Julian Champagnie

Draft Notes: Champagnie, Wiggins, Green, Onu, Kopp, Jones

Power forward Julian Champagnie is withdrawing from the draft and returning to Saint John’s, writes ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. The 6’8 forward had bolstered his stock in the pre-draft process due to his combination of defense, athleticism and shooting, but not as much as he would have liked.

I enjoyed the process, but I didn’t put myself in the spot I wanted to, partially because of a wrist injury I suffered early on that set me back mentally and physically,” Champagnie said. “…I am not sure exactly where I would have gotten drafted, what part of the second round. Being in that spot in the draft, I felt it wouldn’t hurt me to go back to school.

We have more news from the draft:

  • Aaron Wiggins will remain in the draft, reports ESPN’s Givony. The 6’6″ athletic forward was a standout at the G League Elite Camp and says he’s interviewed with seven NBA teams. “I’ve shown teams things they’ve never seen before,” Wiggins said. “Teams have been surprised by what I showed. I’ve loved the information and feedback I’ve received and didn’t want to wait until the last minute with my decision.”
  • Kelly Iko of The Athletic profiles potential top-three pick Jalen Green. Within his story, Iko discusses Green’s path that led him to choose the G League over college, as well as his maturity in accepting guidance from the older members of his G League Ignite team. “It’s a lot of kids out here like, ‘This old dude can’t tell me nothing’ or they won’t try to listen,” teammate Bobby Brown said, referencing Green and his fellow rookies-to-be. “But they were all students of the game, all sponges.”
  • EJ Onu of Shawnee State will keep his name in the draft, tweets Givony. The 6’11 center measured into the G League Elite Camp with a 7’8.5″ wingspan and shot 40% from three on 130 attempts. Onu is projected to be a mid-to-late second round pick.
  • Miller Kopp has withdrawn his name from the 2021 NBA draft process, reports Jeff Goodman of Stadium. The 6’7 forward, who has played three seasons with Northwestern, is transferring to Indiana University.
  • DeVante’ Jones has withdrawn from the pre-draft process and will return to school, reports Givony. Jones, a standout point guard for Coastal Carolina University, will be transferring to Michigan for his senior year.

Draft Notes: Mamukelashvili, Carr, Champagnie, Figueroa, Cockburn, Sims

Seton Hall’s Sandro Mamukelashvili is scheduled to work out for the Pistons on Thursday, Adam Zagoria of the New York Times tweets. The 6’11” Mamukelashvili already worked out for the Jazz, Thunder and Hornets. He’s currently listed as the No. 56 overall prospect on ESPN’s Best Available list.

We have more news and insights on this year’s draft:

Full List Of 2021 NBA Draft Combine Participants

The NBA has revealed via press release its list of 69 players who have been invited to next week’s draft combine in Chicago and who are expected to attend. The combine will take place from June 21-27.

While several of the prominent names at the top of the draft will opt to skip the event – most notably, presumed number one pick Cade Cunningham and Gonzaga’s Jalen Suggs – there are several high-profile prospects set to attend. Evan Mobley, widely considered a likely choice for the No. 2 pick as well as potential top-five picks Jonathan Kuminga and Jalen Green headline the class of participants this year, along with potential lottery picks Moses Moody, Corey Kispert and Scottie Barnes.

According to the press release, players will conduct interviews with NBA teams, participate in five-on-five games, and go through shooting, strength and agility drills throughout the week-long event. It’s likely that the more high-profile names will focus more on the interviews than the drills.

The press release also confirms that a select number of standout players from the G League Elite Camp will be invited to participate in the Combine as well.

Here’s the full list of 69 names announced by the NBA today, in alphabetical order:

