Draft Declarations Thread
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I figure since we have the recruiting threads and the transfer threads, this one needs to get going as well.
So far, the following players have declared:
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DeAndre Ayton, C, Arizona, freshman | 7-0, 250
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Marvin Bagley III, F, Duke, freshman | 6-11, 234
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Mo Bamba, C, Texas, freshman | 6-11, 225
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Michael Porter Jr., F, Missouri, freshman | 6-10, 215
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Trae Young, G, Oklahoma, freshman | 6-2, 180
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Miles Bridges, G/F, Michigan State, sophomore | 6-7, 225
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Robert Williams, C, Texas A&M, sophomore | 6-10, 241
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Keita Bates-Diop, F, Ohio State, junior | 6-7, 235
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Aaron Holiday, G, UCLA, junior | 6-1, 185
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Anfernee Simons, SG, IMG Academy | 6-3, 181
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Justin Jackson, F, Maryland, sophomore | 6-7, 225
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Rawle Alkins, G, Arizona, sophomore | 6-5, 220
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LiAngelo Ball, SG, BC Vytautas (Lithuania) | 6-5, 215
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Landry Shamet, G, Wichita State, junior | 6-4, 179
And these are the guys that have declared, but have not signed with an agent (AKA testing the waters):
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Bruce Brown Jr., G, Miami, sophomore | 6-5, 190
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Melvin Frazier, SG/SF, Tulane, junior | 6-6, 200
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Jalen Hudson, G, Florida, junior | 6-6, 192
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Josh Okogie, G, Georgia Tech, sophomore | 6-4, 213
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Jarrey Foster, G, SMU, junior | 6-6, 220
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Kostas Antetokounmpo, PF, Dayton, redshirt freshman | 6-10, 197
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Allonzo Trier, G, Arizona, junior | 6-5, 205
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Lindell Wigginton, G, Iowa State, freshman | 6-2, 188
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Demajeo Wiggins, F, Bowling Green, junior | 6-10, 240
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Robert Franks, F, Washington State, junior | 6-7, 240
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Jalen McDaniels, F, San Diego State, freshman | 6-10, 195
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Tyler Cook, F, Iowa, sophomore | 6-9, 255
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Jon Davis, G, Charlotte, junior | 6-3, 195
Most of the guys on the second list (the testing the waters group) will likely be back in school next year. The only exceptions I think are Allonzo Trier because of the situation at Arizona and maybe Kostas Antetokounmpo (younger brother of Giannis Antetokounmpo), although most scouts say he is “far from ready.” He may also head back to Europe, where his other brother (Thanasis) is playing after a brief stint in the NBA.
With the surprise Shamet declaration, Wichita State will be shopping the transfer market hard. Arizona probably will as well, though its hard to see why a big name guy with other opportunities might go there.
Once the tournament is over, I am sure we will see a few other declarations (deadline to declare is about 3 weeks from now - April 22). Then the musical chairs really starts.
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Darius Bazley to the G League Draft!
I believe Trier already told Arizona he wasn’t coming back unless something drastic happened.
Admiral Schofield of Tennessee declared w/out agent.
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Corey Sanders of Rutgers to draft with agent
Shamorie Ponds of St. Johns w/out agent
Tyler Davis of Texas A&M has not stated 100% about agent. Most expect it to be no agent
Carson Edwards of Purdue w/out agent
James Palmer & Isaac Copeland of Nebraska both w/out agents
Kerwin Roach of Texas w/out agent
Brandon McCoy of UNLV to draft with Agent
Terence Davis of Ole Miss w/out Agent
Yoeli Childs of BYU w/out Agent
Chimezie Metu of USC with Agent
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Noah Dickerson from Washington declares w/out agent
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Jaylen Hands of UCLA declares for draft w/out agent
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Conner Frankamp said he plans on signing with an agent soon and will pursue professional basketball opportunities. Isn’t sure where yet, but he’ll be a pro somewhere with that jump shot. This was copied and pasted
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@Crimsonorblue22 Wishing the kid from Kansas all the best.
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Here’s my response to these who have declared…
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Crimsonorblue22 said:
Conner Frankamp said he plans on signing with an agent soon and will pursue professional basketball opportunities. Isn’t sure where yet, but he’ll be a pro somewhere with that jump shot.
Connor Frankamp to the NBA? Umm, well…OK. If Sherron Collins struggled, don’t see Frankamp even getting a sniff.
I admired him in high school.
Doubted him in college, and then he went to WSU.
He now says he will try the NBA? OK…good for him.
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@truehawk93 Overseas probably.
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Pretty sure he’s not thinking nba
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I could see Frankamp doing well in the lower levels of overseas ball. He’s a great shooter, so he can earn money for years with that. Not an NBA talent, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him still getting paid to play basketball 10 years from now.
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@justanotherfan Nobody from KU yet. No surprise there. I think that VIck, Newman and Doke will all test the waters, probly get an invite to the combine too. Beyond that? I have no idea. Word is Newman should go pro. Vick and Doke, I think should both come back. But what if we get Langford?
