Why do the Bucks and Heat have to forfeit second-round picks in the 2022 NBA Draft?

There will only be 58 picks in the 2022 NBA Draft Thursday as opposed to the usual 60, with the Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat forfeiting second-round selections. Here’s why each franchise had to give up the draft asset.

The Bucks were hit with tampering violations surrounding shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic in November of 2020. The NBA investigation showed Milwaukee had contact with the player or his representation prior to his free agency period. Bogdanovic ended up signing with the Atlanta Hawks.

The Heat were also hit with tampering violations after they executed a sign-and-trade deal with point guard Kyle Lowry. The NBA found Miami had already put a deal in place with Lowry’s representatives prior to the offseason, which is not allowed under the current rules.

While tampering violations are nothing new, this is the first time in recent memory teams have actually been docked draft picks for committing said violations. We’ll see if this has any impact on tampering, which largely goes unchecked in the NBA.