  1. Max Abmas, G, Oral Roberts (sophomore)
  2. Ochai Agbaji, G, Kansas (junior)
  3. Marcus Bagley, F, Arizona State (freshman)
  4. Scottie Barnes, F, Florida State (freshman)
  5. Charles Bassey, C, Western Kentucky (junior)
  6. Brandon Boston Jr., G/F, Kentucky (freshman)
  7. James Bouknight, G, UConn (sophomore)
  8. Greg Brown, F, Texas (freshman)
  9. Jared Butler, G, Baylor (junior)
  10. Julian Champagnie, G/F, St. John’s (sophomore)
  11. Justin Champagnie, G/F, Pittsburgh (sophomore)
  12. Josh Christopher, G, Arizona State (freshman)
  13. Sharife Cooper, G, Auburn (freshman)
  14. Ayo Dosunmu, G, Illinois (junior)
  15. David Duke, G, Providence (junior)
  16. Kessler Edwards, F, Pepperdine (junior)
  17. Luka Garza, C, Iowa (senior)
  18. RaiQuan Gray, F, Florida State (junior)
  19. Jalen Green, G, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  20. Quentin Grimes, G, Houston (junior)
  21. Sam Hauser, F, Virginia (senior)
  22. Aaron Henry, G/F, Michigan State (junior)
  23. Ariel Hukporti, C, Lithuania (born 2002)
  24. Matthew Hurt, F, Duke (sophomore)
  25. Nah’Shon Hyland, G, VCU (sophomore)
  26. Isaiah Jackson, F, Kentucky (freshman)
  27. David Johnson, G, Louisville (sophomore)
  28. Jalen Johnson, F, Duke (freshman)
  29. Keon Johnson, G, Tennessee (freshman)
  30. Herb Jones, F, Alabama (senior)
  31. Kai Jones, F, Texas (sophomore)
  32. Johnny Juzang, G/F, UCLA (sophomore)
  33. Corey Kispert, F, Gonzaga (senior)
  34. Jonathan Kuminga, F, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  35. Scottie Lewis, G, Florida (sophomore)
  36. Isaiah Livers, F, Michigan (senior)
  37. Makur Maker, C, Howard (freshman)
  38. Sandro Mamukelashvili, F/C, Seton Hall (senior)
  39. Tre Mann, G, Florida (sophomore)
  40. Matthew Mayer, G/F, Baylor (junior)
  41. Miles McBride, G, West Virginia (sophomore)
  42. Davion Mitchell, G, Baylor (junior)
  43. Evan Mobley, F/C, USC (freshman)
  44. Isaiah Mobley, F, USC (sophomore)
  45. Moses Moody, G, Arkansas (freshman)
  46. Trey Murphy III, G, Virginia (junior)
  47. Daishen Nix, G, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  48. John Petty Jr., G, Alabama (senior)
  49. Yves Pons, G/F, Tennessee (senior)
  50. Jason Preston, G, Ohio (junior)
  51. Joshua Primo, G, Alabama (freshman)
  52. Roko Prkacin, F, Croatia (born 2002)
  53. Neemias Queta, C, Utah State (junior)
  54. Austin Reaves, G, Oklahoma (senior)
  55. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, F, Villanova (sophomore)
  56. Terrence Shannon Jr., G/F, Texas Tech (sophomore)
  57. Day’Ron Sharpe, F/C, North Carolina (freshman)
  58. Jericho Sims, F/C, Texas (senior)
  59. Jaden Springer, G, Tennessee (freshman)
  60. DJ Steward, G, Duke (freshman)
  61. Cameron Thomas, G, LSU (freshman)
  62. JT Thor, F, Auburn (freshman)
  63. Isaiah Todd, F, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  64. Trendon Watford, F, LSU (sophomore)
  65. Joe Wieskamp, G/F, Iowa (junior)
  66. Ziaire Williams, F, Stanford (freshman)
  67. McKinley Wright IV, G, Colorado (senior)
  68. Moses Wright, F, Georgia Tech (senior)
  69. Marcus Zegarowski, G, Creighton (junior)

Draft Notes: Sharpe, Carr, Sengun, Champagnie

Potential first-round pick Day’Ron Sharpe has declared for the draft, posting his decision on his Twitter page. He’s currently ranked No. 33 on ESPN’s Best Available list. The one-and-done center out of North Carolina averaged 9.5 PPG and 7.6 RPG for the Tar Heels in 29 appearances, including four starts. He’s ranked fourth among center prospects.

We have more draft decisions and news:

  • Minnesota’s Marcus Carr will test the draft waters and sign with an NCAA-certified agent, though he’s also entering the transfer portal as a backup plan, according to Adam Zagoria of ZagsBlog.com. The junior guard led the Golden Gophers with 19.4 PPG, 4.9 APG and 4.0 RPG. He currently ranks 89th on ESPN’s board.
  • Euro prospect Alperen Sengun isn’t interested in being a draft-and-stash prospect, Sportando’s Dario Skerletic relays. Sengun indicated that via Anadolu Agency. “I want to go there and develop there as soon as possible,” he said of the NBA. The 18-year-old Turkish big man is a potential lottery pick, currently ranked No. 13 on ESPN’s board.
  • St. John’s sophomore wing Julian Champagnie will enter the draft process but maintain his eligibility, according to RedStormSports.com. Champagnie averaged a Big East-leading 19.8 PPG and 7.4 RPG.