Albany’s Cremo reportedly will transfer to ’Nova
Villanova received a little insurance Tuesday just in case guard Donte DiVincenzo decides to stay in the NBA Draft and forgo his two remaining years of eligibility.
Joe Cremo, a 6-foot-4 guard from the University of Albany, announced via Twitter that he is headed to Villanova as a graduate transfer. Under NCAA rules, Cremo is eligible to play right away.
He selected the Wildcats over Kansas, Texas and Creighton.
“It felt like family the minute I stepped on campus,” Cremo told ESPN.com. “I’m excited for the opportunity to get to work and help this team any way I can, win as many games as we can. Coach (Jay) Wright, his staff and the players made me feel at home.”
Cremo was one of the most sought-after graduate transfers in the country. He was fourth in the America East in scoring (17.8 ppg.) and fifth in assists (3.8), pulled down 4.1 rebounds per game and shot a whopping 45.8 percent from 3-point range (76-166). He scored 1,469 points in three years with the Great Danes, which ranks eighth in program history.
The addition of Cremo is big for a Villanova team that could lose up to four players from the national championship team. Guard Jalen Brunson, the consensus national Player of the Year, and All-American swingman Mikal Bridges will not return. Both have declared for the draft and have hired agents.
The status and freshman of DiVincenzo forward Omari Spellman is up in the air. Both are testing the NBA waters without hiring an agent, which gives them the option of returning to school for at least one more year. The deadline to withdraw their names is 5 p.m. June 11, 10 days before the draft.
All four players have been invited to the NBA’s draft combine May 16-20 in Chicago.
DiVincenzo’s draft stock rose dramatically after he scored a career-high 31 points in the national championship game and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four. He is projected as a late first-round pick in several mock drafts. Only first-round selections receive a guaranteed contract under the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement.