Projected lottery pick Kasparas Jakucionis plans to declare for the NBA draft, according to Jonathan Givony of ESPN. The Illinois freshman is ninth in ESPN’s latest draft rankings.
“This has been my dream from a young age,” Jakucionis told Givony. “I’ve waited for this moment a long time. Saying goodbye to Illinois will be the hardest part. I’ve made friendships and built real relationships with players, coaches, support staff, and everyone around Champaign. My goal now is to work as hard as I can and be the best version of myself.”
Jakucionis earned spots on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and All-Big Ten Second Team during his lone season with the Fighting Illini. He averaged 15.0 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists in 33 games while shooting 44% from the field and 31.8% from three-point range and helped Illinois advance to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.
“It went by so fast,” Jakucionis added. “There were a lot of ups and downs with a young team, where almost no one had played in the NCAA tournament before. Coach (Brad) Underwood and my teammates trusted me. We built a great relationship, chemistry and bond. The connections I made will stay with me for a long time.”
Givony notes that Jakucionis grew up in Vilnius, Lithuania, and built a strong reputation in Europe before opting to play college basketball in the United States. He played for Barcelona at age 16 and took part in U16 and U18 EuroBasket competitions the past three years.
He explained to Givony that he chose to play college basketball for the academic exposure and access to the training facilities and player development system to help him reach the NBA.
Givony states that Jakucionis quickly impressed NBA scouts with his 6’6″ size as a lead guard combined with “toughness, pace, feel for the game, play-making and shot-making prowess.” Jakucionis excelled in the pick-and-roll for the Illini and is expected to have similar success at the pro level.
“Luka Doncic is the main player I study in terms of how he reads the game,” Jakucionis said. “I watch the NBA of course, how guards are attacking each other, defensive adjustments and pick-and-roll reads. I also watch a lot of Euroleague and ACB. Trying to follow my former teammates in Barcelona. For passing, I like to study Nick Calathes and Kostas Sloukas. The IQ level in the Euroleague is incredible.”
I keep assuming the Chicago Bulls are going to try to snag him. Maybe it’s the Illinois connection or the Lithuanian connection with the GM and Matas Buzelis.
He’s a top 10 pick to me. Still very young. Plenty of upside. As long as you are willing to wait. And help him develop. Has great size for a PG. great vision and reads the game. Good GT shooter. So his shooting will improve. Can play off the ball too. I see as a solid PG who can score. Mavs should be praying for this guy.
Thats FT
Unless the Mavs trade for LaMelo Ball.