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Nobody from the Final Four teams will declare until next Tuesday. Probably will see Wagner from Michigan, the three from KU and Bridges from Villanova. Maybe a few others as well.
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And the list of fools grows. 30 or so NBA teams, 60 draft picks, nearly half are taken these days by foreigners it seems. Plus graduating seniors hope to get drafted. A bunch of 1 or 2 year ‘educated’ college dropouts with nothing to show for it.
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@wissox They can go back now as long as no agent is hired.
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Evans of Cincinnati w/out Agent. I would however expect he stays in the draft
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My guess is Newman declares with agent, Doke declares w/o and probably comes back and Vick ends up somewhere else one way or another.
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Agree on all.
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Nick Ward from Michigan St declares without an agent
Drew Eubanks from Oregon St declares with agent. LOL at that one
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Does Oregon need a scholarship? lol
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Almost 40% of the players that played in the NBA this season spent some time in the G League before latching on with the NBA full time. I would expect that number to continue to climb, as probably only the true superstars entering the NBA won’t spend at least some time in the G League for development. And with G League salaries now up to $75,000 per year, that’s a very viable option.
Take Malik Newman for instance. He will either be a PG at the next level, or an undersized 2. Either way, he’s going to be playing on the ball a lot more, probably as a PnR playmaker. If Malik is going to stick as a pro, he needs more reps on that stuff, particularly since he’s already been in college for three years. If Malik were to stay at KU next year, he would probably still spend one or two seasons in the G League before being a full time NBA player. This way, he can spend that time in the G League (probably making $150,000+ over those two years) vs. playing for free at KU with the same risk of injury, not making it. If that happens, he can always go back and finish his degree if he so chooses, but he will have some savings to his name if he is smart with his money.
Obviously, he could be foolish and squander it, but that’s not something that is particularly exclusive to athletes, despite the narrative. I have several friends from college that are in dire straits financially, and we all graduated. Some just didn’t make very good decisions with their money.
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When did the contracts for the G League get that high? I thought most were around 25k? Is that taking into account 2 way contracts?
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It was when they switched from D-League to G League. The Gatorade sponsorship raised the contract minimums because the NBA wants to have players utilize that as a development model rather than going to Europe or something else. $75k is enough to make it worthwhile to not worry about culture shock, etc.
This is all part of the NBA’s ultimate plan to have more say in the development model for their league, similar to baseball and European soccer (the MLS is starting to do this as well, although the academies are not as well established as their European counterparts).
The two way contracts allow guys to make over a quarter of a million. I would imagine here in a few years you will see most first rounders and pretty much every second rounder on two way deals for their first year unless they can come in and start right away.
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Jaren Jackson JR declaring w/ agent. What a wasted one year at MSU.
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BShark said:
Jaren Jackson JR declaring w/ agent. What a wasted one year at MSU.
Top 3 pick potentially, yeah that was just a matter of time. I’m a little on the fence with him. Lots of talent, not sure he’s really ready for this.
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Thanks! I think the general consensus out there is that the G-League isn’t paying well enough but if that’s where they are headed towards then we will see a dramatic shift in the top HS kids in the future as well. Bazley is yet another example of this from this years class.
I’m surprised its taken the league this long to go in this direction.
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By Vick leaving are we are talking about to play pro ball somewhere, but not transferring, correct?
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Yes, lots of options for him to play pro.
Transferring out to sit a year to play 1 wouldn’t seem likely
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@BucknellJayhawk3 This is the exact scenario why players should all be able to hire agents strictly to get the best information possible.
Vick should be able to sign an agent who can get him offers from all over the World and he could make a truly informed decision. Instead, Vick has no idea what his pro prospects look like.
That is a rule that should be changed.
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@BShark said, “My guess is Newman declares with agent, Doke declares w/o and probably comes back and Vick ends up somewhere else one way or another.”
BeddieKU23 said:
Agree on all.
Ditto.
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Tony Carr leaving Penn State.
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@BShark Vick leaving appears to be the prevailing feeling. What is driving that?
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@Hawk8086 Perhaps the apparent lack of commitment on the court game after game???
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Shine and Sima leaving Okie St.
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BShark said:
Shine and Sima leaving Okie St.
Oklahoma St returning 3 players who even played. lol. 5 open scholarships
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Barry Brown from K-St declares without Agent.
Dewan Huell from Miami declares without Agent.
Clemons’s duo of Reed & Mitchell declare without Agents.
Kevin Knox and Alexander of Kentucky expected to declare with Agents any day.
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BeddieKU23 said:
BShark said:
Shine and Sima leaving Okie St.
Oklahoma St returning 3 players who even played. lol. 5 open scholarships
I thought they were going to be interesting next year but now…
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BShark said:
BeddieKU23 said:
BShark said:
Shine and Sima leaving Okie St.
Oklahoma St returning 3 players who even played. lol. 5 open scholarships
I thought they were going to be interesting next year but now…
Dumpster fire now. Except when they find 4 grad transfers that play like Kobe against KU.
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Jaren Jackson’s statement is awesome.
