Frequently Asked Questions

Last updated: July 16, 2026

The questions that come up most. If yours is not here, the How to Play guide goes deeper on the rules, and the Contact page reaches a human.

Is DraftHoops free?

Yes, completely. Every mode is free, there is nothing to buy, and no part of the game is locked behind a payment. It is funded out of pocket, with ads and an optional support link covering the running costs.

Is this an official NBA game?

No. DraftHoops is an independent, fan-made project with no affiliation to, endorsement from, or sponsorship by the NBA, its teams, or any player. Player names and statistics are facts of public record.

Why does this player cost what they cost?

Prices are derived from the data, not set by hand. Each player-season gets a rating from its box-score and advanced statistics, and the price follows from that rating, plus a small random jitter of up to $20 either way so the same player is not always the same price.

This is why famous names are not automatically expensive. You are buying one season, not a career or a reputation. A legend's ordinary year is priced like the ordinary year it was. If a price still looks genuinely wrong to you after that, please say so, because that feedback is useful.

How can a 1970s player be compared to a modern one?

Players are measured against what was normal for their own season rather than compared raw. A guard putting up big numbers in a fast, high-scoring era is not automatically better than one from a slower era; each is judged against their own league. The battle simulation is era-adjusted the same way, so slow, low-scoring eras are not punished.

Why are no stats shown while I draft?

Because that is the game. If the numbers were visible, drafting would be arithmetic and the best drafter would be whoever is fastest at dividing. Hiding them means you are betting on what you actually know about basketball. You see the player, the season and the price, and you decide whether that is a bargain.

I had the better team and still lost. Why?

Usually one of three things. Your roster may have had a hole that got exploited every game, since matchups are position by position. Your minutes may have been wrong, which is the most common culprit: pushing players far past their normal workload burns a lot of value (see the guide). Or the series was close and variance decided it, which is what a best-of-7 is for.

Should I stack stars or spread the budget?

Spread it, in most cases. You have $800 for eight spots and the median player costs $100, so an average team only just fits the budget. Every dollar over $100 you spend on one player has to come out of somebody else. And because minutes past a player's normal workload lose value steeply, you cannot simply play your stars more to make up for a thin roster. Depth is not a consolation prize here, it is the efficient way to spend.

How does the ranked ladder work?

Every account starts at 1200 Elo. Finishing a ranked best-of-7 moves your rating based on the opponent's rating at the moment they drafted that team, so you are scored against the strength they had when they built it, not whatever they have climbed to since. Unrated games stake nothing.

Who am I actually playing against?

Real teams drafted by real players, not live opponents. When you finish a series your team can be saved, and saved teams become rosters other people draft against later. So you are facing somebody's genuine roster, just not in real time. If you want a live opponent, Play a Friend is exactly that.

Can I lose my rating or my teams?

Possibly. The ladder has been reset before, when the rating scale changed, and it could be reset again if the game needs it. Ratings get retuned as the data improves. This is a hobby project rather than a service with guarantees, which the Terms say more plainly.

Do I need an account?

Not for Unrated or the Daily Challenge. Ranked and Play a Friend need one, since they have to store a rating and match you to other people. You can sign in with Google or an email and password, and you claim a unique username that appears in matchups and on the leaderboards.

How do I delete my account?

Email us and it will be deleted along with the data attached to it. See the Privacy Policy for what is stored and the Contact page for the address.

Where does the data come from?

Player statistics come from Basketball Reference, specifically the per-game and advanced tables for each season. Player photographs come from Wikimedia Commons, each keeping its original license and attribution. There is more detail on the About page.

Why can I not find a player I am looking for?

Each pick offers a set of nine players rather than the whole pool, so you are choosing from what you are dealt. The engine also only ever offers players that keep your roster completable within your remaining budget, which means you can never paint yourself into a corner where the last slot is unfillable.

Can I play on my phone?

Yes. It runs in a mobile browser with no install.

Found a bug, or want to suggest something?

Use the Report a bug / idea button on the main menu, or any of the routes on the Contact page. A mispriced player is the single most useful thing you can report.