Jaylin Williams

Draft Notes: J. Williams, Ingram, Baugh, Grandison

Arkansas forward/center Jaylin Williams has decided to remain in the draft, making his announcement on Twitter. The sophomore opted to test the draft waters in early April, but didn’t sign with an agent to give himself the option of returning to school.

“From a very young age my dream was always to play in the NBA,” Williams wrote. “That said, after careful consideration and many talks with my family, I have decided to forgo my remaining NCAA eligibility and pursue my lifetime goal of competing in the NBA.”

Williams was an All-SEC selection after averaging 10.9 points and 9.8 rebounds in 37 games. Williams participated in this month’s Draft Combine in Chicago, and performed so well on the first day that he sat out the second day of scrimmages, according to Bob Holt of Whole Hog Sports. Holt adds that Williams has been conducting workouts for NBA teams, including the Hawks and Hornets.

Projected as a second-round pick, Williams is 42nd on ESPN’s big board, which ranks him as the sixth-best center prospect in the draft.

“Jaylin had a really good two years, and all of us are very happy for him and wish him the best of luck,” Razorbacks coach Eric Musselman said in a text message to Holt.

A few more early entrants have reached their draft decisions ahead of the June 1 deadline to maintain their college eligibility if they withdraw:

  • Pac 12 Freshman of the Year Harrison Ingram will take his name out of the draft and return to Stanford for another season, tweets Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports. A 6’7″ forward, Ingram averaged 10.5 points and 6.7 rebounds in his first collegiate season. He is ranked 73rd by ESPN and would have been a marginal prospect if he had remained in the draft.
  • Damion Baugh will return to TCU for another season, according to Rothstein (Twitter link). The junior guard was the Horned Frogs’ second-leading scorer this year at 10.6 PPG after playing his first two seasons at Memphis.
  • Jacob Grandison of Illinois will also pull out of the draft and will return to college for a fifth season, tweets Rothstein. The 24-year-old guard averaged 9.6 PPG this year.

Hawks Notes: Bogdanovic, Draft Workout, Trade Tiers

Bogdan Bogdanovic‘s lingering knee issue will likely prevent the Hawks wing from participating with the Serbian National Team in the EuroBasket tournament during September, according to MozzartSport.com (hat tip to Eurohoops.net). Bogdanovic, who was limited to 63 regular-season games,  played through the pain in the first round of the playoffs, and MozzartSport’s report suggests offseason surgery is a possibility.

We have more on the Hawks:

Full List Of 2022 NBA Draft Combine Participants

The NBA has revealed its list of 76 players who have been invited – and who are expected to attend – next week’s draft combine in Chicago. The combine workouts will take place from May 18-20.

Over the course of the week, players will conduct interviews with NBA teams, participate in five-on-five games, and go through shooting, strength and agility drills.

While several of the prominent names at the top of the draft likely won’t participate in scrimmages, those top prospects are still expected to attend. That group includes Chet Holmgren, Jabari Smith, Paolo Banchero, and Jaden Ivey.

A handful of standout players from the G League Elite Camp could be invited to participate in the combine as well.

Here’s the full list of 76 names announced by the NBA today, in alphabetical order, per Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link):

