Teams now know who is draft available
It is a date you will not find on the NBA calendar, yet it is as significant as any in the lead up to the June 22 draft. Because the NCAA says so.
WhiletheNBAhas aJune 12deadline for players to pull their names from draft consideration, those who wish to maintain their collegiate eligibility must withdraw by 11:59 p.m. Wednesday.
For the Heat, slotted at No.14, theimpactis minimal, with just about every firstround talent having committed to the point of hiring an agent, which immediately ends collegiate eligibility, Florida’s Devin Robinson among that group.
With the passing of Wednesday’s deadline, it makes it easier for all teams in the process to take stock of the landscape, even as the NCAA and NBA continue to orbit in their own universes.
Chet Kammerer, the Heat’s vice president of player personnel, said in these intervening weeks it has left the Heat debating workouts and interviews with players who ultimately might not have been into seeing the process to the finish.
“I think it’s really tough on the colleges, frankly,” Kammerer said. “For us, I havemixed feeling about it. I think our system is broken, frankly. I don’t like the fact that the number of players that declare, we have to make a decision about that player. It’s just really, really hard. I just know that most college coaches are very disappointed in the process.”
Most of those colleges now have those players back. And with the exception of players with ties to international teams, who have until June 12 for their decisions, NBA teams now know what they’re working with.
For the Heat, that is significant, as they debate whether to attempt to work their way back into the second round, with their own second-round pick in the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers, having been initially sent to the AtlantaHawks in the 2013 draft-night trade for James Ennis.
Among those most recently to rescind their draft applications have been Central Florida center Tacko Fall, Gonzaga’s Johnathan Williams III, Kansas’ Svi Mykhailiuk, Michigan’s Moritz Wagner, North Carolina State’s Omer Yurtseven, Louisville’s Deng Adel, Ohio State’s Kam Williams, Georgia’s Yante Maten, Texas’ Andrew Jones, Maryland’s Justin Jackson, Purdue’s Vincent Edwards, Arizona’s Rawle Alkins, WestVirginia’sJevon Carter, Xavier’sTrevon Bluiett, Seton Hall’s Angel Delgado, St. Bonaventure’s Jaylen Adams and UCLA’s Thomas Welsh and Aaron Holiday. Florida’s John Egbunu also has elected to return to school.
Among those opting just before the deadline to remain in the draft amid questions of their status have been Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan, Michigan’s D.J. Wilson and North Carolina’s Tony Bradley, with additional announcements expected throughout the day.
NBA evaluators were waiting until Wednesday’s deadline day for a decision from Kentucky’s Hamidou Diallo.
Diallo has been linked to interest from the Heat, having posted an event-best 44
vertical leap during the NBA combine. He practiced with Kentucky for the second half of last season but did not play for theWildcats after time at prep school, making him eligible for the draft without collegiate experience.