Pacific Notes: Pelinka, Kings Workouts, Suns Workouts, Butler
The playoff sweep by Oklahoma City convinced the Lakers that they need to add more talent and depth to their roster, Benjamin Royer of The Orange County Register writes in a subscriber-only piece. General manager Rob Pelinka was especially struck by the development of Ajay Mitchell, a second-round pick in 2024 who started his career on a two-way contract and averaged 22.5 PPG in the series against L.A.
“There’s ways to add to your roster if you commit to doing the hard work and commit to the process of adding the right pieces,” Pelinka said at his end-of-season press conference last week. “We’ll be doing that through the draft and free agency and through trades. We’ve got to find a way to have a roster that will compete with any team in the NBA.”
Pelinka added that the Lakers, who hold the 25th pick this year, plan to bring in more than 20 players for pre-draft workouts with an emphasis on finding more depth, athleticism and youth. He stated that competitiveness and basketball IQ will also be prioritized, noting that player development has become more important than ever with the current salary structure.
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- The Kings were focused on their second-round picks at No. 34 and 45 when they held their first pre-draft workout on Friday, per Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee (subscription required). Taking part were Houston shooting guard Emanuel Sharp, Duke center Maliq Brown, Auburn power forward Keyshawn Hall, Louisville shooting guard Isaac McKneely, Grand Canyon small forward Jaden Henley and Xavier power forward Tre Carroll, who are all projected to be taken the second round or go undrafted. Sharp talked to reporters about what he can offer an NBA team (Twitter video link from Michelle Dapper of KCRA).
- Florida State point guard Robert McCray has worked out for the Suns, according to John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 (Twitter link). Louisville guard Ryan Conwell and St. John’s forward Bryce Hopkins are scheduled to visit Phoenix next week, Gambadoro adds (Twitter link).
- The Warriors‘ Jimmy Butler may not return to the court until after mid-season, but he was able to entertain at the BottleRock Napa Valley Music Festival on Friday (Instagram video), relays Kalan Hooks of ESPN. Butler, who underwent ACL reconstruction surgery in February, performed a few songs while jumping around the stage. “Don’t show this to (coach) Steve (Kerr); I got a torn ACL,” he told the crowd.
Pacific Notes: Williams, Kings, Draymond, Clippers
Will the Suns re-sign Mark Williams as a restricted free agent this summer? Gerald Bourguet of Sports360AZ.com tackles that question in depth, writing that he can envision a scenario in which Phoenix’s starting center departs this offseason, especially if another team is willing to pay him in the range of $20-25MM annually.
However, if there’s not much of a market for Williams, it’s more likely he’ll either work out a new multiyear deal with the Suns or accept his one-year, $9.6MM qualifying offer and try his luck in unrestricted free agency in 2027.
[RELATED: 2026 NBA Offseason Preview: Phoenix Suns]
As Bourguet writes, the fact that 2025 lottery pick Khaman Maluach projects to be the Suns’ center of the future figures to factor into the front office’s decision on Williams. While Maluach may not be ready to start on opening night in 2026/27, one source told Bourguet they believe last year’s No. 10 overall pick could overtake Williams for that role by the end of next season. If the Suns feel the same way, they may only view Williams as a “temporary stopgap,” Bourguet notes.
We have more from around the Pacific:
- Houston guard Emanuel Sharp, Louisville guard Isaac McKneely, Grand Canyon forward Jaden Henley, Auburn forward Keyshawn Hall, Xavier forward Tre Carroll, and Duke center Maliq Brown are taking part in a pre-draft workout with the Kings on Friday, according to James Ham of The Kings Beat (Twitter link). None of those prospects shows up within the top 70 players on ESPN’s big board.
- Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area takes a closer look at what the offseason might hold for Draymond Green, whose value around the NBA appears to be on the decline as he weighs a decision on a player option worth $27.7MM. Green seems more likely than not to stick with the Warriors, Poole writes, though it remains to be seen whether that means opting in or negotiating a new contract with the team.
