Official Rulebook

Front Matter

Authority and source hierarchy

This approved rulebook is the controlling BDA governance source. It preserves the approved governing language and flags conflicts rather than resolving them silently.

Quick reference

The numbered sections remain controlling. This panel is a navigation aid.

1. League Identity

1.1 League Name

The league shall operate as the BDA 2K League unless later renamed by league agreement.

1.2 League Purpose

The league exists to provide a structured, competitive, story-driven 2K basketball league between Ron and Oliver, using custom teams, scheduled matchups, standings, statistics, rankings, betting lines, press coverage, awards, and yearbook-style documentation.

1.3 League Philosophy

The league should be competitive, fair, organized, and consistent. The purpose of the rule book is to keep arguments from being decided by memory, mood, or convenience after the fact. Once a rule is entered and locked, it becomes league law until amended.

2. League Ownership and Teams

2.1 Owners

The league consists of two primary human owners:

• Ron
• Oliver

2.2 Ron Teams

Ron controls the following teams:

• Newark Riots
• NJ Devil
• Lakewood Lightning
• Newport 100s

2.3 Oliver Teams

Oliver controls the following teams:

• NY Knicks
• Atlantic City Aces
• Afrika Afrikaans
• Bronx Gauchos

2.4 Scheduling Rule

League games are always Ron vs Oliver.

No scheduled league game shall be Ron vs Ron or Oliver vs Oliver unless the league formally creates an exhibition, scrimmage, all-star, or special-event exception.

3. Governance Structure

3.1 Rule Book Authority

This rule book is the controlling document for league procedure. If a dispute comes up, the rule book should be checked first.

3.2 Commissioner Function

The commissioner function is responsible for maintaining the schedule, recording results, updating standings, preserving league rules, and compiling official league documents.

Placeholder: Decide whether one person is commissioner, whether the role rotates, or whether the compiler acts as neutral recordkeeper only.

3.3 Rule Changes

Rules may be added, clarified, or amended during the season, but changes should not be applied retroactively unless both owners agree.

3.4 Version Control

Every major rule update should be recorded in a version log.

4. Season Structure

4.1 Season Schedule

The season schedule should be maintained in a separate official schedule file or schedule section.

4.2 Weekly Records

Each week should record:

• Games scheduled
• Games completed
• Final scores
• Home and away designation
• Injuries
• Standings impact
• Major storylines
• Any disputes or rule questions

4.3 Game Format

Official BDA games shall use the following gameplay settings:

• Quarter length: 8 minutes
• Difficulty: All-Star
• Sliders: Standard sliders
• Injuries: On
• Fatigue: Regular fatigue

These settings apply to official regular season games, Mini Crown games, and playoff games unless both owners approve a specific event exception before the game is played.

Any game played under different settings must be disclosed before tipoff. If the wrong settings are discovered after the game starts, both owners must either agree to continue the game as official or restart the game using the official settings.

4.4 Mini Crown / Tournament Same-Owner Final Rule

If a Mini Crown, Mini Cup, or BDA tournament final would require two teams controlled by the same owner to play each other, the final shall not be played as an official BDA game unless the Commissioner creates a separate exhibition or special-event exception before tipoff.

For official season and tournament purposes, the championship shall be awarded by approved tournament tiebreakers in this order: tournament record, point differential, points scored, points allowed, then Commissioner ruling if still tied.

The team winning the administrative tiebreaker is recorded as Tournament Champion and receives the applicable title bonus. The other same-owner finalist is recorded as Tournament Runner-Up and may receive a Commissioner-approved runner-up administrative credit if declared before the next official game. The runner-up credit is not automatic for future events unless specifically approved by the Commissioner.

No same-owner administrative final creates an official game played, standings result, player statistics, injury result, or additional schedule count. The regular-season schedule must still be corrected with owner-vs-owner compliant games so every team finishes with the required official game total.

If a lower-seeded opposite-owner team did not qualify for the final on tournament results, that team does not receive a backdoor championship berth or title-bonus opportunity solely to satisfy the owner-vs-owner scheduling rule.

Mini Crown II Commissioner Precedent: two same-owner teams finished undefeated in group play. The champion was named by point-differential tiebreaker, the second team was recorded as runner-up, no official final was played, and the next lower opposite-owner team did not receive a backdoor title berth.

5. Matchup and Home Court Rules

5.1 Matchup Format

All official regular-season games shall match one Ron-controlled team against one Oliver-controlled team.

5.2 Home and Away Listing

Upcoming games should be listed in this format:

Away Team at Home Team

5.3 Home Court

There are no neutral-site games unless both owners specifically agree to create one for a special event.

Regular season home court should follow the official schedule.

For playoff series, home court should be awarded using the following order:

1. Better regular season record.
2. Higher seed.
3. Head-to-head record.
4. Better Mini Crown record.
5. Better point differential.
6. Coin flip or random draw if still tied.

All playoff rounds use a 2-2-1-1-1 home-court format.

This format applies to the first round, second round, and Finals.

Every playoff round is a best-of-7 series.

The team with home-court advantage hosts Games 1, 2, 5, and 7 in a 7-game series. The opponent hosts Games 3, 4, and 6.

6. Injuries

6.1 Regular Season Injury Conversion Rule

During the regular season, injuries use the established 5 to 1 ratio.

For every 5 real NBA games missed, the affected BDA player misses 1 BDA league game.

6.2 Injury Calculation Formula

BDA Games Missed = Real Games Missed / 5

Injury results are rounded down.

For injury games-missed purposes, the midseason All-Star break counts as 1 BDA game missed.

Examples:

• 4 real NBA games missed / 5 = 0.8 BDA games missed, rounded down to 0 BDA games.
• 7 real NBA games missed / 5 = 1.4 BDA games missed, rounded down to 1 BDA game.
• 12 real NBA games missed / 5 = 2.4 BDA games missed, rounded down to 2 BDA games.
• If a player is injured through the midseason All-Star break, the All-Star break counts as 1 BDA game missed for injury tracking.

6.3 Long-Term Injury Replacement Rule

If a player is projected or confirmed to miss 6 actual BDA games due to injury, the owner may pick up a free agent from waivers to replace the injured player.

The owner has two legal options:

1. Temporary Injury Replacement: The owner may add a waiver free agent as a temporary replacement while retaining the injured player's rights. When the injured player returns, the temporary replacement must be released unless another legal roster move is made.
2. Permanent Free-Agent Signing: The owner may sign the waiver free agent permanently, but must give up a late-round draft pick as compensation.

The original team retains the injured player's rights only if the move is treated as a temporary injury replacement.

A permanent free-agent signing is a roster acquisition, not merely an injury hold.

6.4 Return From Injury

When the injured player is eligible to return, a temporary injury replacement must be released before that team's next scheduled game unless the owner chooses a legal permanent roster path.

If the owner wants to keep the replacement free agent permanently, the owner must give up the required late-round draft pick.

Late-round pick cost is defined in Section 8.3.

6.5 Playoff Injury Rule

During the playoffs, injuries are enforced at 100% of the duration displayed by the game. The regular-season 5-to-1 conversion does not apply.

No temporary or permanent injury replacement is permitted during the playoffs.

6.6 Playoff Roster Integrity

Once the playoffs begin, rosters are locked. No free-agent signings, waiver claims, trades, releases for replacement purposes, or other roster transactions are permitted during the playoffs. A player already under team control may return after completing an existing injury duration; that return is not a new transaction.

7. Roster Rules

7.1 Official Rosters

Each team must have an official roster recognized by the league.

Each team has a maximum roster size of 15 players.

7.2 Contract Lengths

BDA player contracts may be structured as:

• 3-season contracts
• 2-season contracts
• 1-season contracts

A player's contract length controls how long that player is tied to the current team before reaching restricted free agency, unrestricted draft eligibility, or another league-approved roster status.

7.3 Annual 3-Season Contract Rights

At the end of each season, each team has the right to sign 2 players from its current roster to new 3-season contracts.

These 3-season contracts are used to protect core players and create roster continuity across seasons.

Unused 3-season contract rights may be traded, but they may not be retained or carried over into a later season.

If a team does not use or trade an available 3-season contract right during the proper signing period, that right expires.

7.4 Contract Expiration

At the completion of a player's contract, the player becomes a restricted free agent.

The current team receives the first right to retain that player under the restricted free-agent rule.

7.5 Restricted Free Agency

When a player's contract is completed, the current team may re-sign the player as a restricted free agent.

To re-sign the restricted free agent, the current team must give up its 1st round pick and 2nd round pick in the next draft.

The phrase "first 2 draft slots" means the team's 1st and 2nd round draft picks.

7.6 Declining Restricted Free-Agent Rights

If the current team chooses not to re-sign the restricted free agent, the player enters the draft and becomes available to be selected by any team.

Once the player enters the draft, the prior team no longer has exclusive rights unless it drafts the player again.

7.7 Rising Star Rookie Contracts

Rising Star players are drafted BDA rookies.

A BDA rookie is defined as a player entering the BDA League for the first time.

Rookie status is based on the player's first BDA League entry, not the player's real NBA rookie status.

When a Rising Star player is drafted into the BDA League, that player receives an initial 3-season rookie contract.

At the end of the initial 3-season rookie contract, the team that drafted the Rising Star may re-sign that player for 3 additional seasons with no veteran restricted free-agent draft-pick cost, penalty, or compensation owed.

The Rising Star re-signing does count against the team's 2 annual 3-season signing slots.

The Rising Star exception only removes the veteran restricted free-agent penalty. It does not create an extra signing slot.

7.8 Rising Star Free-Agent Pickup Rule

If a Rising Star player is picked up through free agency instead of being drafted, that player may receive a 1-season extension with no draft-pick cost, penalty, or compensation owed.

The 1-season Rising Star free-agent extension counts against the team's 2 annual signing slots, even though it is not a 3-season contract.

7.9 Rising Star Tracker

The league shall maintain a live Rising Star tracker during draft season.

The Rising Star tracker should list all current Rising Star players and the number of seasons remaining on each Rising Star contract.

This tracker is necessary because Rising Star players can fade out of the draft pool or roster plan over time, and the league needs a clean record before draft day.

7.10 Roster Lock

The regular season is 16 games.

The trade and signing deadline is set at the three-quarter mark of the regular season.

Trade and signing deadline formula:

Trade and Signing Deadline Game = Total Regular Season Games x 0.75

For a 16-game season:

16 x 0.75 = 12

Therefore, the trade and signing deadline occurs after Game 12.

Once the league passes Game 12, rosters lock until the end of the playoffs.

After the roster lock, no trades or free-agent signings are allowed unless a specific rule creates an exception.

The only current exception is for a player returning from injury during the playoffs if that injury occurred before the trade and signing deadline.

A returning injured player may be restored to the roster during the playoffs only if the injury was already active before the deadline.

7.11 Replacement Players

Replacement players may be used only under rules recognized by the league.

Current recognized replacement basis:

• Regular-season injury replacement when a player is projected or confirmed to miss 6 actual BDA games due to injury

7.12 Player Rights

A team retains rights to an injured player when using a temporary waiver replacement under the long-term injury rule.

If the owner signs the waiver free agent permanently instead of using him only as a temporary replacement, the owner must pay the late-round draft pick cost.

A late-round draft pick means the team's last available draft pick in the applicable draft after retained contracts, Rising Star contracts, veteran contracts, traded picks, and roster-slot limits are accounted for.

7.13 Trades

Trades are allowed before the trade and signing deadline.

The trade and signing deadline occurs after Game 12 of the 16-game regular season.

After that point, rosters are locked until the end of the playoffs.

Traded contracts are legal tender and may be used as trade currency for anything permitted by league rules.

Legal trade assets include:

• Players
• Draft picks
• Unused 3-season signing rights
• Contract rights attached to players
• Rising Star contract rights attached to Rising Star players
• Family-coded pairs, provided the pair is traded together
• Other league-approved assets

Contracts are tied to the player if the player is already signed or if the player is a Rising Star.

Unused 3-season signing rights may be traded, but they may not be retained or carried over if unused.

7.14 Waivers and Free Agents

There shall be a waiver-priority system for free-agent signings to prevent a free-for-all.

Waiver priority is determined by reverse standings order.

The team with the worst current record has the highest waiver priority.

When a team successfully claims a player from waivers, that team moves to the back of the waiver line.

A claimed player must sit on waivers for 24 hours before being awarded.

Exception: If both owners are present and agree to process the claim immediately, the waiver claim may be resolved immediately using the current waiver-priority order.

The waiver order then continues from that adjusted priority list until the next standings reset or league-approved waiver reset.

Waiver free agents may be used for injury replacement when the injured player is projected or confirmed to miss 6 actual BDA games.

Any unrostered player who was eligible for that season's draft pool may be signed through waivers.

This includes current NBA players, Rising Stars, and eligible legend-class players from that season's approved draft pool, provided they are not already on a BDA roster.

A waiver pickup may be temporary or permanent:

• Temporary pickup: used only while the injured player is out, with the injured player's rights retained.
• Permanent signing: owner keeps the waiver player, but gives up a late-round draft pick.

Regular free-agent signings are under contract for the current season only.

A current-year free-agent signing is eligible to be signed to a new 3-season contract at the end of the season without the team giving up a draft pick.

That free-agent 3-season signing follows the normal annual signing-slot system and counts against the team's 2 annual 3-season signing slots.