Michigan State is an amazing place. And this has been an amazing year —from the time I hit the campus in June for summer workouts and summer school until now. I never imagined it would be like this. Never. Playing for Coach Izzo and the rest of the staff has been incredible. They’ve helped me develop so much, both on and off the court. After only one year, I know my memories are few but they will never be forgotten: football games, late night study group and early morning study hall at the Smith Center, the Breslin and the mighty Izzone, the PK80 title, the outright Big Ten Championship, and being recognized as Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in the B1G. Please know that nothing was lost on me. Still, nothing is bigger than the bond I have with my teammates. These guys are my family. They will always be my brothers.
Spartans, this was not an automatic decision. And honestly, thank you for making it one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever had to think about. While playing in the NBA was always my dream and desire, I did not know the opportunity would present itself in quite this way. I’m ready to live my dreams and I cannot pass it up. Therefore, the time has come to declare for the 2018 NBA Draft.
Even though I will no longer play for MSU, I will ALWAYS be a Spartan! I will finish my studies and I will kiss the Spartan helmet on the Breslin court.
#SpartanForLife
Go Green!
-Jaren
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Ray Spalding hiring an agent from Louisville.
Nevada’s trio, twins Cody & Caleb Martin & Jordan Caroline testing without agents
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He was automatically gone before he stepped foot in College. These kids are funny
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@BShark Mercy , going to be lots of new faces in the Big 12 next year. - -Okie St - - Texas Tech -Texas
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@BShark I find quite a bit of class in it
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BeddieKU23 said:
He was automatically gone before he stepped foot in College. These kids are funny
I thought it was cool. Clearly he loved it there. I didn’t get that feeling from some of the KU oads.
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I agree it was a classy letter. I just find it funny that the decision was actually that difficult after he’s been projected Top 5 prospect since last spring
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Yeah you have to go when you are projected top 5. Then again Bridges stayed. Something in the water up there I guess.
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@BShark I don’t think Self helps himself though. He trusts experienced players to a fault. Look how much of an impact De Sousa made when Self was forced to develop him.
Oubre, Cliff, Diallo and Bragg (not OAD, but probably could have been in the right circumstance I think) all got screwed coming here imo. Tons of talent that we just never unleashed.
Bill will forever be fitting square pegs into round holes. I’m not saying to go full Calipari and just hope your talent plays well enough to overcome poor strategy, but 3 out of those 4 should have been major impact players at the college level.
But then there are other guys that I think never were here mentally. Henry, Selby and Wiggs should never have played college ball. We weren’t even Henry’s or Selby’s first choice. So that definitely doesn’t help with buying in. Wiggs has literally never looked like he even likes playing basketball.
The only OAD that has seemed worth taking so far is JJ.
That’s the reason I like the recruits we have this season. Dotson De Sousa and Grimes would have to have monster years to be OAD. They have something to play for instead of these higher ranked guys that are just trying to make it through a year.
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Declarations will probably pick up now that the season is over.
I imagine Brunson, Bridges, Wagner, and Newman will all declare with or without agents in the next few days. Quite a few others may test the waters.
It wouldn’t be the worst decision for guys like Azubuike and Dean Wade (KSU) to test the waters so they know where they specifically need to improve over the next year. That’s what Barry Brown is likely doing, and I think it is smart for a guy that may be a year away to test and get feedback. Because you can’t really have contact, most college players don’t have anyone they can talk to that can give them legitimate feedback and guidance. Vick should at least test the water for that reason. Even if he does return, he needs a specific list of things to work on so that he can round out his game to have the best possible opportunity in the pros.
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Kcmatt7 said:
@BShark I don’t think Self helps himself though. He trusts experienced players to a fault. Look how much of an impact De Sousa made when Self was forced to develop him.
Oubre, Cliff, Diallo and Bragg (not OAD, but probably could have been in the right circumstance I think) all got screwed coming here imo. Tons of talent that we just never unleashed.
Bill will forever be fitting square pegs into round holes. I’m not saying to go full Calipari and just hope your talent plays well enough to overcome poor strategy, but 3 out of those 4 should have been major impact players at the college level.
But then there are other guys that I think never were here mentally. Henry, Selby and Wiggs should never have played college ball. We weren’t even Henry’s or Selby’s first choice. So that definitely doesn’t help with buying in. Wiggs has literally never looked like he even likes playing basketball.
The only OAD that has seemed worth taking so far is JJ.
That’s the reason I like the recruits we have this season. Dotson De Sousa and Grimes would have to have monster years to be OAD. They have something to play for instead of these higher ranked guys that are just trying to make it through a year.
Overall I would agree.
Cliff was coming along before the suspension issue.
Oubre and Diallo were just about Self’s biggest failures at KU imo. Oubre played about as many minutes as Jamari, while Oubre was no worse than the third best player on that team. Self should have unleashed Oubre from the start, instead he stifled him and it hurt his development.
Grimes thinks he is OAD. He very well might be but I can see some struggles with him early. Dotson I think will be the man from day one. Very nice job by the staff getting a good class with good fits in an overall weak class.
