Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
McGusty to enter NBA draft, but maintain eligibility
Miami Hurricanes redshirt senior guard Kameron McGusty has decided to enter his name into the NBA draft, but that doesn’t mean his time at UM is necessarily done.
“I am entering my name into the 2021 NBA Draft, while maintaining my collegiate eligibility at the University of Miami,” McGusty said in a social media statement on Monday evening.
McGusty, who averaged 13.3 points per game for the Hurricanes in 2020-21, is testing professional waters ahead of the draft before making an ultimate decision of whether to remain in the draft or withdraw and return to the college game.
It’s not an uncommon move for basketball prospects as former UM power forward Dewan Hernandez, who then went by Dewan Huell, declared and withdrew from the 2018 draft. Hernandez, after the NCAA ruled him ineligible for his entire junior season, then was selected by the Toronto Raptors at pick No. 59 in the 2019 draft.
McGusty, a 6-foot-5 guard who transferred to Miami from Oklahoma earlier in his college career, averaged 12.5 points per game as a redshirt junior in 2019-20, his first season of eligibility off the transfer from the Sooners.
This offseason, the Hurricanes have lost guards Chris Lykes (Arkansas), Earl Timberlake (Memphis) and Elijah Olaniyi (Stony Brook) and center Nysier Brooks (Ole Miss) to transfers. Forward Matt Cross and the Miami program parted ways in the midst of his freshman season, and he later transferred to Louisville.
Losing five players that were on the roster at the start of last season — and possibly a sixth with McGusty — Miami added the transfer of George Mason leading scorer Jordan Miller on Monday afternoon. The 2020-21 season did not count against player eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so seniors are allowed to return for another college season.
UM sophomore guard Isaiah Wong, who led the team in scoring with 17.1 points per game last season, is also weighing pro options this offseason. He has not announced a decision to enter his name into the draft, like McGusty did on Monday.
In the event McGusty has played his last game for the Hurricanes, he offered a farewell of sorts in his Instagram post announcing his decision.
“When I first made the decision to transfer, I was truly unsure of what my basketball future looked like,” he said. “I eventually decided to come to the University of Miami; it meant a lot for the program to take me in and help me develop.
“The past three years I’ve spent here have been so much fun and nothing but a blessing. I’ve built so many relationships — through the basketball program and the University as a whole — that will last me a lifetime.
“Although we’ve had our ups and downs, including injuries to myself and my teammates that hindered us from achieving our goals, we bonded together as a group.
“I am so grateful to my family, friends, caches and teammates for supporting me throughout my time at The U. I will forever be a Miami Hurricane.”
UM went 10-17 this past season in which it was 4-15 in ACC play.