Legend-class players who were draft eligible but not drafted may be signed as free agents for the current season only.

An undrafted legend free-agent signing does not create automatic long-term rights beyond the current season unless the league later creates a specific exception.

The trade and signing deadline applies to waiver claims and free-agent signings.

After the deadline, no waiver claims or free-agent signings are allowed until the offseason unless a specific injury-return exception applies.

Placeholder: Define whether prior real-life teams or BDA team identity limits apply.

7.15 Contract Control, Rising-Star Rights, Rookie-Award Eligibility, and Rights-Held Inactive Players

This section governs how the league tracks contract control, Rising Star rights, rookie-award eligibility, and players whose rights are retained even when they are not on the active roster.

This section cross-references rookie awards, free agency, waivers, roster control, contract expiration, and Rising Star rights.

Contract seasons include the current season.

A 3-season contract means the current season plus two future seasons.

A 2-season contract means the current season plus one future season.

A final-season contract expires at the end of the current season.

Current Rising Stars have 2 seasons of control remaining total. The current season counts as Season 1 of those 2 seasons.

New Rising Star Rookies begin under rising-star rookie control for 3 seasons total, unless a later rule creates an exception. The current season counts as Season 1 of those 3 seasons.

New Comers are eligible for rookie awards, but they do not automatically receive Rising Star contract control.

A New Comer must go through the same signing, free-agency, waiver, or contract route as other players who have no existing contract rights.

A team may retain Rising Star rights to a player even if that player is not on the active roster, as long as the league clearly records the player as rights-held or inactive.

The active roster spot and the retained rights record must be tracked separately.

If a player is replaced on the active roster but rights are retained, the workbook must show both statuses clearly: the active replacement player and the original rights-held player.

Expiring contracts and retiring players must be tracked separately.

A retiring player can also be in the final year of a contract, but not every final-year player is automatically retiring.

The league may use official name normalization protocols for confusing names, aliases, shorthand names, or combined-player records.

The workbook must keep one official canonical name or approved combined identity for tracking purposes.

The workbook should include fields for contract category, seasons remaining, whether the current season counts, rookie-award eligibility, active roster status, rights-held status, retiring status, and notes.

7.16 Legacy Draftee Re-Signing Cost Rule

This section governs re-signing costs for legacy draftees and cross-references contract expiration, restricted free agency, draft-pick compensation, legend-class player rules, and workbook tracking.

A legacy draftee is a legend-class or legacy-class player who entered the BDA through the draft and whose original BDA draft round is recorded.

If a team retains or re-signs a legacy draftee after that player's contract expires, the team must give up the draft pick from the same round in which that player was originally drafted.

The original draft round controls the compensation cost, even if the player's current role, rating, age, or production has changed.

Example: if a legacy draftee was originally drafted in Round 3, re-signing that player costs the team's Round 3 pick in the next draft.

If the team does not own the matching round pick, the default replacement cost is the team's next available higher-value pick, meaning an earlier round pick.

If no higher-value pick is available, the team may use a lower-value pick only with clear league approval before the re-signing is official.

A legacy draftee re-signing is not official until the required compensation pick or approved replacement compensation is recorded.

The workbook must track the player's legacy-draftee status, original BDA draft round, original draft team if known, current team, contract status, required compensation pick, actual pick surrendered, and any approved exception notes.

7.17 Retirement, Version Separation, and Current-Version Draft Eligibility

This section governs retiring players, player-version separation, and draft eligibility when a player has both an All-Time or legacy version and a current NBA version.

Retiring players become retired at the end of the applicable season.

Once a player version is retired, that retired version may not be retained, re-signed, claimed, or drafted again unless the league later creates a specific reinstatement or exception rule.

Retirement status and contract-expiration status must remain separate in the workbook.

A player may be in the final year of a contract and also retiring, but retirement controls once the season ends.

A final-year player who is not listed as retiring follows the normal contract-expiration, restricted free-agency, free-agency, or draft-eligibility route.

Retirement applies to the specific player version recorded by the league.

If an All-Time, legend, or legacy version retires, that retirement does not automatically remove the current NBA version of the same player from future draft eligibility.

If the same real-life player is still active in the NBA, the current NBA version remains draft eligible under the Current NBA Player Pool rule unless another league rule excludes him.

The workbook must use version-specific identity fields or notes when needed to distinguish All-Time, legend, legacy, retired, and current NBA versions of the same player.

This section cross-references contract expiration, retiring-player status, legacy draftee rules, current NBA draft eligibility, and name normalization.

This rule does not automatically apply to current NBA players, New Comers, Rising Stars, regular free-agent pickups, waiver pickups, or undrafted legend-class free agents unless they also qualify as legacy draftees under this section.

8. Draft Rules

8.1 Draft Eligibility

The BDA draft pool shall consist of all current real-life NBA roster players and their corresponding NBA 2K ratings at the time the draft pool is created.

The league may also add legend draft class players each year based on an annual theme. The theme shall be decided before that year's draft pool is finalized.

Draft eligibility dates, NBA roster status, NBA 2K ratings, legend theme eligibility, and event-based eligibility remain flexible until the actual draft day and owners meeting.

The actual draft day and owners meeting date are currently TBD.

8.2 Draft Structure

The BDA draft uses a snake draft order.

The draft order is determined by the Draft-Order Weighting System in Section 10.3.

All teams draft every round unless they no longer have an available roster slot or have traded away the applicable pick.

The number of draft rounds may change from year to year because each team has a maximum of 15 roster slots, and existing Rising Star contracts, veteran contracts, retained players, trades, and free-agent decisions affect how many open roster spots each team has.

8.3 Late-Round Pick Definition

For any rule requiring a late-round draft pick, the late-round pick shall be the team's last available draft pick in the applicable draft.

If a team owes more than one late-round pick, the picks are counted backward from that team's final available draft pick.

Example: If a team has picks through Round 10, its late-round pick is its Round 10 pick. If that team owes two late-round picks, the cost would be its Round 10 and Round 9 picks, unless a specific rule says otherwise.

8.4 Current NBA Player Pool

All current real-life NBA roster players are draft eligible unless specifically excluded by league rule.

Current NBA players shall use their NBA 2K ratings as of the draft pool lock date, which remains flexible until the actual draft day and owners meeting.

8.5 Rising Star Draft Eligibility

Rising Stars are draft-eligible BDA rookie players.

A BDA rookie is defined as a player entering the BDA League for the first time.

Rookie status is based on first BDA League entry, not real NBA rookie status.

Rising Stars may be drafted into the BDA League and receive the Rising Star rookie contract described in Section 7.7.

A live Rising Star tracker should be reviewed before draft day to confirm current Rising Stars and seasons remaining.

