Kobe Bufkin Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Michigan’s Kobe Bufkin Declares For NBA Draft

April 2nd, 2023 at 1:27pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Michigan point guard Kobe Bufkin has announced that he is declaring for the 2023 NBA draft, according to the school (Twitter link).

“As a result of our collective dedication, I was able to fulfill my dream of attending and representing the University of Michigan,” he said in a statement.

“To my U of M family, it was been an amazing experience, being a part of such an iconic university,” Bufkin continued. “This is including the Ann Arbor community, the outstanding academic experience, and of course, my basketball brotherhood. A brotherhood that I will forever hold close to my heart.”

Bufkin is currently listed as the No. 23 prospect on ESPN’s big board.

The 6’4″ guard started all 33 of his games played during his sophomore season with the Wolverines in 2022/23. He averaged 14.0 PPG on .482/.355/.849 shooting splits, 4.5 RPG, 2.9 APG, 1.3 SPG and 0.7 BPG.

Michigan did not quality for the NCAA Tournament this season, but instead participated in the 2023 NIT competition as the third seed.

And-Ones: 2023 Draft, M. Leonard, TV Rights, Elam Ending

February 6th, 2023 at 12:49pm CST by Luke Adams

The latest installment of Jonathan Givony’s 2023 NBA draft stock watch at ESPN (Insider link) highlights a series of Duke prospects, with big man Kyle Filipowski coming in at No. 14 on Givony’s big board, followed by center Dereck Lively II at No. 24 and swingman Dariq Whitehead at No. 26.

Whitehead’s stock has slipped since the start of the season, according to Givony, who notes that the freshman has struggled to be effective when healthy and ranks dead last among ESPN’s top 100 prospects in two-point field goal percentage (39.7%).

Jeremy Woo of SI.com also takes stock of where a few 2023 draft prospects stand, writing that UCF forward Taylor Hendricks is solidifying his place as a first-rounder and identifying Michigan guard Kobe Bufkin as a possible sleeper.

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Free agent center Meyers Leonard spoke to Jeremy Schaap of ESPN’s Outside the Lines about his efforts to make it back to the NBA, discussing the work he has done to educate himself about antisemitism since uttering a slur on a video game stream nearly two years ago. Leonard also said that he suffered nerve damage when he underwent ankle surgery in April 2021 and spent much of the last two seasons rehabbing shoulder and ankle injuries.
Bill Shea of The Athletic explores how the collapse of the regional sports network model will affect the NBA as it negotiates its next media rights deal. It’s safe to assume the NBA’s next agreement will include a major streaming element, according to Shea, who observes that other leagues like the NFL, MLS, and MLB have established partnerships with companies like Amazon and Apple in recent years.
With the “Elam Ending” gaining some momentum in the G League, Jake Uitti of HoopsHype spoke to the creator, Nick Elam, about why he believes in the idea and what it was like to see the NBA adopt the concept for its All-Star Game, beginning in 2020.