- Keith Smith of Spotrac takes a look at some of the key decisions facing the Clippers this summer, including whether to trade or potentially extend star forward Kawhi Leonard and whether or not to re-sign potential restricted free agent Bennedict Mathurin. Smith views $50MM over three years as a reasonable deal for Mathurin.
NBA Announces 73 Invitees For 2026 Draft Combine
The NBA announced today (via Twitter) that 73 prospects have been invited to attend this year’s draft combine, which will take place in Chicago from May 10-17.
In addition to those 73 players, a handful of standout players from the G League combine, 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 2026 draft pool, since many 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 27 if they wish to preserve that eligibility, while non-college players face a decision deadline of June 13. 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 2026 draft combine:
(Note: For players in international leagues, the country listed is where they had been playing, not necessarily where they’re from.)
- Matt Able, G, North Carolina State (freshman)
- Darius Acuff, G, Arkansas (freshman)
- Amari Allen, F, Alabama (freshman)
- Nate Ament, F, Tennessee (freshman)
- Christian Anderson, G, Texas Tech (sophomore)
- Tobe Awaka, F, Arizona (senior)
- Flory Bidunga, F/C, Kansas (sophomore)
- Tyler Bilodeau, F, UCLA (senior)
- John Blackwell, G, Wisconsin (junior)
- Cameron Boozer, F, Duke (freshman)
- Kylan Boswell, G, Illinois (senior)
- Nick Boyd, G, Wisconsin (senior)
- Jaden Bradley, G, Arizona (senior)
- Trevon Brazile, F, Arkansas (senior)
- Maliq Brown, F, Duke (senior)
- Mikel Brown Jr., G, Louisville (freshman)
- Brayden Burries, G, Arizona (freshman)
- Cameron Carr, G, Baylor (junior)
- Chris Cenac, F/C, Houston (freshman)
- Rueben Chinyelu, C, Florida (junior)
- Ryan Conwell, G, Louisville (senior)
- Sergio De Larrea, G, Spain (born 2005)
- AJ Dybantsa, F, BYU (freshman)
- Zuby Ejiofor, F, St. John’s (senior)
- Isaiah Evans, G/F, Duke (sophomore)
- Jeremy Fears, G, Michigan State (junior)
- Kingston Flemings, G, Houston (freshman)
- Ja’Kobi Gillespie, G, Tennessee (senior)
- Allen Graves, F, Santa Clara (freshman)
- Keyshawn Hall, G/F, Auburn (senior)
- Juke Harris, G, Wake Forest (sophomore)
- Joshua Jefferson, F, Iowa State (senior)
- Morez Johnson, F/C, Michigan (sophomore)
- Alex Karaban, F, UConn (senior)
- Jack Kayil, G, Germany (born 2006)
- Toibu Lawal, F, Virginia Tech (senior)
- Yaxel Lendeborg, F, Michigan (senior)
- Karim Lopez, F, Australia (born 2007)
- Aday Mara, C, Michigan (junior)
- Nick Martinelli, F, Northwestern (senior)
- Baba Miller, F/C, Cincinnati (senior)
- Dillon Mitchell, F, St. John’s (senior)
- Milan Momcilovic, F, Iowa State (junior)
- Malachi Moreno, C, Kentucky (freshman)
- Izaiyah Nelson, F, South Florida (senior)
- Tyler Nickel, F, Vanderbilt (senior)
- Ebuka Okorie, G, Stanford (freshman)
- Felix Okpara, C, Tennessee (senior)
- Ugonna Onyenso, C, Virginia (senior)
- Otega Oweh, G, Kentucky (senior)
- Koa Peat, F, Arizona (freshman)
- Darryn Peterson, G, Kansas (freshman)
- Labaron Philon, G, Alabama (sophomore)
- Jayden Quaintance, F/C, Kentucky (sophomore)
- Tarris Reed, C, UConn (senior)
- Billy Richmond, G/F, Arkansas (sophomore)
- Richie Saunders, G, BYU (senior)
- Emanuel Sharp, G, Houston (senior)
- Braden Smith, G, Purdue (senior)
- Hannes Steinbach, F, Washington (freshman)
- Bennett Stirtz, G, Iowa (senior)
- Andrej Stojakovic, G/F, Illinois (junior)
- Peter Suder, G, Miami (OH) (senior)
- Luigi Suigo, C, Serbia (born 2007)
- Dailyn Swain, G/F, Texas (junior)
- Tyler Tanner, G, Vanderbilt (sophomore)
- Meleek Thomas, G, Arkansas (freshman)
- Bruce Thornton, G, Ohio State (senior)
- Milos Uzan, G, Houston (senior)
- Henri Veesaar, C, North Carolina (junior)
- Keaton Wagler, G, Illinois (freshman)
- Caleb Wilson, F, North Carolina (freshman)
- Tounde Yessoufou, G/F, Baylor (freshman)
It’s worth noting that the NBA and the NBPA agreed to several 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). That player would be required to complete combine activities at a later date.