8.6 Annual Legend Theme Classes

Each year, the league may select a legend theme that determines additional retired or former NBA players who are draft eligible.

Examples of annual legend theme categories include:

• Most recent Basketball Hall of Fame class
• Event-based legend eligibility
• Era-based classes
• Franchise-based classes
• College or regional classes
• Special commissioner-approved theme classes

If a legend-class player is draft eligible but is not drafted, that player may only be signed as a free agent for the current season.

Undrafted legend eligibility does not automatically carry permanent free-agent rights into future seasons.

8.7 Lifetime Draft Eligibility

Certain players may receive lifetime draft eligibility.

A player with lifetime draft eligibility is eligible for every BDA draft unless he is already under contract on a BDA roster or otherwise restricted by a specific league rule.

Lifetime draft eligibility is not given lightly.

Future lifetime draft eligibility must follow this process:

1. The player must be formally proposed.
2. The proposal must be debated by both owners.
3. Approval must be unanimous.

A player may receive lifetime draft eligibility only if both owners agree unanimously.

Current lifetime draft eligible players:

• Larry Johnson
• Michael Ray Richardson, also known as Crack

8.8 Hall of Fame Re-Entry Rule

Any player inducted into the most recent Basketball Hall of Fame class becomes eligible to re-enter the BDA draft.

This rule creates an annual path for newly honored legends to return to the league player pool.

8.9 Woodbridge Brewery Autograph-Event Legend Rule

Former NBA players who are scheduled to appear and sign autographs at an event held at Woodbridge Brewery become eligible for the BDA draft as legend-class players.

The official eligibility source shall be the event announcement or promotional posting connected to Woodbridge Brewery.

Woodbridge Brewery autograph-event eligibility remains flexible until the actual draft day and owners meeting.

The actual draft day and owners meeting date are currently TBD.

8.10 Memorial Draft Eligibility Rule

Any former NBA player who dies during the period from one BDA draft date to the next BDA draft date becomes eligible for the next BDA draft as a memorial-eligible legend-class player.

The eligibility window begins on the date of the most recent BDA draft and ends on the date of the next BDA draft.

Memorial draft eligibility applies only to former NBA players.

A memorial-eligible player follows the same draft, waiver, and free-agent limits as other eligible legend-class players unless the league creates a specific exception.

If a memorial-eligible player is not drafted, that player may be signed as a free agent for the current season only, following the undrafted legend rule.

8.11 Family-Coded Father-Son Draft Rule

Beginning with the next draft, if a team signs or drafts a current NBA player who is the son of a former NBA player, that team must also sign or draft the player's father.

The rule also works in reverse. If a team signs or drafts the former NBA father, that team must also sign or draft the current NBA son when both are draft eligible.

These linked players are treated as family-coded picks.

Example: If a team signs Gary Payton II, the team must also sign Gary Payton Sr. If a team signs Gary Payton Sr., the team must also sign Gary Payton II.

8.12 Family-Coded Pick Cost

Family-coded father-son players require 2 draft picks in the draft.

One pick is used for one player in the family-coded pair, and one pick is used for the other player in the family-coded pair.

8.13 Family-Coded Pick Restrictions

Family-coded father-son players cannot be waived separately.

Family-coded father-son players may be traded only as a pair.

If a team retains a family-coded pair beyond the draft, both players in the pair must be signed to 3-season contracts.

A team may not split the family-coded pair through waivers, release, draft manipulation, separate contract treatment, or separate trade transactions unless the league later creates a specific exception.

8.14 Grandfather Rule for Existing Family Ties

Existing family-tie situations are grandfathered if the player is already under contract before the family-coded rule takes effect.

The family-coded requirement applies when the grandfathered player's current contract expires and the player re-enters the draft.

Example: LeBron James and Bronny James are grandfathered for now because LeBron James is currently under contract with the Newport 100s. When that contract expires and the player re-enters the draft, the family-coded rule applies.

9. Mini Crown Events

9.1 Mini Crown Definition

Mini Crown events are special league competitions inside the larger season.

9.2 Mini Crown Weighting

Mini Crown games count as part of the regular season standings.

A Mini Crown win counts as an official standings win.

Mini Crown games also create extra draft-order points under the Draft-Order Weighting System in Section 10.3.

The purpose is to make Mini Crown games matter twice:

1. They count in the regular season standings.
2. They create additional competition credit for draft-order calculation.

Mini Crown extra points:

• Mini Crown game win bonus: +0.25 extra points per Mini Crown win.
• Mini Crown championship bonus: +2.00 extra points per Mini Crown title.

9.3 Mini Crown Records

Each Mini Crown should record:

• Field
• Bracket or schedule
• Results
• Champion
• Runner-up
• MVP
• Key injuries
• Betting lines
• Major controversies or rule questions

10. Standings and Points

10.1 Standings

The league should maintain official standings for each team.

10.2 Points System

Official standings are based on wins and losses.

Mini Crown games count in the official regular season standings.

This means:

Official Standings Wins = Regular Schedule Wins + Mini Crown Game Wins

Official Standings Losses = Regular Schedule Losses + Mini Crown Game Losses

Mini Crown games also create extra draft-order points. Those extra points do not count as additional wins in the standings. They are used only for draft-order weighting, awards context, and league records.

10.3 Draft-Order Weighting

The BDA draft order is no longer based only on worst record to best record.

The draft order is determined by two steps:

1. Draft tiers.
2. Draft Priority Points inside each tier.

This system is designed to balance two goals:

1. Weaker teams still receive draft help.
2. Regular season and Mini Crown games still matter.

10.3.1 Draft Tiers

Teams are placed into draft tiers after the playoffs.

Draft Tier 1: Non-playoff teams. These teams pick first.

Draft Tier 2: Playoff teams eliminated before the finals.

Draft Tier 3: Finals loser.

Draft Tier 4: League champion. The champion picks last.

Draft order is sorted by tier first, from Tier 1 to Tier 4.

10.3.2 Need Score Formula

Need Score rewards teams that finished lower in the regular season standings.

Regular Season Rank = final regular season rank, where 1 is best and the highest number is worst.

Need Score = Regular Season Rank

Examples in an 8-team league:

• 1st place regular season team: Need Score = 1.
• 4th place regular season team: Need Score = 4.
• 8th place regular season team: Need Score = 8.

The worse a team finishes in the regular season, the higher its Need Score becomes.

10.3.3 Draft Priority Points Formula

Draft Priority Points determine the order inside each draft tier.

Official Standings Wins = all regular season wins, including Mini Crown wins

Mini Crown Win Extra = Mini Crown Wins x 0.25

Mini Crown Title Extra = Mini Crown Titles x 2.00

Draft Priority Points = Need Score + Official Standings Wins + Mini Crown Win Extra + Mini Crown Title Extra

10.3.4 Sorting Rule

Draft order is sorted in this order:

1. Draft Tier, lowest tier first.
2. Draft Priority Points, highest score first within the same tier.
3. Existing league standings tiebreakers.
4. If still tied, league ruling or random draw.

