Central Notes: Giannis, Pacers, Workouts, Buzelis

Assuming the Bucks trade Giannis Antetokounmpo before the draft, they apparently are looking to rebuild quickly through this draft class.

The Bucks will assuredly receive the Heat’s No. 13 pick along with other draft capital if they deal their franchise player to Miami, Jake Fischer of The Stein Line tweets. Fischer also hears that Milwaukee is calling other teams in search of a third top-20 pick in this draft, potentially another one in the top 10.

Milwaukee already holds the No. 10 selection in the draft, which is 10 days away.

Here’s more from the Central Division:

Draft Notes: Bulls, Cenac, Spurs, Mavericks, Hall

Houston big man Chris Cenac worked out for the Bulls on Monday, a source tells Joel Lorenzi of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 6’11” big man, who spent his freshman season with the Cougars before declaring for the 2026 draft as an early entrant, is ranked 21st on ESPN’s big board.

Donovan Atwell (Texas Tech), Tobe Awaka (Arizona), Josh Dix (Creighton), Nate Johnson (Kansas State) and Xaivian Lee (Florida) also participated in Monday’s workout with the Bulls, Lorenzi reports. Awaka (No. 49) is considered a potential second-round pick, while the other four players are projected to go undrafted. 

Chicago controls the fourth, 15th, 38th and 56th picks.

Here are few more notes on June’s draft:

  • The Spurs (20th, 35th, 42nd, 44th) also control four draft picks. Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints hears Cenac is a “real possibility” for San Antonio at No. 20, assuming he’s still available (Twitter link).
  • The Mavericks conducted a pre-draft workout on Monday featuring Sam Alexis (Indiana), DJ Armstrong (UMBC), Quincy Ballard (Mississippi State), Kylan Boswell (Illinois), David Dixon (Duquesne) and Mark Mitchell (Missouri), reports Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News (via Twitter). Dallas currently has two first-round picks (ninth and 30th) and one second-rounder (48th). Boswell (55th on ESPN’s board) is considered the most likely player to be selected later this month.
  • Former Virginia point guard Dallin Hall worked out for the Wizards last week and had a workout with the Magic on Sunday, agent Jake Cohen tells Jason Beede of The Orlando Sentinel (Twitter link). Hall, a senior this past season, spent three years at BYU prior to transferring to Virginia.

Pre-Draft Workouts: Grizzlies, Warriors, Pistons, Keita

Arizona forward Koa Peat was among the prospects who worked out for the Grizzlies on Monday, league sources tell Damichael Cole of The Memphis Commercial Appeal (Twitter link).

Peat is a projected first-round pick, coming in at No. 25 on the latest big board from Jeremy Woo of ESPN and No. 18 on the big board of Jonathan Wasserman of Bleacher Report, though his stock has reportedly been falling due to concerns about his shooting.

The 19-year-old helped the Wildcats go 36-3 in 2025/26, winning the Big 12 tournament and advancing to the Final Four of the NCAA tournament before falling to eventual champion Michigan.

Malik Dia (Ole Miss), Jestin Porter (Clemson) and Latrell Wrightsell (Alabama) were also part of Monday’s workout, according to Cole. Memphis controls the third, 16th and 32nd picks in the 2026 draft.

Here are details on a few more pre-draft workouts from around the NBA:

  • The Warriors are hosting six prospects — Obi Agbim of Baylor, Tucker DeVries of Indiana, Tamin Lipsey of Iowa State, AK Okereke of Vanderbilt, Peter Suder of Miami (Ohio) and Lamar Wilkerson of Indiana — for a workout on Monday, the team announced (via Twitter). Lipsey (No. 69) is the highest-ranked player of the six on ESPN’s board. Golden State holds the 11th and 54th picks in June’s draft.
  • The Pistons held a pre-draft workout on Monday that included Wisconsin’s Nick Boyd, George Washington’s Rafael Castro, Kansas State’s Nate Johnson and Florida’s Xaivian Lee, reports Omari Sankofa II of The Detroit Free Press (Twitter link). Of the four, Castro is narrowly considered the best prospect (No. 73) by ESPN, with Boyd ranking just behind at 77th. Detroit has one pick — 21st overall — in the upcoming draft.
  • Former BYU big man Keba Keita isn’t among ESPN’s top 100 prospects or Bleacher Report’s top 75, but he’s drawing a good deal of interest in the pre-draft process. Keita recently auditioned for the Jazz and has roughly 12 other workouts on tap, according to Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link), who says NBA clubs are “intrigued” by the Malian center’s “length and athleticism.” Utah only controls the second overall pick, but Keita could be a two-way or Exhibit 10 candidate if he goes undrafted.

