Draft Notes: Combine, Players To Watch, Wells, Kalkbrenner, Salaun
Prospects are in Chicago for an important week of pre-draft activities, write Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN. After the draft lottery takes place on Sunday, players will participate in the three-day combine from Monday through Wednesday. Also set this week are the G League Elite camp, which began today, and agency pro days, all of which will give NBA scouts and executives an up-close look at an unsettled draft pool.
Through an agreement with the players union, the NBA is requiring all invited prospects to take part in the combine. However, they will still be given the option to skip the scrimmages, with Givony and Woo noting that 37 combine participants declined to play in the scrimmages last year.
Numerous players at this year’s combine have retained the option to withdraw from the draft, the authors add, so the process could affect the balance of power in college basketball. Givony and Woo identify Kansas’ Johnny Furphy, USC’s Bronny James, Minnesota’s Cam Christie, Washington State’s Jaylen Wells, BYU’s Jaxson Robinson, Alabama’s Mark Sears, New Mexico’s JT Toppin, Illinois’ Coleman Hawkins, Florida State’s Jamir Watkins and North Florida’s Chaz Lanier as some of the top names who could opt to return to school.
There’s more on the draft:
- Cam Christie is among the players in position to significantly improve their draft stock this week, Givony and Woo add. They say the brother of Lakers guard Max Christie has “plenty of fans” among NBA scouts after a strong freshman season with the Golden Gophers. Christie, who ranks 36th on ESPN’s Big Board, has a chance to move into the first round with a good showing at the combine. However, he’s also in the NCAA’s transfer portal and has options available if he stays in school. Other players to watch, according to Givony and Woo, are Wells, Watkins, Iowa’s Payton Sandfort and UConn’s Alex Karaban.
- The NBA has officially confirmed (via Twitter) that Jaylen Wells has been invited to the combine and Creighton’s Ryan Kalkbrenner has withdrawn from the draft. The Wells invitation was reported earlier this week, and Kalkbrenner’s decision had been expected.
- Potential lottery pick Tidjane Salaun won’t be available for the combine after his Cholet team qualified for the playoffs in France, Givony tweets. The 6’10” power forward is 15th in ESPN’s latest rankings.
NBA Announces 78 Invitees For 2024 Draft Combine
The NBA announced today (via Twitter) that 78 prospects have been invited to attend this year’s draft combine, which will take place in Chicago from May 12-19.
In addition to those 78 players, a handful of standout players from the G League Elite Camp, which is also held in Chicago just before the combine begins, are expected to receive invites to stick around for the main event.
Not all of the prospects invited to the combine will end up remaining in the 2024 draft pool, since some are early entrants who are testing the waters while retaining their NCAA eligibility. College players must withdraw from the draft by the end of the day on May 29 if they wish to preserve that eligibility, while non-college players face a decision deadline of June 16. The feedback they receive from NBA teams at the combine may be a deciding factor for players who are on the fence.
Here’s the list of players who have been invited to the 2024 draft combine:
(Note: For players in international leagues, the country listed is where they had been playing, not necessarily where they’re from.)
