Nikos Rogkavopoulos Rumors

Several International Players Pull Out Of Draft

November 7th, 2020 at 4:15pm CST by Arthur Hill

Sunday marks the deadline to withdraw from the NBA draft, and a handful of international players have reached their decisions. The date doesn’t affect college players because the NCAA set an Aug. 3 deadline for players to remove their names from the draft and retain their eligibility.

Lithuanian guard Arnas Velicka has decided to take his name out of the draft, tweets Nicola Lupo of Sportando. Velicka currently plays in France.
Belgian guard Joel Ekamba is skipping this year’s draft, a source tells Lupo. The 19-year-old also plays in France.
Brancou “Papi” Badio of Senegal has decided to withdraw, according to Lupo. The 21-year-old guard is playing his first season on the senior team for FC Barcelona.
Also removing his name from the draft is Greek guard Nikos Rogkavopoulos, Lupo adds. Rogkavopoulos is playing this season with AEK Athens.
Greek shooting guard Georgios Kalaitzakis is withdrawing, agent Marius Rutkauskas confirmed to Lithuanian basketball writer Donatas Urbonas (Twitter link). Kalaitzakis is ranked 90th on ESPN’s list of the top 100 prospects.
Lithuanian center Marek Blazevic is pulling out of the draft, sources tell Urbonas (Twitter link). He currently plays for Zalgiris Kaunas of the Lithuanian Basketball League.
Deciding to remain in the draft is Adrian Bogucki, a 20-year-old center from Poland, according to Lupo. The 7’1″ Bogucki is playing in Poland and has been part of the U16, U18 and U20 Polish national teams.

Malachi Flynn Among Prospects Entering 2020 NBA Draft

April 17th, 2020 at 11:27am CST by Luke Adams

San Diego State junior point guard Malachi Flynn has elected to enter the 2020 NBA draft and forgo his remaining college eligibility, as he tells ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.

Flynn, who transferred to the Aztecs after starting his college career at Washington State, had a breakout season in 2019/20, averaging 17.6 PPG, 5.1 APG, 4.5 RPG, and 1.8 SPG with a .441/.373/.857 shooting line in 32 games (33.4 MPG). He was named the Mountain West Player and Defensive Player of the Year.

With a 30-2 record, San Diego State was in position for a top seed in the NCAA tournament, and Flynn told Givony he regrets not getting an opportunity to attempt a Final Four run.

“It was a tough decision deciding to declare,” Flynn said. “One of the biggest things that had me wanting to come back was not playing in March Madness. I talked to a lot of people about it, especially my family. My coaches were on board with me going all-in and trying to make a name for myself at the next level, which helped me out a lot. I think I showed teams enough, and it was time to make that step and move forward to the NBA.”

Currently the No. 43 overall prospect on ESPN’s big board, Flynn would have been a strong contender to go in the first round if he had led the Aztecs to a few March Madness wins, writes Givony.

Here are more updates on players declaring for the draft:

UMass-Lowell junior guard Obadiah Noel and LSU sophomore forward Darius Days are entering the draft while hiring agent Austin Walton of Next Sports, a source tells Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link). Because Walton is NCAA-certified, Noel and Days will retain their college eligibility throughout the process.
18-year-old Greek forward Nikos Rogkavopoulos, a member of AEK Athens, has entered the 2020 draft, writes Stefan Djordjevic of EuroHoops.
A pair of Turkish prospects, 21-year-old shooting guard Sehmus Hazer and 21-year-old power forward Yigitcan Saybir, have declared for the draft, per Bugra Uzar of EuroHoops. Hazer plays for Teksut Bandirma, while Saybir is a member of Anadolu Efes.