to how many NBA drafts a player can enter?

Yes, a player seeking to be a part of the NBA can only enter two drafts.

A player also cannot join the NBA unless he has met the eligibility requirements for the draft.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2023 NBA draft eligibility requirements: age, one-and-done rule, more