- Michael Ajayi, F, Pepperdine (junior)
- Melvin Ajinca, G/F, France (born 2004)
- Trey Alexander, G, Creighton (junior)
- Izan Almansa, F, G League Ignite (born 2005)
- Reece Beekman, G, Virginia (senior)
- Adem Bona, F/C, UCLA (sophomore)
- Trevon Brazile, F, Arkansas (sophomore)
- Jalen Bridges, F, Baylor (senior)
- Matas Buzelis, F, G League Ignite (born 2004)
- Carlton Carrington, G, Pitt (freshman)
- Devin Carter, G, Providence (junior)
- Stephon Castle, G, UConn (freshman)
- Ulrich Chomche, C, NBA Academy Africa (born 2005)
- Cam Christie, G, Minnesota (freshman)
- Nique Clifford, G, Colorado State (senior)
- Donovan Clingan, C, UConn (sophomore)
- Isaiah Collier, G, USC (freshman)
- Tristan Da Silva, F, Colorado (senior)
- Pacome Dadiet, G/F, Germany (born 2005)
- N’Faly Dante, C, Oregon (super-senior)
- Rob Dillingham, G, Kentucky (freshman)
- Nikola Djurisic, G/F, Serbia (born 2004)
- Ryan Dunn, F, Virginia (sophomore)
- Zach Edey, C, Purdue (senior)
- Justin Edwards, G/F, Kentucky (freshman)
- Kyle Filipowski, F/C, Duke (sophomore)
- Trentyn Flowers, G/F, Australia (born 2005)
- Johnny Furphy, G/F, Kansas (freshman)
- Kyshawn George, G/F, Miami (FL) (freshman)
- Tyon Grant-Foster, G, Grand Canyon (senior)
- PJ Hall, C, Clemson (senior)
- Coleman Hawkins, F, Illinois (senior)
- Ron Holland, F, G League Ignite (born 2005)
- DaRon Holmes II, F, Dayton (junior)
- Ariel Hukporti, C, Germany (born 2002)
- Oso Ighodaro, F, Marquette (senior)
- Harrison Ingram, F, UNC (junior)
- Bronny James, G, USC (freshman)
- A.J. Johnson, G, Australia (born 2004)
- Keshad Johnson, F, Arizona (super-senior)
- David Jones, F, Memphis (senior)
- Dillon Jones, F, Weber State (senior)
- Ryan Kalkbrenner, C, Creighton (senior)
- Note: Kalkbrenner indicated this week that he intends to return to school, so it’s unclear if he’ll continue to go through the pre-draft process.
- Alex Karaban, F, UConn (sophomore)
- Bobi Klintman, F, Australia (born 2003)
- Dalton Knecht, G, Tennessee (super-senior)
- Tyler Kolek, G, Marquette (senior)
- Pelle Larsson, G, Arizona (senior)
- Jared McCain, G, Duke (freshman)
- Kevin McCullar, G, Kansas (super-senior)
- Yves Missi, C, Baylor (freshman)
- Ajay Mitchell, G, UC Santa Barbara (junior)
- Jonathan Mogbo, F/C, San Francisco (senior)
- Tristen Newton, G, UConn (super-senior)
- Juan Nunez, G, Germany (born 2004)
- Quinten Post, F/C, Boston College (super-senior)
- Antonio Reeves, G, Kentucky (super-senior)
- Zaccharie Risacher, F, France (born 2005)
- Jaxson Robinson, G/F, BYU (senior)
- Tidjane Salaun, F, France (born 2005)
- Hunter Sallis, G, Wake Forest (junior)
- Payton Sandfort, G/F, Iowa (junior)
- Alexandre Sarr, F/C, Australia (born 2005)
- Baylor Scheierman, G/F, Creighton (super-senior)
- Mark Sears, G, Alabama (senior)
- Terrence Shannon, G, Illinois (super-senior)
- Jamal Shead, G, Houston (senior)
- Reed Sheppard, G, Kentucky (freshman)
- KJ Simpson, G, Colorado (junior)
- Tyler Smith, F, G League Ignite (born 2004)
- Cam Spencer, G, UConn (super-senior)
- Nikola Topic, G, Serbia (born 2005)
- JT Toppin, F, New Mexico (freshman)
- Jaylon Tyson, G, California (junior)
- Ja’Kobe Walter, G, Baylor (freshman)
- Kel’el Ware, C, Indiana (sophomore)
- Jamir Watkins, G/F, Florida State (junior)
- Cody Williams, F, Colorado (freshman)
It’s worth noting that the NBA and the NBPA agreed to a few combine-related changes in their latest Collective Bargaining Agreement. Here are a few of those changes:
- A player who is invited to the draft combine and declines to attend without an excused absence will be ineligible to be drafted. He would become eligible the following year by attending the combine. There will be exceptions made for a player whose FIBA season is ongoing, who is injured, or who is dealing with a family matter (such as a tragedy or the birth of a child).
