Western Notes: Craig, Snyder, Kings, Pelicans
Torrey Craig missed the last two games of the Suns‘ series vs. Dallas due to a right elbow contusion, but said today that he’s ready to go for Game 5, per Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic (Twitter link).
Craig only played six total minutes in the first two games of the series and hasn’t logged more than 11 minutes in a single playoff contest to date, so his availability won’t have a major impact on the Suns’ rotation.
Here’s more from around the Western Conference:
- Jazz head coach Quin Snyder was vague when discussing his future during his end-of-season press conference on Monday, but both Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune and Tony Jones of The Athletic noticed Snyder’s willingness to look ahead to the future, which could bode well for Utah. There has been speculation that Snyder, whom the Jazz reportedly want to retain, could decide to move on.
- The Kings held their first pre-draft workout of 2022 on Tuesday, writes Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee. Jaden Shackelford (Alabama), Johnny Juzang (UCLA), Hyunjung Lee (Davidson), Tyler Burton (Richmond), Keion Brooks (Kentucky), and Justyn Mutts (Virginia Tech) came to the Golden 1 Center practice facility to audition for the team.
- If the Pelicans win this year’s draft lottery, they should use the No. 1 pick to select Jabari Smith Jr., according to Christian Clark of NOLA.com, who makes a case for why the Auburn star would be the best fit for New Orleans.
44 Prospects Announced For 2022 NBA G League Elite Camp
The NBA G League has formally announced its field of 44 draft prospects for the 2022 NBA G League Elite Camp.
The event, which will take place May 16 and 17 in Chicago, “gives draft prospects an opportunity to display their skills in front of NBA and NBA G League scouts, coaches and front-office executives over the course of the camp by playing in five-on-five games and participating in strength and agility drills.”
The top performers from the camp will be invited to the NBA Draft Combine, which will take place from May 18-22 in Chicago. Some NBA players who have participated in past G League Elite Camps include Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado, Pacers forward Oshae Brissett, Clippers wing Terance Mann, and Heat wing Max Strus.
Here’s the list of 44 draft-eligible attendees:
- Max Abmas (Oral Roberts)
- James Akinjo (Baylor)
- Keve Aluma (Virginia Tech)
- Jules Bernard (UCLA)
- Buddy Boeheim (Syracuse)
- Jamaree Bouyea (San Francisco)
- Eli Brooks (Michigan)
- Keion Brooks Jr. (Kentucky)
- Tevin Brown (Murray State)
- Gabe Brown (Michigan State)
- Tyler Burton (Richmond)
- Darius Days (LSU)
- Michael Devoe (Georgia Tech)
- Allen Flanigan (Auburn)
- Kyle Foster (Howard)
- Javon Freeman-Liberty (DePaul)
- Kellan Grady (Kentucky)
- AJ Green (Northern Iowa)
- Brison Gresham (Texas Southern)
- Mouhamed Gueye (Washington State)
- Jordan Hall (St. Joseph’s)
- Quenton Jackson (Texas A&M)
- Hyunjung Lee (Davidson)
- Kenneth Lofton Jr. (Louisiana Tech)
- Brady Manek (North Carolina)
- Tyrese Martin (Connecticut)
- David McCormack (Kansas)
- Kevin McCullar (Texas Tech)
- Kameron McGusty (Miami FL)
- Pete Nance (Northwestern)
- JD Notae (Arkansas)
- Shareef O’Neal (LSU)
- MJ Randolph (Florida A&M)
- Jared Rhoden (Seton Hall)
- Jermaine Samuels (Villanova)
- Marcus Sasser (Houston)
- Baylor Scheierman (South Dakota State)
- Luke Travers (Perth Wildcats)
- Ryan Turell (Yeshiva University)
- Fabian White Jr. (Houston)
- Bryson Williams (Texas Tech)
- Vince Williams Jr. (VCU)
- Jalen Wilson (Kansas)
- Kok Yat (Overtime Elite)
The list of attendees features 13 players on ESPN’s big board, notes Jonathan Givony of ESPN (via Twitter), so some players have a chance to be drafted.
The top-ranked prospect at the camp is Scheierman (No. 69), who averaged 16.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals on .508/.469/.802 shooting this season for South Dakota State (35 games, 33.3 minutes per contest).
MSU’s Max Christie Among Early Entrants For 2022 NBA Draft
The list of early entrants for the 2022 NBA draft continues to grow, as college players put their names into this year’s draft pool ahead of the April 24 deadline.
[RELATED: 2022 NBA Draft Dates, Deadlines To Watch]
Michigan State’s Max Christie is among the players who recently declared for the draft, announcing his intentions in a post on Instagram. The freshman shooting guard stated that he’ll test the draft waters, maintaining his remaining college eligibility for the time being as he gets feedback on his draft stock.
A full-time starter for the Spartans in 2021/22, Christie averaged 9.3 PPG and 3.5 RPG on .382/.317/.824 shooting in 35 games (30.8 MPG). Those numbers are modest, but the 6’6″ guard has shown the potential to develop into a stronger shooter and a solid defender, per ESPN’s Mike Schmitz. Christie ranks 41st overall on ESPN’s big board.
Here are a few more of the college players who have recently entered the draft pool:
Expected to stay in draft, forgoing remaining NCAA eligibility:
- Joirdon Karl Nicholas, F, Texas Southern (senior) (Twitter link)
- JD Notae, G, Arkansas (senior) (Instagram link)
- Nana Opoku, F, Mount St. Mary’s (senior) (Twitter link)
- Jaden Shackelford, G, Alabama (junior) (Twitter link)
- Jaylen Sims, G/F, UNC Wilmington (senior) (Instagram link)
- Cole Swider, F, Syracuse (senior) (Twitter link)
- John Walker III, F, Texas Southern (senior) (Instagram link)
Testing draft waters:
- Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu, F, UT Arlington (junior) (Twitter link)
- Keion Brooks, F, Kentucky (junior) (link via school)
- Joe Bryant, G, Norfolk State (senior) (Twitter link)
- Antonio Daye, G, Coastal Carolina (senior) (link via Alan Blondin of the Myrtle Beach Sun News)
- Aaron Estrada, G, Hofstra (junior) (Instagram link)
- Jalen Hawkins, G, Norfolk State (senior) (Instagram link)
- Omari Moore, G, San Jose State (junior) (Twitter link via Jon Chepkevich)
- Luis Rodriguez, G/F, Ole Miss (junior) (Instagram link)
- Dereon Seabron, G, NC State (sophomore) (Twitter link)
- Marcus Shaver, G, Boise State (senior) (Twitter link)
- Jabari Walker, F, Colorado (sophomore) (Instagram link)
- Daivien Williamson, G, Wake Forest (senior) (Twitter link via Sean Paul of Mountain West Wire)