- 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.
NBA Announces Initial Early Entrant List For 2025 Draft
The NBA has officially released the initial list of early entrants for the 2025 NBA draft, announcing in a press release (Twitter link) that 106 players have filed as early entry candidates. Of those prospects, 73 are from colleges, 30 had been playing for teams internationally, and three were playing non-college ball stateside (in the G League).
While that early entrant total exceeds the number of players who will be selected in this year’s draft (59), it’s down significantly from the figures we’ve seen in recent years. A record 353 early entrants initially declared for the draft in 2021, but that number dropped to 283 in 2022, 242 in 2023, and 201 a year ago.
The NCAA’s NIL policy, which allows college athletes to be paid based on their name, image, and likeness, has been a major factor in that downward trend — fewer prospects feel the need to go pro as soon as possible when they’re earning big money at the college level.
The huge dip this year can also be attributed in large part to the fact that most college seniors are now automatically draft-eligible. In recent years, most fourth-year seniors faced an “early entrant” decision because they were granted an extra year of NCAA eligibility due to COVID-19 and didn’t have the 2020/21 season count toward their typical limit.
This year’s total of 106 early entrants figures to decline significantly by May 28 and again by June 15, the two deadlines for players to withdraw their names from the draft pool. The leftover early entrants will join the college seniors with no remaining eligibility and other automatically eligible players in this year’s draft pool.
Our tracker of early entrants for the 2025 draft is fully up to date and can be found right here.
Here are the changes we made to our tracker today:
Newly added players
College players:
These players either didn’t publicly announce that they were entering the draft or we simply missed it when they did.
- Chad Baker-Mazara, G/F, Auburn (senior)
- Quincy Ballard, C, Wichita State (senior)
- Jaden Bradley, G, Arizona (junior)
- Tayton Conerway, G, Troy (senior)
- Melvin Council Jr., G, St. Bonaventure (senior)
- Jerry Deng, F, Florida State (sophomore)
- Isaiah Evans, G/F, Duke (freshman)
- Dominick Harris, G, UCLA (senior)
- Chris Howell, G, UC San Diego (junior)
- Camron McDowell, G, Northwestern Oklahoma State (junior)
- Devin McGlockton, F, Vanderbilt (junior)
- Kebba Njie, F, Notre Dame (junior)
- AK Okereke, F, Cornell (junior)
- Omar Rowe, G, Morehouse (senior)
- Bruce Thornton, G, Ohio State (junior)
- Brandon Walker, F, Montana State (junior)
- Money Williams, G, Montana (sophomore)
International players:
These players weren’t previously mentioned on our list of international early entrants. The country listed here indicates where they last played, not necessarily where they were born.