- Players who attend the draft combine will be required to undergo physical exams, share medical history, participate in strength, agility, and performance testing, take part in shooting drills, receive anthropometric measurements, and conduct interviews with teams and the media. Scrimmages won’t be mandatory.
- Medical results from the combine will be distributed to select teams based on where the player is projected to be drafted. Only teams drafting in the top 10 would get access to medical info for the projected No. 1 pick; teams in the top 15 would receive medical info for players in the 2-6 range, while teams in the top 25 would get access to info for the players in the 7-10 range.
Regarding that last point, Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link) has the details on the top 10 played out this year, noting that the composite ranking was generated based on a combination of publicly available rankings and feedback from a panel of experts, as well as a retained-scouting service.
Sarr is considered the No. 1 overall prospect, per Givony, so only teams drafting in the top 10 will get access to his medicals. Buzelis, Castle, Clingan, Risacher, and Topic are in the 2-6 range, while Dillingham, Holland, Knecht, and Sheppard round out the top 10.
Draft Notes: Simpson, Sallis, Christie, Dixon, No. 1 Pick
Colorado point guard KJ Simpson, a junior who is ranked No. 46 on ESPN’s top-100 list, is declaring for the 2024 NBA draft and forgoing his remaining college eligibility, he announced on Twitter.
A member of the All-Pac-12 First Team in 2023/24, Simpson averaged 19.7 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 4.9 APG and 1.6 SPG on .475/.434/.876 shooting in 37 games this season for the Buffaloes (35.1 MPG), who lost to Marquette in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Another potential second-round pick, Wake Forest guard Hunter Sallis, is entering the draft while maintaining his college eligibility, he tells Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
After spending his first two seasons playing a limited role off the bench for Gonzaga, Sallis transferred to Wake Forest and had a breakout junior season for the Demon Deacons, averaging 18.0 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.5 APG and 1.1 SPG on .487/.405/.783 shooting in 34 appearances (35.4 MPG). He earned a spot on the All-ACC First Team for his efforts.
ESPN’s Jonathan Givony says Sallis is an impressive shooter, but there are questions about his passing, defense and thin frame. Sallis is No. 49 on ESPN’s board.
Here are few more notes on the 2024 draft:
- Minnesota guard Cam Christie announced (via Twitter) that he’s testing the draft waters while maintaining his college eligibility. Christie says he’s “eager to receive feedback” from NBA teams. As a freshman for the Golden Gophers, he averaged 11.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG and 2.2 RPG while shooting 39.1% from three-point range in 33 games (30.1 MPG). Christie is the younger brother of Lakers guard Max Christie.
- Villanova’s Eric Dixon is declaring for the draft and his announcement (via Instagram) doesn’t say anything about returning to college, so we’re assuming he’s turning pro. As a senior in ’23/24, the 6’8″ forward averaged 16.6 PPG and 6.5 RPG on .465/.346/.862 shooting in 34 games for the Wildcats (30.6 MPG).
- Unlike last year, there is no consensus choice for 2024’s No. 1 overall pick. As Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN write (Insider link), different teams may favor different prospects depending on their evaluations and what they need. Zaccharie Risacher and Alexandre Sarr — a pair of French prospects — are considered the top contenders to go No. 1, but UConn’s Donovan Clingan, Kentucky’s Rob Dillingham, and Serbia’s Nikola Topic could all factor into the equation. It’s also possible that one of Reed Sheppard (Kentucky), Stephon Castle (UConn), Matas Buzelis (G League Ignite) or Ron Holland (Ignite) could end up being the No. 1 pick if they have a strong pre-draft process, according Givony and Woo.