  1. Ochai Agbaji, G/F, Kansas (senior)
  2. Patrick Baldwin Jr., F, Milwaukee (freshman)
  3. Paolo Banchero, F, Duke (freshman)
  4. Dominick Barlow, F, Overtime Elite (auto-eligible)
  5. MarJon Beauchamp, G/F, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  6. Hugo Besson, G, Australia (born 2001)
  7. Malaki Branham, G/F, Ohio State (freshman)
  8. Christian Braun, G, Kansas (junior)
  9. Kendall Brown, F, Baylor (freshman)
  10. John Butler Jr., F/C, Florida State (freshman)
  11. Julian Champagnie, G/F, St. John’s (junior)
  12. Kennedy Chandler, G, Tennessee (freshman)
  13. Max Christie, G, Michigan State (freshman)
  14. Kofi Cockburn, C, Illinois (junior)
  15. Dyson Daniels, G, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  16. Johnny Davis, G, Wisconsin (sophomore)
  17. JD Davison, G, Alabama (freshman)
  18. Moussa Diabate, F, Michigan (freshman)
  19. Ousmane Dieng, F, Australia (born 2003)
  20. Khalifa Diop, C, Spain (born 2002)
  21. Jalen Duren, C, Memphis (freshman)
  22. Tari Eason, F, LSU (sophomore)
  23. Keon Ellis, G, Alabama (senior)
  24. Michael Foster, F, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  25. Collin Gillespie, G, Villanova (super-senior)
  26. AJ Griffin, F, Duke (freshman)
  27. Jaden Hardy, G, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)
  28. Ron Harper Jr., F, Rutgers (senior)
  29. Chet Holmgren, C, Gonzaga (freshman)
  30. Harrison Ingram, F, Stanford (freshman)
  31. Jaden Ivey, G, Purdue (sophomore)
  32. Trayce Jackson-Davis, F, Indiana (junior)
  33. Nikola Jovic, F, Serbia (born 2003)
  34. Johnny Juzang, G, UCLA (junior)
  35. Ismael Kamagate, C, France (born 2001)
  36. Trevor Keels, G, Duke (freshman)
  37. Walker Kessler, F/C, Auburn (sophomore)
  38. Christian Koloko, C, Arizona (junior)
  39. Jake LaRavia, F, Wake Forest (junior)
  40. Justin Lewis, F, Marquette (sophomore)
  41. E.J. Liddell, F, Ohio State (junior)
  42. Bennedict Mathurin, G/F, Arizona (sophomore)
  43. Matthew Mayer, F, Baylor (senior)
  44. Bryce McGowens, G, Nebraska (freshman)
  45. Leonard Miller, F, Canada (born 2003)
  46. Josh Minott, F, Memphis (freshman)
  47. Aminu Mohammed, G/F, Georgetown (freshman)
  48. Iverson Molinar, G, Mississippi State (junior)
  49. Jean Montero, G, Overtime Elite (auto-eligible)
  50. Wendell Moore, F, Duke (junior)
  51. Keegan Murray, F, Iowa (sophomore)
  52. Andrew Nembhard, G, Gonzaga
  53. Scotty Pippen Jr., G, Vanderbilt (junior)
  54. Gabriele Procida, G/F, Italy (born 2002)
  55. Orlando Robinson, F/C, Fresno State (junior)
  56. David Roddy, F, Colorado State (junior)
  57. Ryan Rollins, G, Toledo (sophomore)
  58. Dereon Seabron, G, NC State (sophomore)
  59. Shaedon Sharpe, G, Kentucky (freshman)
  60. Jabari Smith, F, Auburn (freshman)
  61. Terquavion Smith, G, NC State (freshman)
  62. Jeremy Sochan, F, Baylor (freshman)
  63. Matteo Spagnolo, G, Italy (born 2003)
  64. Julian Strawther, G/F, Gonzaga (sophomore)
  65. Dalen Terry, G, Arizona (sophomore)
  66. Drew Timme, F, Gonzaga (junior)
  67. Jabari Walker, F, Colorado (sophomore)
  68. TyTy Washington Jr., G, Kentucky (freshman)
  69. Peyton Watson, G/F, UCLA (freshman)
  70. Blake Wesley, G, Notre Dame (freshman)
  71. Alondes Williams, G, Wake Forest (super-senior)
  72. Jalen Williams, G, Santa Clara (junior)
  73. Jaylin Williams, F/C, Arkansas (sophomore)
  74. Mark Williams, C, Duke (sophomore)
  75. Trevion Williams, F/C, Purdue (senior)
  76. Fanbo Zeng, F, G League Ignite (auto-eligible)

Two Arkansas Players Among Draft’s Recent Early Entrants

Arkansas sophomore forward/center Jaylin Williams announced this week that he’ll test the NBA draft waters this spring, entering the 2022 draft pool while maintaining his college eligibility, as Curtis Wilkerson of HawgSports.com details.

A reserve for most of his freshman year, Williams entered the starting lineup for the Razorbacks in 2021/22, filling up the box score with 10.9 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.3 SPG, and 1.1 BPG in 37 games (31.6 MPG). While he only made 46.1% of his shots from the field, including 23.9% from the floor, Williams made the All-SEC First Team and SEC All-Defensive team. He’s currently the No. 45 prospect on ESPN’s big board.

Williams’ teammate, Arkansas senior shooting guard Au’Diese Toney, is also entering the 2022 NBA draft, he announced on Instagram. Toney’s announcement doesn’t say anything about maintaining his final year of NCAA eligibility, so it sounds like he intends to go pro after averaging 10.5 PPG and 5.2 RPG in 36 games (32.4 MPG) for Arkansas following three seasons at Pitt.

Here are a few more players who recently declared for the draft or announced they intend to:

Expected to remain in draft and forgo remaining NCAA eligibility:

Testing draft waters: