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2019 NBA Draft Decisions: Every Announcement of Deadline Day
The 2019 NBA draft withdrawal deadline has passed us by. All players who were pondering the thought of returning to school have made their decisions final.
Many were made early on, from the obvious (the likes of Zion Williamson, Ja Morant and Jarrett Culver) to those who originally left the door open to return (the likes of Ignas Brazdeikis, Kyle Guy, Zach Norvell and Grant Williams) before announcing they would stay in. And many players were already on board to come back for another NCAA season, including Cassius Winston, Tre Jones, Jalen Smith and Ashton Hagans.
But with the deadline looming, several players tested the waters and held off until the last day to officially make their choices.
Below is a tracker to break down all of Wednesday's decisions as they were announced.
12:40 a.m.
Charles Bassey will be back at Western Kentucky next season, per Jon Rothstein. The 6'11" big man averaged a double-double of 14.6 points and 10 rebounds, as well as 2.4 blocks per game during his freshman campaign.
11:15 p.m.
Mamadi Diakite is returning to Virginia for his senior season, he announced on Instagram. He was essential in the Cavaliers' national title run, and will again help patrol the paint for Tony Bennett's troops with his intimidating defensive presence. Diakite averaged 7.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game as a junior.
10:19 p.m.
Xavier Sneedannounced his decision to return to Kansas State for one final season. He averaged 10.6 points and 5.5 rebounds as a junior, helping lead the Wildcats to their best record since 2012-13.
9:46 p.m.
Louisville will be getting back its leading scorer from last season in Jordan Nwora. He made the official announcement on Twitter. Nwora was a third-team All-ACC selection as a sophomore, averaging 17 points and 7.6 rebounds per game for a Louisville team that finished 20-14 and made the NCAA tournament as a seven seed.
Jaylen Fisher has withdrawn his name from the NBA draft and will return to school. He does, however, plan to transfer from TCU, according to reports.
9:17 p.m.
Kerry Blackshear Jr.announced via Instagram that he will be withdrawing from the draft to finish out his final year of eligibility. While Virginia Tech remains a possible destination, he would be immediately available to play elsewhere as a graduate transfer.
8:35 p.m.
Quentin Grimes will withdraw his name from the NBA draft and return to school for his sophomore season, Evan Daniels of 247Sports first reported. He averaged 8.4 points and started in all 36 games for the Jayhawks as a freshman. Kansas coach Bill Self announced that Grimes will enter the transfer portal.
Joining Grimes in his decision is his backcourt mate from last season, Devon Dotson. The 6'2" guard announced his decision to withdraw from the draft and return to Kansas via Twitter. Like Grimes, he started all 36 games last season and put up 12.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
8:10 p.m.
Oregon State guard Ethan Thompson will withdraw from the draft and return for his junior season, per reports. He averaged 13.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.9 assists as a sophomore.
Rayjon Tucker, who committed to Memphis as a graduate transfer after putting up 20.3 points and 6.7 rebounds at Little Rock last season, has decided to remain in the NBA draft, according to Jon Rothstein.
UNC Greensboro forward James Dickey will return to school for his senior year, according to reports. He started all 30 games for a Spartans team that finished 29-7 in 2018-19.
7:14 p.m.
Minnesota's Amir Coffey will remain in the NBA draft after an impressive junior season, according to Jon Rothstein. He led the Golden Gophers in scoring at 16.6 points per game and played an integral role in their first-round victory over Louisville in the NCAA tournament. He earned third-team All-Big Ten honors and averaged 23.5 points, respectively, over his final eight games of the season.
KZ Okpala, who led Stanford in scoring as a sophomore at 16.8 points per game, will keep his name in the draft as well, multiple reports confirmed. The 6'9" forward was a first-team All-Pac-12 honoree last season.
6:45 p.m.
Donnie Tillman will be suiting up for the Utes next season as a junior after deciding to remove his name from the NBA draft, per Jon Rothstein. The 6'7" forward was Utah's third-leading scorer in 2018-19, averaging 10.5 points while also pulling down 5.3 rebounds per game.
Penn State's leading scorer and rebounder from last season, Lamar Stevens, announced his decision to return to school for his senior year. He averaged 19.9 points and 7.7 boards for the Nittany Lions as a junior.
6:33 p.m.
Myles Powell, one of the nation's top scorers from a season ago, will be returning to Seton Hall for his senior campaign. He made the announcement on Twitter. Powell averaged 23.1 points as a junior, was named first-team All-Big East, and led the Pirates to the NCAA tournament for a fourth straight year. With his return, Seton Hall should be a team with high expectations entering 2019-20.
In other news, former NC State recruit Jalen Lecque decided to skip college and remain in the draft to pursue his NBA dream.
5:45 p.m.
For the second day in a row, Kentucky has retained a critical frontcourt piece for next season: E.J. Montgomery will withdraw from the draft and return to Lexington, reports ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. That's a big deal for John Calipari and the Wildcats, who got Nick Richards back on Tuesday.
5 p.m.
Anthony Cowan is returning to Maryland for his senior season, and with a fire video. The point guard is set to be a four-year starter as he finishes out his college career.
4:15 p.m.
Siena's Jalen Pickett will return to school, reports Jon Rothstein. Pickett is coming off a strong freshman season in which he averaged 15.8 points and 6.7 assists, and had been considering being a rare one-and-done out of the MAAC.
3:20 p.m.
Florida point guard Andrew Nembhard is coming back for a sophomore season, he announced. A former five-star recruit, Nembhard will be a key piece for a Gators team that should get some buzz heading into next year.
Payton Pritchard will return to Oregon for his senior year, reports 247Sports's Matt Prehm. That's a big one for the Ducks, who are losing plenty between Bol Bol, Louis King, Kenny Wooten and the graduating Paul White and Ehab Amin.
2:50 p.m.
Over in the Big East, Creighton big man Martin Krampelj announced that he will remain in the draft. The Bluejays did, however, get starting shooting guard Davion Mintz back earlier Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Killian Tillie is officially returning to Gonzaga, the school announced. Big one for the Zags, who are otherwise losing four starters.
2:20 p.m.
After a bit of an afternoon lull, here's a notable one: Nebraska's Isaiah Roby will stay in the draft, reports Jon Rothstein. Would have been a big piece for new Cornhuskers coach Fred Hoiberg.
1:15 p.m.
Some mid-major news: William & Mary big man Nathan Knight is headed back to school for his senior year. He averaged 21 points as a junior for the Tribe and was first-team All-CAA.
12:15 p.m.
Two more dominos fall: Houston guard Armoni Brooks announced he will remain in the NBA draft, while Jeff Goodman reports Arizona's Brandon Randolph will as well.
11:15 a.m.
Auburn's Jared Harper is expected to stay in the NBA draft, reports Goodman. The point guard who is coming off a trip to the Final Four was steadfast throughout the process in his desire to move on to the professional level.
10:00 a.m.
Indiana's Devonte Green, Aljami Durham and Justin Smith have all withdrawn from the draft and will return to school, reports Goodman. The move was expected, but ensures the only underclassman the Hoosiers will lose to the draft is Romeo Langford.
A number of key decisions were reported and/or announced on Tuesday as well, including Gonzaga's Killian Tillie, Mississippi State's Reggie Perry, Tennessee's Jordan Bone, LSU's Emmitt Williams and South Carolina's A.J. Lawson all returning to school for 2019–20. For a full list of who declared for the draft and who's returning to school, click here.
