Undrafted NBA players are not automatically in restricted free agency. They can sign with any team right after the draft ends, and their contract status later depends on the deal they sign, not on being undrafted itself.

How it works

  • An undrafted free agent can negotiate and sign immediately after the draft.
  • If that player signs a standard contract and later reaches the end of it, restricted free agency only applies if they meet the league’s restricted-FA rules.
  • In practice, for most veterans, restricted free agency generally comes after three or fewer seasons of service; for first-round picks, it comes after the rookie-scale deal expires.

The short answer

If you mean, “How long until an undrafted rookie becomes a restricted free agent?”, the answer is: it depends on the contract they signed.

  • On a typical multi-year deal, they become a restricted free agent only when that contract ends and they qualify under the CBA rules.
  • On a two-way deal, the timing is different and depends on roster days rather than normal service years.

Practical example

An undrafted player like Lu Dort signed an undrafted free-agent deal and later became an unrestricted free agent when that contract ended, showing that undrafted players do not automatically become restricted free agents.

Bottom line

Undrafted rookie free agents are not “in restricted FA” by default; they’re free agents first, and their later status depends on the contract and service rules.