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Andre Jackson

Pacific Notes: Westbrook, Vezenkov, Suns, Dunleavy, Lakers

June 17th, 2023 at 9:55pm CST by Arthur Hill

Russell Westbrook will have to balance money vs. playing time when he makes his decision in free agency, write Law Murray and Danny Leroux of The Athletic.

Westbrook took over as the starting point guard after he signed with the Clippers in February and raised his value by averaging 15.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 7.6 assists in 21 games. Leroux speculates that there may not be another team willing to give him a starting role, although opportunities exist if he’s willing to be the first guard off the bench.

The Clippers would prefer to keep Westbrook, but without his Bird rights, they’re limited to an offer of 120% of the veteran’s minimum. Although L.A. could theoretically trim enough salary below the $179.5MM second apron to offer Westbrook the mid-level exception, that wouldn’t be a huge raise because it’s being lowered to $5MM in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. Leroux suggests that owner Steve Ballmer could try to re-sign Westbrook with an unspoken understanding that he’ll get a bigger deal next summer when the team will have his Early Bird rights.

There’s more from the Pacific Division:

  • The Kings are determined to bring Sasha Vezenkov  to Sacramento next season, according to Christos Tsaltas of Sportal. High-ranking team officials traveled to Greece this season to watch Vezenkov in action and to learn more about his character and work habits. The Kings see Vezenkov as a back-up to Keegan Murray and believe they’re versatile enough to play together, Tsaltas adds.
  • Miles Simon and John Lucas III are the latest additions to Frank Vogel‘s coaching staff with the Suns, tweets Chris Haynes of Bleacher Report. Simon was the head coach of the South Bay Lakers in the G League, and they both worked under Vogel in L.A.
  • New general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. was brought to the Warriors‘ management team by his former agent, Bob Myers, shortly after he retired as a player, notes Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Myers hired Dunleavy as a scout in 2018, and he worked his way up through the organization. He has been taking on more of Myers’ duties over the past two years, including attending the league’s gatherings of general managers.
  • The Lakers hosted six players for a pre-draft workout on Saturday, tweets Dave McMenamin of ESPN. On hand were UConn’s Andre Jackson Jr., Stetson’s Sam Peek, Chattanooga’s Jake Stephens, Overtime Elite’s Jazian Gortman, Texas’ Timmy Allen and Arizona’s Azuolas Tubelis. L.A. has the 17th and 47th picks in this year’s draft.
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Draft Decisions: A. Jackson, Edey, Beekman, More

May 31st, 2023 at 11:07pm CST by Arthur Hill

Andre Jackson Jr., who helped lead Connecticut to a national title, has opted to keep his name in the draft rather than return to the Huskies for another season, writes ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

Jackson is projected to be taken late in the first round or early in the second round, Wojnarowski adds. The junior shooting guard ranks 32nd on ESPN’s big board and is projected to go to the Pacers with the 32nd pick in the latest mock draft by Jonathan Givony of ESPN.

“My time at UCONN has been filled with ups and downs but through it all I built relationships with my teammates, coaches, friends and fans that will last forever,” Jackson wrote in a Twitter post. “I’ve made so many memories playing in that jersey and I will miss it. But I’ll always be a husky. Thank you.”

Jackson averaged 6.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, 6.8 assists and 1.3 steals in six tournament games and was believed to have raised his draft stock significantly, although questions remain about his outside shooting. He took part in the draft combine and went through individual workouts with several teams, including the Hawks, Celtics, Nets, Pacers and Trail Blazers, according to Wojnarowski.

Dozens of draft decisions were announced Wednesday ahead of the 11:59 pm EDT deadline to return to school without losing eligibility. Most late deciders opted to pull out of the draft, but a few prominent names will remain in the pool. They are:

National Player of the Year Zach Edey will withdraw from the draft and return to Purdue for another year, according to Jeff Borzello of ESPN. The 7’4″ center averaged 22.9 points and 12.9 rebounds as a junior while shooting 60.7% from the field. Even so, his draft status wasn’t certain as he’s No. 47 in the ESPN rankings.