- Alec Anigbata, F, Germany (born 2004)
- Asim Djulovic, G/F, Serbia (born 2005)
- Lazar Gacic, C, Serbia (born 2005)
- Ben Henshall, G/F, Australia (born 2004)
- Muodubem Muoneke, G, Spain (born 2003)
- Eli Ndiaye, C, Spain (born 2004)
- Zaion Nebot, G, France (born 2004)
- David Torresani, G, Italy (born 2005)
- Rocco Zikarsky, C, Australia (born 2006)
Players removed
Despite reports or announcements that the players below would declare for the draft, they didn’t show up on the NBA’s official list.
That could mean a number of things — they may have decided against entering the draft; they may have entered the draft, then withdrawn; they may have had no NCAA eligibility remaining, making them automatically draft-eligible; they may have incorrectly filed their paperwork; or the NBA may have accidentally omitted some names.
Because they’re absent from the NBA’s official list, we’ve removed the following names from our own early entrant list.
Note: Some of these players may also be transferring to new schools.
- Abdi Bashir, G, Monmouth (sophomore)
- Terrence Brown, G, FDU (sophomore)
- Christian Coleman, F, UAB (senior)
- Jason Edwards, G, Vanderbilt (junior)
- Keyshawn Hall, G/F, UCF (junior)
- Nate Johnson, G, Akron (junior)
- Duncan Powell, F, Georgia Tech (junior)
- Nick Pringle, F, South Carolina
- Oziyah Sellers, G, Stanford (junior)
- Daniel Skillings, G/F, Cincinnati (junior)
- Marquel Sutton, F, Omaha (senior)
- Lamar Wilkerson, G, Sam Houston State (senior)
- Kam Williams, G/F, Tulane (freshman)
- Shelton Williams-Dryden, F, West Georgia (junior)
According to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link), two-time national champion Alex Karaban of UConn also initially filed paperwork to test the draft waters, but withdrew from the pool before the NBA put out today’s early entrant list. He’ll return to the Huskies for his senior season.
Draft Notes: Stirtz, Byrd, Big Boards, Early Entrants
After starring at Drake as a junior, guard Bennett Stirtz intends to follow head coach Ben McCollum from the Bulldogs to the Hawkeyes by transferring to Iowa for next season, Tyler Tachman of the Des Moines Register confirms. While the plan is for him to make the move to Iowa, Stirtz will also test the NBA draft waters this spring, he told Tachman.
Stirtz averaged 19.2 points, 5.7 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.1 steals per game with a .498/.395/.794 shooting line in 2024/25 and led Drake to a first-round victory over Missouri in the NCAA Tournament last week. He’s currently the No. 35 prospect on ESPN’s big board, suggesting he’d have a good chance to get drafted if he decides to go pro this year.
ESPN’s No. 50 prospect, San Diego State guard Miles Byrd, is also declaring for the 2025 draft while maintaining his college eligibility, he announced on Instagram. Byrd became a full-time starter as a redshirt sophomore this season and put up 12.3 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 2.7 APG, and 2.1 SPG in 30 outings.
Byrd has flashed impressive defensive tools but has struggled to score efficiently, making just 38.1% of his shots from the floor this season, including 30.1% of his three-pointers. He had just four points and committed three turnovers in the Aztecs’ First Four loss to UNC last week.
Here are a few more draft-related notes:
- Ahead of the NCAA’s Sweet 16 round, Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN.com (Insider link) have updated their list of 2025’s top 100 prospects and checked in on whose stock is on the rise (including Stirtz) and whose stock has dipped a little (including Byrd).
- After making the move this past year from The Ringer to Yahoo Sports, Kevin O’Connor has a new-look version of his annual big board and mock draft up for his new employer. After No. 1 prospect Cooper Flagg, O’Connor has Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey, Derik Queen, and Khaman Maluach rounding out his top five.