Knicks Notes: Series Lead, Anunoby, Brunson, Pre-Draft Workouts

The Cavaliers advanced to the conference finals after trailing the Pistons 2-0 in their previous series. So the Knicks aren’t taking anything for granted with a 2-0 series lead. The series shifts to Cleveland for the next two games, beginning with Game 3 on Saturday night.

We don’t feel any closer than we did last game or any game,” Karl-Anthony Towns said, per Jared Schwartz of the New York Post. “In our minds, it’s back to 0-0. We gotta win the next game, it’s the most important game of the year. That’s how we treat it. We’re hungry to go out there and play basketball at the highest level. But we also understand that you can never be satisfied in these positions in the playoffs. The mindset is gonna continue to be 0-0 every single time we step on that court.”

Here’s more on the Knicks:

  • OG Anunoby was named to the All-Defensive Second Team on Friday. He’s been selected to the Second Team twice during his career and just missed out in 2025, when he finished 11th in overall voting. “His versatility is just off the charts and you can do a lot of things with your defense because of him,” coach Mike Brown said of Anunoby, per Zach Braziller of the New York Post.
  • In the battle of star point guards, Jalen Brunson has already led the Knicks past Donovan Mitchell and the Cavs in two previous playoff series. He’s two games away from eliminating Mitchell’s team again, Stefan Bondy of the New York Post notes. Brunson is averaging 28.5 points and 10.0 assists through the first two games.
  • The Knicks evaluated a couple of draft prospects on Friday. Michigan’s Morez Johnson and Florida’s Xaivian Lee visited the team’s training facility, SNY’s Ian Begley tweets. The Knicks have the 24th, 31st, and 55th overall picks in next month’s draft. The Athletic’s latest mock has Johnson getting selected at No. 17 by Oklahoma City.

44 Prospects Invited To 2026 G League Combine

Earlier today, the NBA revealed the 73 prospects that have been invited to the draft combine in Chicago later this month. That group of players will be joined by a small group of standouts from the G League combine, which takes place from May 8-10 in the days leading up to the main event.

While the league typically doesn’t formally announce which prospect receive invites to the G League combine, Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress (Twitter link) has the details, reporting that the following 44 players make up the list of invitees:

  1. Michael Ajayi, F, Butler (senior)
  2. Alijah Arenas, G, USC (freshman)
  3. Donovan Atwell, G/F, Texas Tech (senior)
  4. Nathan Bittle, C, Oregon (senior)
  5. Elliot Cadeau, G, Michigan (junior)
  6. Rafael Castro, F/C, George Washington (senior)
  7. Zach Cleveland, F, Liberty (senior)
  8. Jacob Cofie, F, USC (sophomore)
  9. MJ Collins, G, Utah State (senior)
  10. Quadir Copeland, G, North Carolina State (senior)
  11. Melvin Council, G, Kansas (senior)
  12. Tucker DeVries, G/F, Indiana (senior)
  13. Tre Donaldson, G, Miami (senior)
  14. Reynan Dos Santos, G, Mexico City Capitanes (born 2004)
  15. Malique Ewin, F/C, Arkansas (senior)
  16. Jamal Fuller, G/F, Long Island (senior)
  17. Isiah Harwell, G, Houston (freshman)
  18. Jaden Henley, G/F, Grand Canyon (senior)
  19. Bryce Hopkins, G/F, St. John’s (senior)
  20. Graham Ike, F, Gonzaga (senior)
  21. Kasen Jennings, G, Appalachian State (senior)
  22. Trey Kaufman-Renn, F, Purdue (senior)
  23. Keba Keita, C, BYU (senior)
  24. Kobe Knox, G/F, South Carolina (senior)
  25. Xaivian Lee, G, Florida (senior)
  26. Malique Lewis, F, Australia (born 2004)
  27. Tamin Lipsey, G, Iowa State (senior)
  28. Fletcher Loyer, G, Purdue (senior)
  29. Aidan Mahaney, G, Santa Barbara (senior)
  30. Robert McCray, G, Florida State (senior)
  31. Kevin (Boopie) Miller, G, SMU (senior)
  32. Mark Mitchell, F, Missouri (senior)
  33. Paulius Murauskas, F, Saint Mary’s (junior)
  34. Jaron Pierre, G, SMU (senior)
  35. Kowacie Reeves, G/F, Georgia Tech (senior)
  36. Jaylin Sellers, G, Providence (senior)
  37. Markhi Strickland, G, North Dakota State (senior)
  38. Aiden Tobiason, G, Temple (sophomore)
  39. Seth Trimble, G, North Carolina (senior)
  40. Cade Tyson, F, Minnesota (senior)
  41. Ernest Udeh, C, Miami (senior)
  42. Lamar Wilkerson, G, Indiana (senior)
  43. Darrion Williams, F, North Carolina State (senior)
  44. Noam Yaacov, G, Belgium (born 2004)

While the players invited to the G League combine generally aren’t regarded as highly as NBA prospects as those selected for the primary combine, there are always at least a handful who end up in the league on two-way or standard contracts. Last year, for instance, Yanic Konan Niederhauser, Dylan Cardwell, Ryan Nembhard, Amari Williams, Will Richard, and Jahmai Mashack were among the invitees.

The G League combine will give some players who declared for the draft as early entrants an opportunity to see where they stand ahead of the draft withdrawal deadline on May 27. Not all of the players who participate in this event will remain in the draft pool.

Arenas, for instance, is the highest-rated prospect on ESPN’s board among the G League combine invitees, coming in at No. 52, but Ryan Kartje of The Los Angeles Times reported this week that he’s expected to withdraw and return to USC. As Givony notes (Twitter link), the list above is subject to change — if Arenas or other players end up declining invitations because they don’t plan to stay in the draft, they could be replaced before the event begins next Friday.

Portsmouth Invitational Tournament Announces 2026 Rosters

The 2026 Portsmouth Invitational Tournament will take place this week from April 15-18 in Portsmouth, VA. The event features college seniors working to boost their stock ahead of the NBA draft, with invitations to the combine a possibility for some standouts.

Several P.I.T. alumni have gone on to become solid NBA players in recent years, including Toumani Camara, Craig Porter Jr., Daniss Jenkins and Kobe Sanders, among others. Camara (2023) and Sanders (2025) were both second-round picks.

This year’s tournament features eight different teams with eight players apiece, for a total of 64 participants. Here’s the full list, per the P.I.T.:

Champaign native Boswell, who helped lead the Illini to the Final Four, appears to be one of the top prospects among the group. The 6’2″ guard came in at No. 66 on ESPN’s latest big board, with Volunteers center Okpara (No. 86) and Boilermakers big man Kaufman-Renn (No. 88) among the other prospects on the top-100 list.

And-Ones: A. Arenas, 2025 Draft, X. Lee, Kidd

Alijah Arenas, a five-star prospect who has committed to play his freshman season at USC, has been placed in a medically-induced coma following a serious car accident early Thursday morning, sources tell Shams Charania of ESPN.

As Charania details, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a call of fire at 4:55 a.m. local time after a Tesla Cybertruck crashed into a fire hydrant and tree. The LAFD did not identify Arenas by name, but Charania confirms he was involved and taken to a local hospital in serious condition. Initial tests indicated Arenas did not suffer any broken bones, Charania adds.