Another prominent player pulling out of the draft is Virginia’s Reece Beekman, the ACC’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Givony reports. Beekman hopes to boost his draft stock for 2024 after coming in at 43rd in ESPN’s rankings. “I’ve decided to go back to UVA to work towards being a first-round draft pick next year and finish my degree,” he said.

Here are some more players who decided late Wednesday to take their names out of the draft:

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Draft Decisions: Gueye, Jackson, Bates, Hunter, Omier, More

May 19th, 2023 at 10:23am CST by Luke Adams

Washington State sophomore big man Mouhamed Gueye will keep his name in the 2023 NBA draft, a source tells Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link). Gueye has been taking part in the draft combine this week in Chicago, so the feedback he has received there presumably factored into his decision.

Gueye enjoyed a breakout season in 2022/23, averaging 14.3 points and 8.4 rebounds in 32.1 minutes per game across 33 appearances. He currently comes in at No. 47 on ESPN’s big board, making him a solid candidate to be drafted.

Here are a few more updates on early entrants who are deciding whether or not to remain in the draft:

  • Although UConn junior guard Andre Jackson is still technically testing the draft waters, his comments at the combine strongly suggest he’s planning to stay in this year’s draft, as Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com writes. Discussing UConn’s chances of repeating as NCAA champions next season, Jackson said that he’s “probably going to be out.” He’s currently the No. 30 prospect on ESPN’s big board.
  • Butler forward Manny Bates doesn’t show up on ESPN’s list of this year’s top 100 prospects, but he has decided to remain in the draft and go pro, agent Marquiest Gadson tells Rothstein (Twitter link).
  • Texas guard Tyrese Hunter has opted to return to the Longhorns for his junior season, he announced on Instagram. He tested the draft waters after averaging 10.3 PPG and 3.0 RPG as a sophomore.
  • Miami forward Norchad Omier is pulling out of the draft and returning to the Hurricanes for his senior season, reports Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link). Omier was among the prospects who took part in the G League Elite Camp last weekend.
  • Senior center Qudus Wahab is withdrawing from the draft and will transfer from Georgetown to Penn State for his final year of NCAA eligibility, tweets Rothstein. Wahab put up 9.6 PPG and 7.1 RPG as the Hoyas’ primary starting center last season.
  • Purdue big man Zach Edey may take his draft decision down to the wire, gathering as much information as he can before making a call, writes Dustin Dopirak of The Indianapolis Star. “I really won’t know my answer for what I’m doing until basically the deadline,” said Edey, who is considered a candidate to be picked in the second round.
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Draft Notes: Jackson, Combine, Bates, Flagler

May 15th, 2023 at 10:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Andre Jackson Jr., one of the key players in UConn’s national championship run, has worked out for the Celtics and Nets, Tony East of SI.com tweets. Those workouts came prior to the combo guard’s workout with the Pacers on Friday. Currently at the NBA Combine, Jackson is ranked as the 30th-best prospect on ESPN’s Best Available list

We have more draft-related news:

  • Santa Clara guard Brandin Podziemski, Texas forward Dillon Mitchell and G League Ignite forward Leonard Miller are some of the players with the most at stake at this week’s draft combine, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo. The ESPN duo examines a number of storylines that will play out in Chicago this week.
  • Eastern Michigan forward Emoni Bates had an impressive shooting performance in the first day of the combine, according to Mike Curtis of the Detroit News. Bates tied for first in the shooting-off-the-dribble drill and was second in the 3-point star drill, making 19-of-25 (76%) attempts from beyond the arc. The Memphis transfer and former five-star recruit is ranked No. 56 by ESPN.
  • Another fringe second-round prospect, Baylor’s Adam Flagler, sat down with Draft Digest’s Bryce Simon and says he has the leadership skills to be an NBA point guard. “The point guard role was easier than expected because of who I am as a person, caring, compassionate,” Flagler said. “My voice is something I used to get my point across and doing what I can to help you. As a point guard you spend time off the court to know who they [teammates] are and how to push their buttons so you can demand those things on the court.” Flagler is ranked No. 68 by ESPN.
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Central Notes: Pacers, Pistons, Duren, Cavs

May 11th, 2023 at 4:11pm CST by Rory Maher

Indiana will be hosting six prospects on Friday for the team’s first pre-draft workout, the Pacers announced in a press release.

