Draft Notes: Williams, Kuzma, Wilder, Ball
Texas A&M freshman forward Robert Williams decided to remain in college because he wants to be the top pick, a source told Evan Daniels of Fox Sports and Scout.com (Twitter link). Williams also believes he’s not mature enough yet to enter the league, the tweet adds. Williams averaged 11.9 PPG, 8.2 RPG and 2.5 BPG during his freshman season for the Aggies. The 6’9” Williams was considered a late lottery pick, ranked as the 10th-best overall prospect by DraftExpress and 13th in Chad Ford’s top 100 at ESPN.com.
In other news involving the draft:
- Utah forward Kyle Kuzma will enter the draft but won’t hire an agent, Kyle Goon of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. Kuzma is ranked No. 73 among the top 100 prospects by DraftExpress and doesn’t make Ford’s top 100 list. The 6’9” Kuzma averaged 16.4 PPG and 9.3 RPG for the Utes in his junior season.
- Western Michigan’s Thomas Wilder will also test the draft waters, Jeff Goodman of ESPN tweets. The 6’3” guard averaged 19.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG and 3.8 APG in his junior season. He is not rated among the top 100 by either DraftExpress or Ford.
- Seton Hall’s Angel Delgado and Khadeen Carrington will also enter the draft without hiring agents, Jon Rothstein of FanRagSports.com reports. Delgado, a 6’10” junior forward, averaged 15.2 PPG and 13.1 RPG this past season while Carrington, a 6’4” junior guard, averaged 17.1 PPG. Neither is considered a top 100 prospect.
- Former Virginia and Memphis forward Austin Nichols has declared for the draft and hired an agent, according to Evan Daniels of Scout.com. The 6’9” Nichols played two seasons at Memphis, sat out a year, then played one game for the Cavaliers before he was dismissed from the team.
- UCLA freshman point guard Lonzo Ball and Kansas freshman small forward Josh Jackson have solidified their status as two of the three top prospects with their performances in the NCAA tournament, Ford writes in a stock watch column. Arizona freshman forward Lauri Markkanen and Michigan State freshman forward Miles Bridges are among the players who have improved their draft stock during the first two rounds of the tournament, according to Ford. Villanova senior guard Josh Hart and Duke sophomore guard Luke Kennard are among the players that Ford believes hurt their draft status with subpar tournament outings.
Robert Williams Won’t Declare For 2017 Draft
11:06am: Several college basketball writers, including Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports and ESPN’s Jeff Goodman (Twitter links), are now reporting that Williams will return to Texas A&M for his sophomore season.
11:02am: Texas A&M big man Robert Williams is viewed as a potential lottery pick in the 2017 NBA draft, but the big man may end up not leaving school quite yet. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical (via Twitter), Williams is leaning “strongly” toward returning to the Aggies for his sophomore year.
[RELATED: 2017 NBA Draft Early Entrants List]
In his first year at Texas A&M, the 19-year-old Williams averaged 11.8 PPG, 8.2 RPG, and 2.5 BPG in 25.8 minutes per contest. He is ranked as this year’s 10th-best overall prospect by DraftExpress and places 13th in Chad Ford’s top 100 at ESPN.com.
In a mock draft last month, Ford projected Williams as the No. 14 overall pick, noting that the youngster’s “athleticism and defensive potential are off the charts.” Ford also wrote earlier in March that NBA scouts are becoming convinced that Williams is more than just an athletic shot blocker.
NCAA underclassmen have until April 23 to declare for the draft. They would then have another month to withdraw their names if they test the waters without an agent and don’t like what they hear, so Williams still has plenty of time to make his decision. If he does opt to return to Texas A&M for his sophomore year, it could give him a chance to further develop his game, perhaps turning some of his raw potential into more NBA-ready skills.