LSU Basketball’s Skylar Mays, Trendon Watford Invited to NBA Combine
LSU basketball’s Skylar Mays and Trendon Watford have received invites to the NBA combine, which has yet to be scheduled.
In a list obtained by USA Today, Mays and Watford were two of the 105 prospects invited to the combine, set to be held sometime after the NBA draft lottery on Aug. 20.
Upon the conclusion of the 2020 season, Mays and Watford were viewed as LSU’s most attractable draft commodities after successful campaigns. Mays has popped up on numerous NBA draft mock drafts, mostly as a second round pick while Watford is on the bubble of whether or not he will be drafted.
Mays improved every year he was in Baton Rouge, capped off by a senior season that saw him average a career high 16.7 points and five rebounds a game while shooting 49% from the field and 39% from three point range.
For his performance on and off the court, Mays was named a recipient of the H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete, a $20,000 post graduate scholarship given to a male and female athlete voted as a top scholar athlete by the SEC each year.
On the court he was a first-team All-SEC selection for the 2020 season and a two time Academic All-America honoree. Whichever NBA team drafts Mays will get a leader of epic proportions on and off the court.
ESPN NBA draft analyst Mike Schmitz was very impressed with the growth Mays showed in his play over the past few seasons.
Mays diversified his game as a senior, looking more like a mini Malcolm Brogdon than a 3-and-D off guard, which gives him greater upside than most players in his mold. Mays was the most efficient ball-screen scorer among all players who used more than 100 pick-and-roll possessions, thanks to his improved pull-up game and ability to get downhill, regularly unleashing violent spin moves in traffic. Mays plays longer than his measurements suggest and has the type of stop-and-start game that has made Brogdon effective.
No matter where Mays lands, LSU coach Will Wade thinks he has a long career in the NBA ahead of him because he knows how to play his role.
“He’s going to stick, even if he goes undrafted, because of his character and his work ethic,” Wade said ahead of senior day. "The whole Skylar is going to be a doctor thing is a nice story but Skylar is a really good basketball player and is going to have a long career. He’s going to make a lot of money playing basketball. Medical school’s going to be on hold. He’s going to make a great doctor and I’d let him operate on me but he’s going to have a 10-12 year NBA career first.”
The Tigers face an interesting predicament with Watford, who has until Aug. 3 to officially remove his name from the NBA draft if he decides to return to school. Guard Javonte Smart and Darius Days also have not officially removed their names from the draft after testing the waters for the first time.
With those decisions coming in the days ahead, Will Wade and company would would welcome all three back with open arms. The Tigers have a young roster with not a lot of experience playing with one another.
The return of veterans like Smart, Days and Watford would provide some veteran stability for a talented but raw roster in terms of experience. While it wouldn’t be surprising to see Watford leave for the pros, the uncertainty around whether there will be a “Summer League” or what the next NBA season will look like, might make it more prudent for him to return to Baton Rouge for another year of development.