The six players are UConn’s Andre Jackson, UCLA’s Jaime Jaquez, Missouri’s Kobe Brown, Creighton’s Arthur Kaluma, North Dakota State’s Grant Nelson, and Liutauras Lelevicius, a Lithuanian prospect who played for Zalgris II this past season.

Jackson (30), Jaquez (32), Brown (43), Kaluma (90), and Nelson (94) all appear on ESPN’s top-100 prospects list, while Lelevicius is unranked. The Pacers control their own lottery pick, two late first-rounders (26th and 29th), and two second-round picks (either 50th or 32nd, plus 55th).

Here’s more from the Central:

  • Hiring the right head coach, having a successful draft, and acquiring forward depth in free agency are among the top offseason priorities for the Pistons, according to Mike Curtis of The Detroit News (subscriber link), who thinks the team should pursue Nets restricted free agent Cameron Johnson.
  • Pistons center Jalen Duren, who was recently named to the All-Rookie Second Team, was mostly pleased with his debut season, but he’s going to work on his conditioning and consistency in year two, Curtis writes in another subscriber-only story. “Consistency is a huge word,” Duren said. “To be great, you have to be consistent. For me, it’s honestly just being locked in and trying to understand what’s going on. ‘Being where my feet are,’ I like to say, and try to take over games, dominate games and affect games in any way possible. … I feel like that will come. I’m excited about what I can be in this league.”
  • Josh Richardson, Kelly Oubre, Max Strus, Gary Trent Jr. and Jalen McDaniels could be the types of wings the Cavaliers choose to go after in free agency with their mid-level exception, Kelsey Russo states in a mailbag for The Athletic. I don’t see Trent falling to that price point, especially since he could just opt in to his $18.8MM player option if he isn’t confident about getting a better payday, but the other four might be attainable (whether or not they’d be a good fit is another story).
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NBA Reveals Players Expected At 2023 Draft Combine

May 9th, 2023 at 6:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

The NBA has announced 78 players that are expected to attend this year’s draft combine, scheduled for May 15-21 at in Chicago, Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports tweets.

Additionally, a select number of standout players from the G League Elite Camp, which takes place May 13-14 in Chicago, will be invited to participate in the combine.

Players will have interviews with NBA teams and participate in five-on-five scrimmages, as well as shooting, strength and agility drills. Some top prospects opt out of the scrimmages.

Victor Wembanyama, the projected top pick, is not on the list. His French League season is still ongoing.

The list of invitees is as follows:

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Draft Notes: Sanogo, Jackson, Tshiebwe, Bates, Droppers

April 30th, 2023 at 8:27pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Adama Sanogo and Andre Jackson Jr. were two key contributors to UConn’s national championship season. Both players have been invited to the NBA Combine in Chicago in May. Adam Zagoria tweets.

Jackson, a combo guard, is a potential first-rounder. He’s currently ranked No. 30 on ESPN’s Best Available list. Despite a stellar college career, Sanogo may have to open some eyes during the pre-draft process in order to get drafted. He’s currently ranked No.  87.

We have more draft-related items:

  • Kentucky’s star big man Oscar Tshiebwe hasn’t ruled out returning to college but he’s got a number of workouts lined up, Zagoria adds in another tweet. Tshiebwe has already scheduled workouts with the Celtics, Bucks, Rockets and Kings. He averaged 16.5 PPG and 13.7 RPG this past season and is currently ranked No. 66 on ESPN’s list.
  • Will guard Emoni Bates get drafted? The Athletic’s Shams Charania, John Hollinger and Brendan Quinn explore that question. Bates averaged 19.2 PPG and 5.8 RPG in 30 games with Eastern Michigan after a tumultuous freshman campaign with Memphis. Bates catches scouts’ attention with his high-level shot-making but doesn’t offer much else, according to The Athletic trio. He’s ranked No. 56 by ESPN and No. 78 by The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie.
  • What do Illinois’ Coleman Hawkins, Houston’s Marcus Sasser and Arizona’s Azuolas Tubelis have in common? They are some of the players who have seen their draft stock decline heading into the combine, according to HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto.
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Andre Jackson, Zach Edey Among Draft’s Latest Early Entrants

April 18th, 2023 at 12:31pm CST by Luke Adams

UConn junior guard Andre Jackson has opted to enter his name in the 2023 NBA draft pool and will test the waters, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

[RELATED: 2023 NBA Draft Early Entrants List]

Jackson, who started 31 of 36 games for the national champions in 2022/23, averaged just 6.7 points per game with a modest .432/.281/.646 shooting line. However, he chipped in 6.2 RPG, 4.7 APG, and 1.1 SPG while playing strong defense.

