What is a protected pick nba?

A protected pick in the NBA refers to a draft pick that a team has placed conditions on in order to protect their assets. These conditions typically involve a certain range of selections in a draft that the pick must fall within in order for it to convey to the receiving team.

For example, a team may trade a lottery-protected pick to another team. This means that if the pick falls within the top 14 selections (or lottery picks) in the draft, the team will keep the pick and it will not be conveyed to the other team. If the pick falls outside of the top 14, then it will be transferred to the other team.

Protected picks are often used in trades to mitigate risk for teams and ensure that they are not left empty-handed in a trade scenario. Teams may use various types of protections, such as top-3 protection, lottery protection, or even specific range protection, to ensure that they receive fair value in a trade.