Draft Notes: Mannion, McDaniels, Burke, Olaniyi

The NBA has yet to make any official announcements on its draft date, but there’s a wide belief that the current June 25 date will be pushed back. According to Marc Berman of The New York Post, league sources “are hearing about” a potential draft date in late August or early September. Some agents have been told there could be a scaled-down draft combine in August, with live interviews, Berman adds.

Of course, at this point, the NBA isn’t making any concrete plans, so those are scenarios that have been discussed rather than decided upon. The draft date will depend in large part on when the 2019/20 NBA season ends — if the league devises a plan that would see its Finals run into September, a late-August draft may not be viable.

As we wait for further word from the NBA, here are some more draft-related updates:

  • Projected first-round pick Nico Mannion has signed with BDA Sports for representation, the agency announced on Instagram (hat tip to Sportando). BDA doesn’t have any NCAA-certified agents, so the move is a signal that Mannion will go pro and remain in the draft.
  • Another projected first-rounder, Jaden McDaniels, has signed with Nima Namakian of BDA Sports for representation and will remain in the draft, tweets Evan Daniels of 247Sports.com.
  • Rather than transferring to South Alabama, Nebraska junior guard Dachon Burke has decided to go pro and will remain in the draft, he tells Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link). Burke has signed with agent Corey Marcum of EZ Sports.
  • Stony Brook is expected to lose junior swingman Elijah Olaniyi, who is testing the draft waters, tweets Goodman. Olaniyi hasn’t finalized any decisions yet, but is expected to either transfer to another program or remain in the draft, according to Goodman.
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