Arenas, a 6’6″ shooting guard, is No. 13 on ESPN’s recruiting rankings for the 2025 class, making him a potential first-round pick next year. The 18-year-old is the son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas.

Here’s more from around the basketball world:

  • Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo of ESPN (Insider link) have updated their list of the top 100 prospects ahead of the 2025 NBA draft. While many of the top 25 prospects remain unchanged, some have moved around a few spots. For instance, Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears is up to No. 5 from No. 7. Givony writes that the 18-year-old has generated “significant buzz” from the NBA scouts and executives he and Woo have spoken to in recent weeks.
  • Former Princeton guard Xaivian Lee is withdrawing from the 2025 draft and will transfer to Florida for his senior season in 2025/26, agent George S. Langberg tells Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports (Twitter link). Lee was named first-team All-Ivy League each of the past two season for the Tigers and is now focused on helping the Gators defend their national championship.
  • Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd has become a minority stakeholder in English Premier League club Everton, per The Dallas Morning News. “I’m honored to be joining Everton’s ownership at such an important moment: with a new stadium on the horizon and a bright future ahead, it’s a great moment to come on board,” Kidd said in the release.

Draft Notes: Fland, Flagg, Final Four, Burton, Early Entrants

Arkansas guard Boogie Fland has announced (via Instagram) that he’s declaring for the 2025 NBA draft. While Fland, who just finished his freshman year with the Razorbacks, has the option of testing the draft waters and retaining his NCAA eligibility, his statement makes no mention of that plan, so it sounds like he’s preparing to go pro.

Fland, who won’t turn 19 until July, appeared in 21 games for Arkansas in his first – and potentially only – college season, averaging 13.5 points, 5.1 assists, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in 31.8 minutes per contest. He made just 37.9% of his field goal attempts, including 34.0% of his three-pointers.

Fland underwent thumb surgery in January that was expected to end his season, but he returned to action for the NCAA Tournament last month. He wasn’t particularly effective in his three games back from the injury though, scoring just 12 total points on 4-of-18 shooting in 53 minutes against Kansas, St. John’s, and Texas Tech.

The 18-year-old ranked 48th overall on the latest 2025 draft big board from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo.

Here are several more draft-related notes:

  • ESPN’s Jeremy Woo spoke to NBA executives and scouts about current and past NBA comparables for projected No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg and got some interesting responses. Woo zeroes in on five of those players – Jayson Tatum, Kawhi Leonard, Lamar Odom, Scottie Pippen, and Andrei Kirilenko – and outlines the traits Flagg shares with each of them, as well as those he doesn’t.
  • While Duke’s three projected lottery picks (Flagg, Khaman Maluach and Kon Knueppel) will be the headliners of Final Four weekend for NBA evaluators, there are plenty of other prospects to keep an eye on in the showdowns of No. 1 seeds featuring Duke vs. Houston and Florida vs. Auburn. Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo Sports shines a spotlight on several of those players, including Houston guard Milos Uzan, Auburn big man Johni Broome, and Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr.
  • After leading the ACC in scoring as a sophomore, Notre Dame guard Markus Burton has decided to remain with the Fighting Irish for at least one more year rather than entering the transfer portal or testing the draft waters, agent Ron Shade tells ESPN’s Givony (Twitter link).
  • Here are a few more of the prospects who have announced they’re testing the draft waters this spring as early entrants:

Mark Sears, Michael Ajayi Headline Latest NBA Draft Withdrawals

Alabama’s Mark Sears is withdrawing from the 2024 NBA draft and will return to play for the Crimson Tide after helping his team reach the Final Four this past season, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony reports (Twitter link).

Coming in at No. 80 on ESPN’s best-available board, Sears was a second-team All-American and a first-team All-SEC selection in 2023/24. The 6’1″ guard averaged 21.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game while shooting 50.8% from the field, 43.6% from three and 85.7% from the free-throw line.

I got good feedback from the NBA,” Sears said, per Givony. “But I can still get better in a few areas. I want to show I am a dog on defense next season, continue to bring vocal leadership, and work on my body and get into better shape. NIL has changed basketball and NBA teams told me that age isn’t a factor in today’s game, so I was comfortable coming back to try and bring home a national championship to Alabama.

Michael Ajayi, who is transferring from Pepperdine to Gonzaga, also withdrew from the draft, according to Givony (Twitter link). The 6’7″ guard averaged 17.2 points and 9.9 rebounds while shooting 47.0% from beyond the arc. He made the All-WCC First Team in his first year with Pepperdine.

Ajayi is ranked No. 75 on ESPN’s big board and, according to Givony, he’ll be “closely monitored” as a senior after earning some fans during the pre-draft process.

Both Sears and Ajayi participated in the 2024 NBA Combine.

Here are more of the latest draft decisions from early entrants ahead of the tonight’s NCAA withdrawal deadline:

Withdrawing from the draft:

  • Ole Miss guard Matthew Murrell is returning to the Rebels for his super-senior season after averaging 16.2 points last season, per CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein (Twitter link). Murrell is No. 77 on ESPN’s board.
  • Wooga Poplar, who is transferring from Miami, is returning to school. He’s visiting Oregon next week, according to Rothstein (Twitter link). Poplar averaged 13.1 points and 4.8 rebounds in his junior season after helping Miami reach the Final Four in 2023.
  • Princeton guard Xaivian Lee is returning to school for his junior season, per Givony (Twitter link). Lee averaged 17.1 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game en route to a First-Team All-Ivy League nod.
  • Former Campbell guard Anthony Dell’Orso is transferring to Arizona for his junior season, according to Givony (Twitter link). He averaged 19.5 points per contest and shot 38.0% from three.
  • Malik Dia is transferring from Belmont to Ole Miss for his junior season (Twitter link via Rothstein). He averaged 16.9 points and 5.8 rebounds last season after starting his collegiate career at Vanderbilt.
  • Jalon Moore is returning to Oklahoma for his senior season (Twitter link via Rothstein). Moore began his career at Georgia Tech before joining the Sooners in his junior season.
  • In case you missed it, Arizona guard Caleb Love is withdrawing from the draft for his super-senior season with the Wildcats.

44 Prospects Invited To G League Elite Camp

Forty-four prospects for the 2024 NBA draft were invited to the NBA’s G League Elite Camp, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link).

The list of players is as follows:

The field of draft prospects scrimmage for two days in Chicago starting on May 11 ahead of the NBA’s annual draft combine. If players perform well enough, they’re often promoted to the larger combine immediately following the G League Elite Camp. Typically, at least a half dozen players move on.

While the combine usually focuses on the top-ranked players in each draft class, the G League Elite Camp offers opportunity to prospects further down boards who are more likely to go undrafted. Of the 44 names invited to the G League Elite Camp, only 16 rank among ESPN’s top 100 prospects. No prospect ranks higher than No. 48 (Onyenso) on ESPN’s board.

Nine of ESPN’s top 100 prospects have not been invited to Chicago for either event: Armel Traore (France), Zacharie Perrin (France), Andrija Jelavic (Croatia), Yannick Kraag (Netherlands), Tre Mitchell (Kentucky), Ilias Kamardine (France), Dylan Disu (Texas), Riley Minix (Morehead State) and Jonas Aidoo (Tennessee). According to Givony (Twitter link), the NBA might not announce the official list until Monday, so there’s a chance it’s amended.

The G League Elite Camp will give invitees who declared for the draft as early entrants an opportunity to see where they stand ahead of the draft withdrawal deadline on May 29. Not all of the players who participate in this event will remain in the draft pool.

Last year, future NBA players like Hornets forward Leaky Black, Pistons forward Tosan Evbuomwan, Mavericks forward Alex Fudge, Celtics guard Drew Peterson and Nets guard Jaylen Martin all participated in the event. Other recent notable alums of the event include Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado and Clippers guard Terance Mann.

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