- The following prospects are also declaring for the 2025 NBA draft, according to various reports or announcements:
- Keyshawn Hall, G/F, UCF (junior) (Twitter link via Givony)
- Kobe Knox, G, South Florida (junior) (Twitter link via Sam Kayser of League Ready)
- Nick Pringle, F, South Carolina (senior) (Twitter link via Joe Tipton of On3 Sports)
- Marquel Sutton, F, Omaha (senior) (Twitter link via Jeff Goodman of Field of 68)
Draft Notes: Clingan, Risers, Buzelis, Withdrawals
The “buzz and excitement” surrounding former UConn center Donovan Clingan seems to be growing, Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report writes in a post-combine update of his 2024 mock draft. Wasserman had Clingan coming off the board at No. 7 overall in a mock earlier this month, but has bumped the big man up to No. 3 this week after he made a strong impression on NBA evaluators in Chicago.
Zaccharie Risacher (No. 2 to No. 1), Dalton Knecht (No. 10 to No. 7), Tidjane Salaun (No. 21 to No. 12), and Devin Carter (No. 18 to No. 13) are among the other notable lottery risers in Wasserman’s latest mock draft, while Matas Buzelis slipped from No. 5 to No. 11. Opinions are mixed on the G League Ignite forward, according to Wasserman, who says workouts with teams will be “extra important” for Buzelis.
Here are a few more draft updates:
- Guard Xavier DuSell, who declared for the draft following his senior year at Fresno State, has decided to remove his name from the 2024 poll and take advantage of his extra year of eligibility, tweets Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. DuSell will be transferring to Nevada for his super-senior season.
- Following a strong freshman season at Georgia Tech (12.4 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 1.1 BPG), forward Baye Ndongo will withdraw from the draft and return to the Yellow Jackets, per Rothstein (Twitter link).
- Jacksonville guard Robert McCray will head back to school for his junior season rather than keeping his name in the draft, tweets Rothstein. McCoy had a breakout season in 2023/24, averaging 18.4 PPG, 4.2 RPG, and 2.9 APG.
- Guard Keyshawn Hall is pulling out of the draft and will transfer to his third college in three years, according to Rothstein (Twitter link). After playing at UNLV as a freshman and George Mason as a sophomore, Hall will head to UCF for his junior season in 2024/25.
- VCU sophomore forward Toibu Lawal has officially withdrawn from the draft and will transfer to Virginia Tech for his junior year, tweets Rothstein.
- As a reminder, the deadline for college early entrants to exit the draft pool and retain their NCAA eligibility is next Wednesday, May 29.
And-Ones: K. Hall, March Madness, Zizic, Scoring Dip
George Mason guard Keyshawn Hall has opted to test the 2024 NBA draft waters and enter the NCAA transfer portal, he tells Jeff Goodman of The Field of 68 (Twitter link).
Hall spent his first college season at UNLV in 2022/23, then transferred to George Mason, where he enjoyed a breakout sophomore season with the Patriots. He averaged 16.6 points and 8.1 rebounds in 30.6 minutes per game across 29 appearances, with a .474/.357/.844 shooting line. However, he doesn’t show up on ESPN’s list of 2024’s top 100 prospects, so he may decide to stay in school for at least one more year in an effort to improve his stock.
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- With the first week of March Madness in the books, Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN.com (Insider link) updated their 2024 mock draft and shared some observations on the latest NCAA results, including disappointing final games for Kentucky prospects Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard and impressive showings for big men Donovan Clingan of UConn and Zach Edey of Purdue.
- Former first-round pick Ante Zizic, who appeared in 113 games for the Cavaliers from 2017-20, recently stated that he prefers playing in Europe, referring to the NBA as a “show” and admitting that his stint stateside didn’t “go in the direction I imagined.” Eurohoops has the story, with the quotes from Zizic.
- Seth Partnow of The Athletic takes a deep dive into the data surrounding the NBA’s league-wide post-All-Star scoring dip, noting that it’s all the more unusual because scoring usually increases near the end of the season. A slightly slower pace of play and fewer free throws being awarded per game are the primary reasons for the decline, Partnow suggests.