The 2026 NBA draft lottery will be held Sunday at 3 p.m. ET on ABC. On Friday the league announced the individuals who will be on stage representing each team and while a number of former players will be holding down those duties, there is one returning person who hasn’t played in the NBA—Mallory Edens.
This isn’t Edens’s first NBA draft lottery rodeo, as she went viral at the event back in 2014 when she made her first appearance representing the Bucks. That came shortly after her dad, Wes Edens, became one of the new co-owners of the team.
Who is Mallory Edens?
As we said above, Mallory Edens is the daughter of Wes Edens, who has owned the Bucks since April of 2014. The Bucks got the second pick in the 2014, and Mallory Edens, who was 18 at the time, went viral during the event.
“I actually think people actually don’t know that much about me and I think that the biggest misconception—is just that they don’t know that much about me,” Edens said of her viral moment at the draft lottery in 2014. “I went really viral on the internet at a really young age and it put me in this place where I felt so protective of myself because the things people were saying online about me at that time felt so harmful. And I don’t know that I’ve ever if really left that protective casing. So, I think the misconception is just I don’t think people know me that well online.”
Edens, now 30, will be back at the NBA draft lottery this year representing the Bucks. In 2014 they used the No. 2 pick on Jabari Parker, who went one selection behind Andrew Wiggins and one selection ahead of Joel Embiid.
Edens went to Princeton University where she ran on the track team. She graduated in 2018.
In 2020 she founded a production company called Little Ray Media.
People magazine had these details on that production company:
Mallory founded a production company she named Little Ray Media. As she wrote in an Instagram post, the company's aim is to "tell stories by and about women and girls, through the financing, development, and production of film, TV, and other forms of premium content.
In 2023, she announced the company's first product, Bad Genius, followed up by a romance movie, Charlie Harper.
She talked about her passion for her new endeavor while talking toPrinceton Alumni Weekly in June 2024.
“Doing anything creative is incredibly entrepreneurial. I wish we celebrated that more,” she said. “That it’s not only an OK thing to do with your Princeton education — who are the arbiters of that anyway? — but that it’s incredible and badass and should be celebrated.”
Mallory Edens reportedly dated Aaron Rodgers a few years ago
In 2023, People reported that Edens dated Aaron Rodgers for a little bit while he was still playing for the Packers and the two were seen sitting courtside at some Bucks playoff games.
Mallory Edens and Aaron Rodgers were seen sitting courtside together during the 2022 NBA playoffs.
Mallory Edens and Aaron Rodgers were seen sitting courtside together during the 2022 NBA playoffs. | Patrick McDermott/Getty Images
Complete list of the 2026 NBA draft lottery team representatives
Here’s a look at who will be joining Edens on the stage:
Team On-Stage Representative
Atlanta Hawks Onsi Saleh
Brooklyn Nets Vince Carter
Charlotte Hornets Kon Knueppel
Chicago Bulls Toni Kukoc
Dallas Mavericks Rolando Blackman
Golden State Warriors Larry Harris
Indiana Pacers T.J. McConnell
Memphis Grizzlies Tayshaun Prince
Miami Heat Alonzo Mourning
Milwaukee Bucks Mallory Edens
Oklahoma City Thunder Nick Collison
Sacramento Kings Scott Perry
Utah Jazz Keyonte George
Washington Wizards John Wall
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