Should They Stay or Should They Go: College Basketball Players Face Tough Question
It's nearly every college basketball player's dream to make it to the NBA, but only when the timing is right. Cliff Anderson, Anderson Hunt, Matt Walsh, Anthony Roberson, and Trevon Duval are just some of the names that have declared early for the NBA draft only to go undrafted.
Undrafted players cannot return to college, but can go back to school if they pull their name out of the draft, this year on June 1st which is three weeks before the draft. It's a tough decision to make being that close to realizing a dream, but at the same time another year of development can make sure being selected is just a formality next season. These names won’t in the markets for the Draft in the latest Vegas Odds for going in the first round, and they face that risk.
Caleb Houstan, Michigan
Houstan declared for the draft after just one season at Michigan where he averaged 10.1 ppg. Not incredibly overwhelming stats, but the 6'8, 205 pound guard is incredibly athletic and does have huge NBA upside. The latest mock drafts seem to have Houstan moving up in the first round so he's likely to stay put.
The same cannot be said for Houstan's Wolverine teammate Moussa Diabate. He's got an incredibly tough decision because he's currently not projected to be a first-rounder (or even drafted) but he's had a very good combine and some personal workouts which could be impressing teams.
Drew Timme, Gonzaga
Thanks to the new name, image, likeness rules it's not hard to imagine that Timme could actually make more money returning to Gonzaga than he would in the G-League or overseas. Timme may think that his college production has peaked scoring 19.4 and 18 ppg the last two seasons, but it's also tempting to return for one more crack at getting the Bulldogs their first national championship – cementing himself as a legend at the school.
Trevor Keels, Duke
Duke doesn't rebuild, they reload which is again the case after Paolo Banchero, A.J. Griffin, Mark Williams, and Wendell Moore, Jr. are all expected to be first round picks. Keels would love to add his name to that list after scoring 11.5 ppg last season, but he could also return for a bigger role under first-year coach Jon Scheyer and develop into a surefire lottery pick instead of a fringe second-rounder.
Jaylin Williams, Arkansas
Williams has the benefit of being a 6-10”, 240 pound 19-year old so an NBA team could stash him for a couple years as a prospect. He could also return, dominate the SEC for one more year, and help Arkansas to a potential National Championship (should be a preseason top 5) increasing his exposure and a much better draft position next season, likely in the lottery.
Some players like Illinois' Kofi Cockburn have opted to stay in the draft even though he's projected to go undrafted. Cockburn wants to realize his dream of playing professional basketball wherever that may be.
Others like Oscar Tshiebwe, Trayce Jackson-Davis, and Jaime Jaquez, Jr. are returning to college to work on their game, take advantage of the NIL deals, and hopefully go pro next year.
Both kinds of decisions are extremely difficult.
