Kansas guard Kevin McCullar announced this week that he’ll enter his name in the 2023 NBA draft pool while maintaining his NCAA eligibility, as Michael Swain of Phog.net writes.
McCullar, who played his first three college seasons at Texas Tech before transferring to the Jayhawks, averaged 10.7 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.4 APG, and 2.0 SPG in 34 games (30.6 MPG) as a senior in 2022/23, earning spots on the All-Big 12 third team and the conference’s All-Defensive squad.
McCullar has one year of college eligibility left due to COVID-19, but is a candidate to be drafted in 2023 if he decides to go pro. He currently ranks 59th overall on ESPN’s big board.
Here are a few more draft-related updates:
- Junior guard Jalen Cook, who intended to declare for the draft coming off his second consecutive All-AAC season at Tulane, has decided to transfer back to LSU, where he began his college career, tweets Jonathan Givony of ESPN. It sounds like Cook intends to use at least one more season of college eligibility rather than going pro this year.
- After winning a national championship with UConn as a freshman, center Donovan Clingan will remain at school rather than going pro, he announced on Twitter. Clingan’s numbers as a reserve in 2022/23 were modest (6.9 PPG and 5.6 RPG in 13.1 MPG), but Jeff Goodman of Stadium (Twitter link) said multiple NBA evaluators believe the big man would’ve been selected in the 25-40 range if he’d entered the draft.
- The following players have declared for the 2023 NBA draft and will test the waters as early entrants:
- Austin Crowley, G, Southern Mississippi (senior) (Twitter link)
- Jalen Hill, F, Oklahoma (senior) (Instagram link)
- Romain Parmentelot, G, France (born 2004) (Twitter link via Fusion Sports)
- Mark Sears, G, Alabama (junior) (Twitter link)