10.3.5 Example

Assume two teams both miss the playoffs in an 8-team league.

Team A finishes 8th in the regular season, wins 2 official standings games, has 0 Mini Crown wins, and wins 0 Mini Crown titles.

Need Score = 8

Mini Crown Win Extra = 0 x 0.25 = 0

Mini Crown Title Extra = 0 x 2.00 = 0

Draft Priority Points = 8 + 2 + 0 + 0 = 10

Team B finishes 7th in the regular season, wins 4 official standings games, has 1 Mini Crown win, and wins 0 Mini Crown titles.

Need Score = 7

Mini Crown Win Extra = 1 x 0.25 = 0.25

Mini Crown Title Extra = 0 x 2.00 = 0

Draft Priority Points = 7 + 4 + 0.25 + 0 = 11.25

Result: Team B picks before Team A inside the same draft tier because Team B earned more Draft Priority Points.

This prevents the regular season from becoming a testing ground where losing is rewarded too heavily.

10.4 Draft Order Calculation Worksheet

The official league worksheet should include a tab named Draft_Order_Calc.

The Draft_Order_Calc tab should show the full draft-order calculation for every team.

Recommended columns:

• Team
• Owner
• Official Standings Wins
• Official Standings Losses
• Regular Season Rank
• Draft Tier
• Draft Tier Label
• Mini Crown Wins
• Mini Crown Titles
• Need Score
• Mini Crown Win Extra
• Mini Crown Title Extra
• Draft Priority Points
• Draft Priority Rank Inside Tier
• Final Draft Order
• Available Roster Slots
• Available Draft Picks

Required formulas:

Need Score = Regular Season Rank

Mini Crown Win Extra = Mini Crown Wins x 0.25

Mini Crown Title Extra = Mini Crown Titles x 2.00

Draft Priority Points = Need Score + Official Standings Wins + Mini Crown Win Extra + Mini Crown Title Extra

Final Draft Order = sort by Draft Tier ascending, then Draft Priority Points descending, then standings tiebreakers.

For snake draft rounds:

Odd rounds use Final Draft Order.

Even rounds use reverse Final Draft Order.

11. Statistics and Records

11.1 Official Stats

Stats should be recorded when available from screenshots, game logs, box scores, or manual entry.

11.2 Minimum Statistical Records

Each official game should try to record:

• Final score
• Team shooting
• Three-point shooting
• Free throws
• Rebounds
• Assists
• Steals
• Blocks
• Turnovers
• Leading scorers
• Notable player stat lines

11.3 Yearbook and Chronicle Link

Major results, injuries, performances, controversies, and title runs should be saved for the commemorative yearbook.

11.4 Per-Game Leaderboard Eligibility

For leaderboard purposes, per-game player stats are eligible only if the player has appeared in at least 60 percent of his team's official games played in that season.

This applies to per-game leaderboards such as points per game, rebounds per game, assists per game, steals per game, blocks per game, and similar average-based categories.

The eligibility formula is:

Minimum Games Played = Team Official Games Played x 0.60

If the result is a decimal, round down to the lower full game.

Example for a 16-game season:

16 x 0.60 = 9.6

Rounded down:

9 games required.

A player must appear in at least 9 games to qualify for season-ending per-game leaderboards.

In-season leaderboards should use games played to date.

Example after 10 team games:

10 x 0.60 = 6

A player must appear in at least 6 of that team's 10 games to qualify for in-season per-game leaderboards.

Total-stat leaderboards do not require this per-game eligibility rule unless the league later adds a separate minimum.

12. Power Rankings and Betting Lines

12.1 Power Rankings

Power rankings may use results, roster strength, margin, injuries, recent form, and human judgment.

12.2 Betting Lines

Betting lines may include:

• Point spread
• Moneyline
• Over/under
• Player props
• Futures odds

12.3 Betting Line Disclaimer

Lines are for league storytelling, analysis, and entertainment only.

12.4 Line Movement

Placeholder: Define whether lines move after injuries, owner assignment, home court, roster changes, or sharp results.

13. Playoffs

13.1 Playoff Qualification

Playoff qualification shall be based on the official regular season standings, including Mini Crown games because Mini Crown games count in the regular season standings.

Placeholder: Confirm how many teams qualify automatically and whether any play-in format is adopted.

13.2 Playoff Seeding

Each owner's teams are seeded 1 through 4 within that owner's side.

The first round is always Ron vs Oliver.

The first-round matchups are cross-seeded by owner:

• Ron 1 seed vs Oliver 4 seed
• Ron 2 seed vs Oliver 3 seed
• Ron 3 seed vs Oliver 2 seed
• Ron 4 seed vs Oliver 1 seed

The league does not schedule Ron vs Ron or Oliver vs Oliver in the first round.

13.3 Playoff Format

The traditional playoff format is series-based. All playoff rounds are best-of-7 series.

First round:

• Best-of-7 series
• 2-2-1-1-1 home-court format

Second round:

• Best-of-7 series
• 2-2-1-1-1 home-court format

Finals:

• Best-of-7 series
• 2-2-1-1-1 home-court format

13.4 Play-In Status

A play-in is not currently adopted.

The league may consider a play-in only if it improves regular season meaning without watering down the 16-game regular season.

For the current structure, 16 regular season games plus possible extra Mini Crown games should be enough regular season sample before playoffs.

Recommended rule: no play-in unless the league expands beyond 8 teams, creates a wild-card team pool, or needs a tiebreaker event for teams tied at the playoff cut line.

13.5 Playoff Injuries

Playoff injury rule is controlled by Section 6.5.

13.6 Playoff Scheduling and Preparation Rule

Effective date: April 27, 2026. This rule is backdated for playoff scheduling governance.

All playoff games must be scheduled at least 2 hours before tipoff to allow both owners to mentally prepare.

No early morning playoff games may be played unless the game was scheduled the night prior.

If a playoff game is proposed without the required 2-hour preparation window, either owner may require the game to be delayed until proper preparation time is provided.

Both owners may waive the 2-hour preparation window only if both clearly agree before tipoff.

A game played without the required preparation window and without a clear waiver may be challenged as a scheduling violation.

This rule is cross-referenced with playoff format, home-court procedure, game integrity, and dispute resolution.

14. Game Integrity, Disconnects, and Replays

14.1 General Integrity Standard

The league operates on member integrity.

Owners are expected not to intentionally disconnect, manipulate technical issues, or abuse replay rules.

14.2 Regular Season Disconnects and Early Ends

Regular season games that end early because of a disconnect, technical issue, glitch, or other non-final stoppage are replayed unless both owners agree to let the result stand.

14.3 Playoff Official Game Rule

A playoff game is deemed official if either of the following conditions is met:

1. The game has entered the 4th quarter and one team is leading by 20 or more points. This makes the game official regardless of the amount of time remaining.
2. The game clock reaches 2:59 remaining in the 4th quarter.

If a playoff game disconnects before either official-game condition is met, the entire game must be replayed.

14.4 Injury Validity in Disconnected or Replayed Games

Injuries from a disconnected, glitched, or replayed game do not stick unless the game is deemed official.

If the game is not official and must be replayed, injuries from the abandoned game are erased.

15. Disputes and Appeals

15.1 Dispute Standard

Disputes should be resolved using the written rule book first.

15.2 Missing Rule Situations

If the rule book does not cover an issue, the league may either:

1. Make a one-time ruling for the current situation, then add a rule for the future.
2. Delay the decision until both owners agree.
3. Use past league custom if clearly established.

15.3 No Retroactive Ambush Rule

A new rule should not be invented after the fact to punish a team for something that was legal or unclear at the time.

16. Awards

16.1 League Awards

Placeholder: Potential awards include:

• MVP
• Finals MVP
• Defensive Player of the Year
• Coach or Owner of the Year
• Rookie or Newcomer Award
• Sixth Man
• Most Improved
• Clutch Player
• All-BDA First Team
• All-BDA Second Team
• All-Defense Team

16.2 Award Voting

Placeholder: Decide whether awards are voted on, assigned by stats, assigned by commissioner, or determined by combined formula.

17. Media, Press, and League History

17.1 Press Coverage

Press packets, previews, recaps, betting boards, rankings, and yearbook entries may be used as official league media.

17.2 Historical Record

The league should preserve:

• Champions
• Tournament winners
• Major upsets
• Player records
• Team records
• Injury controversies
• Rule changes
• Rivalry history

18. Open Issues Needing League Law

The following items need future clarification:

1. Whether a play-in format should ever be adopted, and what trigger would justify it.
2. Final home-court tiebreaker if teams remain tied after record, seed, head-to-head, Mini Crown record, and point differential.
3. Annual legend theme selection process.
4. Actual draft day and owners meeting date.
5. Dispute authority.
6. Statkeeping minimums.
7. Betting-line adjustment rules.
8. Whether owner availability can move games without penalty.
9. Whether forfeits exist.
10. Whether any gameplay restrictions should be added, such as pause limits, off-ball defense limits, custom playbook rules, or substitution rules.

19. Pending Rule Intake

Use this section to collect new rules before they are cleaned and moved into permanent sections.

Pending Item Template

Rule Topic:

Proposed Rule:

Reason:

Affected Sections:

Status: Pending, approved, rejected, or needs clarification

Appendix A. Definitions and Glossary

Term

Source-derived definition

BDA rookie

A player entering the BDA League for the first time. Rookie status is based on first BDA League entry, not real NBA rookie status.

Rising Star

A drafted BDA rookie player who receives the Rising Star rookie contract path described in the rulebook.

New Comer

A player eligible for rookie awards but not automatically receiving Rising Star contract control.

Legacy draftee

A legend-class or legacy-class player who entered the BDA through the draft and whose original BDA draft round is recorded.

Rights-held inactive player

A player whose rights are retained while not occupying an active roster spot, when clearly tracked by the league workbook.

Current NBA version

The current-player version of a real-life NBA player who remains active in the NBA and remains draft eligible unless excluded by rule.

All-Time / legend / legacy version

A historical or special version of a player that can be tracked separately from the current NBA version.

Mini Crown

A special league competition inside the larger season. Mini Crown games count in standings and create extra draft-order points.

Draft Priority Points

Need Score plus official standings wins plus Mini Crown win extra plus Mini Crown title extra.

Late-round pick

The team's last available draft pick in the applicable draft.

Appendix B. Commissioner Rulings and Certified Clarifications

• Mini Crown II Commissioner Precedent: two same-owner teams finished undefeated in group play. The champion was named by point-differential tiebreaker, the second team was recorded as runner-up, no official final was played, and the next lower opposite-owner team did not receive a backdoor title berth.
• Playoff scheduling and preparation rule is backdated effective April 27, 2026.
• All playoff rounds are Best-of-7 using a 2-2-1-1-1 format.
• Retirement applies to the specific player version recorded by the league. A current NBA version remains draft eligible if the player is still active in the NBA unless another rule excludes him.
• Legacy draftee re-signing costs are based on the original BDA draft round of the legacy draftee.

Appendix C. Retired or Superseded Rules

The source review did not identify any current approved obsolete playoff-format language. Any prior playoff-format references are superseded by the current Best-of-7, 2-2-1-1-1 language.

Draft proposals remain discussion materials unless formally approved and copied into the official rulebook.

Appendix D. Locked Rules

The following rules are treated as established league law. This appendix is a consolidated formatting pass of the locked-rules section.

1. Official games are Ron vs Oliver.
2. Ron teams: Newark Riots, NJ Devil, Lakewood Lightning, Newport 100s.
3. Oliver teams: NY Knicks, Atlantic City Aces, Afrika Afrikaans, Bronx Gauchos.
4. Upcoming games should be listed as Away Team at Home Team.
5. Regular-season injuries use the 5 to 1 ratio.
6. Injury calculations round down.
7. For injury games-missed purposes, the midseason All-Star break counts as 1 BDA game missed.
8. If a player is projected or confirmed to miss 6 actual BDA games due to injury, the owner may pick up a waiver free agent as a temporary replacement while retaining rights to the injured player.
9. The owner may instead sign the waiver free agent permanently, but must give up a late-round draft pick.
10. Playoff injuries are enforced at 100% of the displayed duration; the 5-to-1 conversion does not apply.
11. No temporary or permanent injury replacement is permitted during the playoffs.
12. Player contracts may be 3-season, 2-season, or 1-season contracts.
13. At the end of each season, each team may sign 2 players from its roster to 3-season contracts.
14. Unused 3-season contract rights may be traded but may not be retained or carried over.
15. At the completion of a contract, the player becomes a restricted free agent.
16. The current team may re-sign its restricted free agent by giving up its 1st round pick and 2nd round pick in the next draft.
17. If the current team declines to re-sign the restricted free agent, the player enters the draft and may be selected by any team.
18. Rising Stars are drafted BDA rookies, and a BDA rookie is defined as a player entering the BDA League for the first time.
19. Drafted Rising Stars receive an initial 3-season rookie contract.
20. At the end of the initial 3-season rookie contract, the drafting team may re-sign the Rising Star for 3 additional seasons with no veteran restricted free-agent draft-pick cost, penalty, or compensation owed.
21. Rising Star extensions count against the team's 2 annual signing slots.
22. If a Rising Star is picked up through free agency instead of being drafted, that player may receive a 1-season extension with no draft-pick cost, penalty, or compensation owed.
23. Regular free-agent signings are under contract for the current season only.
24. A current-year free-agent signing is eligible to be signed to a new 3-season contract at the end of the season without the team giving up a draft pick, but it counts against the team's 2 annual 3-season signing slots.
25. Waiver priority is determined by reverse standings order.
26. When a team successfully claims a player from waivers, that team moves to the back of the waiver line.
27. A claimed player must sit on waivers for 24 hours before being awarded, unless both owners are present and agree to process the claim immediately.
28. The trade and signing deadline is the three-quarter mark of the regular season.
29. Once the deadline passes, rosters are locked until the end of the playoffs; no free agents, trades, waiver additions, or other roster transactions are permitted.
30. The only current playoff roster-lock exception is for players returning from injuries that occurred before the trade and signing deadline.
31. Each team has a maximum roster size of 15 players.
32. The league shall maintain a live Rising Star tracker during draft season, listing current Rising Stars and seasons remaining.
33. The BDA draft uses a snake draft order.
34. All teams draft every round unless they no longer have an available roster slot or have traded away the applicable pick.
35. The number of draft rounds may change from year to year because existing contracts and roster slots determine how many picks each team has.
36. A late-round draft pick means the team's last available draft pick in the applicable draft.
37. The draft pool includes all current real-life NBA roster players and their NBA 2K ratings at the time the draft pool is created.
38. Additional legend draft class players are determined by an annual theme.
39. Any player inducted into the most recent Basketball Hall of Fame class becomes eligible to re-enter the BDA draft.
40. Former NBA players scheduled to sign autographs at a Woodbridge Brewery event become eligible for the BDA draft as legend-class players.
41. Any former NBA player who dies during the period from one BDA draft date to the next BDA draft date becomes eligible for the next BDA draft as a memorial-eligible legend-class player.
42. Certain players may receive lifetime draft eligibility only after formal proposal, debate, and unanimous approval by both owners.
43. Current lifetime draft eligible players are Larry Johnson and Michael Ray Richardson, also known as Crack.
44. Beginning with the next draft, father-son NBA family ties are family-coded picks.
45. If a team signs or drafts a current NBA player who is the son of a former NBA player, it must also sign or draft the father, and the reverse also applies.
46. Family-coded father-son pairs require 2 draft picks in the draft.
47. Family-coded father-son pairs cannot be waived separately and may only be traded as a pair.
48. If a team retains a family-coded pair beyond the draft, both players must be signed to 3-season contracts.
49. Draft eligibility dates, NBA roster status, NBA 2K ratings, legend theme eligibility, and event-based eligibility remain flexible until the actual draft day and owners meeting.
50. Existing family ties are grandfathered while the player remains under contract, but the family-coded rule applies once the contract expires and the player re-enters the draft.
51. Legend-class players who were draft eligible but not drafted may be signed as free agents for the current season only.
52. Undrafted legend eligibility does not automatically create long-term rights beyond the current season.
53. Any unrostered player who was eligible for that season's draft pool may be signed through waivers.
54. Mini Crown games count as part of the official regular season standings.
55. Mini Crown games also create extra draft-order points.
56. Draft order is determined by draft tiers first, then Draft Priority Points inside each tier.
57. Draft tiers are: non-playoff teams, playoff teams eliminated before the finals, finals loser, and league champion.
58. Need Score equals Regular Season Rank, where 1 is best and the highest number is worst.
59. Draft Priority Points = Need Score + Official Standings Wins + Mini Crown Win Extra + Mini Crown Title Extra.
60. Mini Crown Win Extra = Mini Crown Wins x 0.25.
61. Mini Crown Title Extra = Mini Crown Titles x 2.00.
62. The official league worksheet should include a Draft_Order_Calc tab showing the full draft-order calculation.
63. Snake draft rounds use Final Draft Order in odd rounds and reverse Final Draft Order in even rounds.
64. A temporary injury replacement must be released before that team's next scheduled game once the injured player is eligible to return, unless the owner chooses a legal permanent roster path.
65. The regular season is 16 games.
66. The trade and signing deadline occurs after Game 12.
67. Traded contracts are legal tender and may be used as trade currency for anything permitted by league rules.
68. Contracts are tied to the player if the player is already signed or if the player is a Rising Star.
69. Each owner's teams are seeded 1 through 4 for the playoffs.
70. First-round playoff matchups are Ron 1 vs Oliver 4, Ron 2 vs Oliver 3, Ron 3 vs Oliver 2, and Ron 4 vs Oliver 1.
71. All playoff rounds are best-of-7 using a 2-2-1-1-1 format.
72. The team with home-court advantage hosts Games 1, 2, 5, and 7; the opponent hosts Games 3, 4, and 6.
73. Regular season games that end early because of disconnects, glitches, or technical issues are replayed unless both owners agree to let the result stand.
74. A disconnected playoff game is official if the clock has reached 2:59 remaining in the 4th quarter, or if either team leads by 20 or more points at any time during the 4th quarter. If neither condition is met, the entire game is replayed.
75. Injuries from disconnected, glitched, or replayed games do not stick unless the game is deemed official.
76. Draft Priority Points tiebreakers are head-to-head record, better Mini Crown record, better point differential, then random draw or league ruling.
77. Official BDA games use 8-minute quarters.
78. Official BDA games use All-Star difficulty.
79. Official BDA games use standard sliders.
80. Official BDA games have injuries on.
81. Official BDA games use regular fatigue.
82. For per-game leaderboard purposes, a player must appear in at least 60 percent of his team's official games played in that season.
83. Per-game leaderboard minimums round down to the lower full game when the 60 percent calculation produces a decimal.
84. Contract seasons include the current season.
85. A 3-season contract means the current season plus two future seasons.
86. A 2-season contract means the current season plus one future season.
87. A final-season contract expires at the end of the current season.
88. Current Rising Stars have 2 seasons of control remaining total, with the current season counting as Season 1.
89. New Rising Star Rookies begin under rising-star rookie control for 3 seasons total, with the current season counting as Season 1, unless a later rule creates an exception.
90. New Comers are eligible for rookie awards, but they do not automatically receive Rising Star contract control.
91. New Comers must go through the same signing, free-agency, waiver, or contract route as other players with no existing contract rights.
92. A team may retain Rising Star rights to a player even if that player is not on the active roster, provided the workbook clearly records the player as rights-held or inactive.
93. Active roster status and rights-held status must be tracked separately.
94. If a player is replaced on the active roster but rights are retained, the workbook must clearly show both the active replacement player and the original rights-held player.
95. Expiring contracts and retiring-player statuses must be tracked separately.
96. Retiring players become retired at the end of the applicable season.
97. Retirement applies to the specific player version recorded by the league, such as an All-Time, legend, or legacy version.
98. If an All-Time, legend, or legacy version retires, that retirement does not automatically remove the current NBA version of the same real-life player from future draft eligibility.
99. If the same real-life player is still active in the NBA, the current NBA version remains draft eligible under the Current NBA Player Pool rule unless another league rule excludes him.
100. The workbook must distinguish All-Time, legend, legacy, retired, and current NBA versions when version separation affects draft eligibility or retirement status.
101. A retiring player may also be in the final year of a contract, but not every final-year player is automatically retiring.
102. The league may use official name normalization protocols for confusing names, aliases, shorthand names, or combined-player records.
103. The workbook must keep one official canonical name or approved combined identity for tracking purposes.
104. The workbook must include fields for contract category, seasons remaining, whether the current season counts, rookie-award eligibility, active roster status, rights-held status, retiring status, and notes.
105. Effective April 27, 2026, all playoff games must be scheduled at least 2 hours before tipoff to allow both owners to mentally prepare.
106. No early morning playoff game may be played unless it was scheduled the night prior.
107. If the playoff preparation window is not met, either owner may require the game to be delayed until proper preparation time is provided, unless both owners clearly agree to waive the rule before tipoff.
108. A legacy draftee is a legend-class or legacy-class player who entered the BDA through the draft and whose original BDA draft round is recorded.
109. If a team retains or re-signs a legacy draftee after that player's contract expires, the team must give up the draft pick from the same round in which that player was originally drafted.
110. If the team does not own the matching round pick, the default replacement cost is the team's next available higher-value pick, meaning an earlier round pick.
111. If no higher-value pick is available, the team may use a lower-value pick only with clear league approval before the re-signing is official.
112. Legacy draftee re-signing costs must be tracked in the workbook using the player's original draft round, required compensation pick, actual pick surrendered, and any approved exception notes.

Appendix E. Full Version-Control and Revision History

The full version history has been moved to the end of the rulebook so the front matter stays clean and the rules begin quickly.

Version

Date / Status

Change

0.1

Working draft

Created central rule book and governance compiler structure.

0.2

Working draft

Clarified injury replacement trigger as 6 actual BDA games missed and added waiver replacement or permanent free-agent signing option.

0.3

Working draft

Added roster contract structure, 3-season extension rights, restricted free agency, and draft-slot compensation rules.

0.4

Working draft

Clarified 3-season contract rights are per team, unused rights may be traded but not retained, and restricted free-agent compensation is the team's 1st and 2nd round draft picks.

0.5

Working draft

Added draft eligibility rules for current NBA players, annual legend themes, Hall of Fame re-entry, Woodbridge Brewery autograph-event legends, and family-coded father-son pick rules.

0.6

Working draft

Clarified family-coded picks require 2 draft picks, family-coded pairs must both receive 3-season contracts if retained, and draft eligibility dates remain flexible until the draft day and owners meeting.

0.7

Working draft

Separated roster rules from draft rules so each area can expand independently.

0.8

Working draft

Added Rising Star rookie draft and contract rules, including 1-season rookie contracts and no-cost 3-season retention rights. Cleaned section numbering after the roster and draft split.

0.9

Working draft

Corrected Rising Star rules: drafted Rising Stars receive 3-season rookie contracts, free-agent Rising Stars may receive a 1-season extension, and Rising Star extensions count against the team's 2 annual signing slots but do not require veteran restricted free-agent draft-pick compensation.

0.10

Working draft

Added roster-slot maximum, Rising Star tracker requirement, snake draft structure, variable draft rounds, and late-round pick definition based on each team's last available draft picks.

0.11

Working draft

Locked injury rounding down, added waiver-priority requirement, clarified current-year free-agent contracts and 3-season re-signing eligibility, and set the trade/signing deadline at the three-quarter mark of the season with playoff roster lock rules.

0.12

Working draft

Locked waiver order as reverse standings priority, with claiming teams moving to the back of the waiver line.

0.13

Working draft

Locked waiver claim timing as a 24-hour waiver period, unless both owners are present and agree to process the claim immediately.

0.14

Working draft

Clarified that undrafted eligible legends may be signed as free agents for the current season only.

0.15

Working draft

Locked waiver eligibility to any unrostered player who was eligible for that season's draft pool.

0.16

Working draft

Added draft-order weighting system using draft tiers, Need Score, official standings wins, Mini Crown extra points, and required Draft_Order_Calc worksheet tab.

0.17

Working draft

Added lifetime draft eligibility rule and current lifetime eligible players.

0.18

Working draft

Clarified future lifetime draft eligibility requires proposal, debate, and unanimous approval by both owners.

0.19

Working draft

Added temporary injury replacement return timing, 16-game trade/signing deadline after Game 12, trade asset rules, playoff series format, home-court recommendation framework, draft tie-breakers, and disconnect/glitch official-game rules.

0.20

Working draft

Locked game format settings: 8-minute quarters, All-Star difficulty, standard sliders, injuries on, and regular fatigue.

0.21

Working draft

Clarified BDA rookie definition as a player's first time entering the BDA League, not the player's real NBA rookie status.

0.22

Working draft

Added memorial draft eligibility for former NBA players who die between one BDA draft and the next BDA draft.

0.23

Working draft

Clarified that the midseason All-Star break counts as one BDA game missed for injury games-missed purposes.

0.24

Working draft

Added Mini Crown / tournament same-owner final rule, administrative tiebreaker procedure, runner-up credit option, and no backdoor berth rule for lower opposite-owner teams.

0.25

Working draft

Added per-game leaderboard eligibility rule requiring a player to appear in at least 60 percent of his team's official games played, with decimal results rounded down.

0.26

Working draft

Added contract control, Rising Star rights, rookie-award eligibility, rights-held inactive player rules, retiring and expiring status separation, name normalization, and required workbook tracking fields.

0.27

Working draft

Added backdated playoff scheduling and preparation rule effective April 27, 2026, requiring playoff games to be scheduled at least 2 hours before tipoff and barring early morning playoff games unless scheduled the night prior.

0.28

Working draft

Clarified that all playoff rounds are best-of-7 and use a 2-2-1-1-1 home-court format.

0.29

Working draft

Added legacy draftee re-signing cost rule requiring the team to give up the draft pick from the same round in which the player was originally drafted, with fallback compensation and workbook tracking protocols.

0.30

Working draft

Clarified that retiring players become retired at season end, that retirement is tracked separately from contract expiration, and that retirement applies only to the specific player version recorded. A current NBA version of the same player remains draft eligible if the player is still active in the NBA.

Effective date: April 27, 2026, with amendments through Version 0.30 | Page