Player Transfers in Professional Sports. The Case of NBA Draft Lottery

This graduate qualification paper contains a definition and analysis of external non-sports factors related to the professional career of the NBA (National Basketball Association) basketball player. The main purpose of this study was to determine the significant influence of non-sports external factors on the professional success of the basketball player in the National Basketball Association through the NBA draft, as well as to determine the nature of this influence. Theories were used as a theoretical framework that reflected the problem of evaluation by teams of basketball players who applied for the NBA draft, not including the sports component and physical data of athletes. Based on the analysis of the research discussion, it was found that many non-sports factors, such as a player's origin, admission to higher education, etc., affect the professional success of a basketball player. As a result of data collection and analysis, social and economic factors that could have a significant impact on the professional development of the athlete were identified, the necessary data for the research were substantiated, and five hypotheses were advanced that suggested how external non-sports factors could influence the professional development of the athlete. As a result of the data analysis, it was concluded that the experience of performing at the U.S. university championship will have a positive impact on the professional development of the athlete, as well as admission to university will contribute to the development of professional career of the athlete, also if the athlete was born in one of the European countries, the probability of successful career development will be higher than the others.