According to Wojnarowski, team executives believe Jackson’s play in the NCAA tournament boosted his stock and view him as a borderline first-round pick if he remains in the draft. The junior is currently the No. 30 overall prospect on ESPN’s big board for 2023.

In addition to Jackson, Purdue center Zach Edey also announced today that he’ll test the draft waters without forgoing his remaining college eligibility (Twitter link).

Unlike Jackson, who is considered a promising NBA prospect despite underwhelming scoring numbers at the college level, Edey was an NCAA star, earning National Player of the Year honors after averaging 22.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks in 31.7 minutes per game across 34 starts as a junior for the Boilermakers.

However, there are questions about Edey’s NBA ceiling due to his lack of lack of agility and versatility on defense, Jonathan Givony of ESPN writes in his scouting report. The 7’4″ Edey still ranks 49th overall on ESPN’s board, but is referred to by Givony as a “Boban Marjanovic-style player” unless he can add some range to his jump shot.

Finally, Adam Flagler, who won a national championship with Baylor in 2021, is also declaring for the 2023 draft, per Givony (Twitter link). The redshirt senior guard only ranks 74th overall on ESPN’s board, but is coming off a strong 2022/23 season in which he posted 15.6 PPG and 4.6 APG while making 40.0% of his three-pointers.

Flagler has one year of NCAA eligibility remaining, but neither Givony’s report nor his own Instagram announcement indicates whether he plans to forgo that final year or keep the door open to return to school. When he withdrew from last year’s draft, his comments strongly hinted that he planned to go pro in 2023.

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Draft Notes: Ware, Bamba, Nolley, Top Prospects, More

March 27th, 2023 at 4:14pm CST by Rory Maher

Oregon center Kel’el Ware has decided to transfer to a new school and does not intend to enter the 2023 NBA Draft, he tells Travis Branham of 247Sports.com.

Ware, who averaged 6.6 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.3 blocks on .457/.273/.712 shooting in 35 games (15.8 MPG) as a freshman for the Ducks, is a former top high school recruit and is currently ranked No. 35 on ESPN’s big board.

While Ware was a projected second-round pick, Jonathan Givony of ESPN says (via Twitter) “there were real concerns” about the big man’s chances of getting drafted.

Here are some more draft-related notes:

  • Washington State’s TJ Bamba has decided to test the draft waters. He’s entering the draft while maintaining his college eligibility and will also enter the transfer portal, he announced on Twitter. The junior guard averaged 15.8 points and 3.7 rebounds on .426/.372/.730 shooting in 31 games for the Cougars (32.2 MPG) in 2022/23.
  • Cincinnati guard/forward Landers Nolley will declare for the draft, he tells Givony (Twitter link). According to his own announcement (via Twitter), Nolley will maintain his college eligibility, so he won’t be hiring an agent just yet. Nolley, who has one year of eligibility left after previous stops at Virginia Tech and Memphis, averaged a team-high 16.8 points along with 5.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steal on .447/.417/.750 shooting in 36 games (32.1 MPG) for the Bearcats this season.
  • Which top draft prospects boosted their stock in the NCAA tournament? Givony tackles that subject in a story for ESPN (Insider link). Jordan Hawkins (No. 15 on ESPN’s big board) and Andre Jackson (No. 39) may hear their names called earlier by helping UConn advance to the Final Four.
  • The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor released a new mock draft last week. One surprising pick in his mock is Tennessee forward Julian Phillips, who is ranked No. 56 by ESPN. O’Connor has the freshman going No. 29 to the Pacers.
  • Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report examines what scouts are looking to see from five potential NBA prospects in the Final Four. Miami’s Isaiah Wong and Jordan Miller have a chance to help themselves once again as they face off against UConn, according to Wasserman.
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