Former Tar Heel Henri Veesaar Addresses NBA Draft Slide

The 2026 NBA Draft concluded earlier this week, and there were plenty of storylines that emerged from the hectic two-day event.

One of those storylines was former North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar's precipitous slip in the second round. The 6-foot-11, 227-pound center came off the board at No. 52 overall to the Atlanta Hawks. During his introductory press conference this week, Veesaar spoke on the importance of family and what he is looking forward to most in Atlanta.

Veesaar's Thoughts

Mar 19, 2026; Greenville, SC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) bites his jersey against the VCU Rams in the second half of a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

"I feel like for me just the people around me," Veesaar said. "I know they have my back, and just diving into basketball, enjoying the process of getting better. Not being result oriented all of the time, but just seeing the progress of working out, and constantly getting better, and trying to improve myself."

"For me it was just being able to spend time with my family and the people around me, and just knowing that I come from a small country, and being able to see that the hard work is paying off, and being able to finally get there at the NBA level is a special moment," Veesaar continued.

Jun 17, 2026; Chicago, Il, USA; New Chicago Bulls head coach Tiago Splitter speaks during a press conference at Advocate Center. Mandatory Credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

"You just kind of feel that all of the blood, sweat, and tears paid off finally. You can see that the steps you are taking are moving the right way. Just being at a program that practices player development is huge. Seeing that you have a lot of steps to take in a career always, and having the support staff that they have is incredible."

Mar 19, 2026; Greenville, SC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) reacts after losing to the VCU Rams in overtime of a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

"I feel like having a small tight circle is really important," Veesaar elaborated. "Being able to have those people around you that want you to truly succeed and make you better every day is really important, because sometimes you might have bad days, but those people are going to keep pushing you and making you go there where you wouldn't go by yourself. So having those people around you is extremely important."

Several teams were vying for Veesaar's services as the second round progressed, but Atlanta finally stopped the fall, trading with the Los Angeles Clippers. Veesaar explained his fit with the Hawks.

Mar 19, 2026; Greenville, SC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) rebounds the ball against VCU Rams forward Lazar Djokovic (17) in the first half of a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

"I'm just happy to be on a team that plays fast, and just kind of being able to create player movement by player/ball movement," Veesaar said. " Being able to just be there and learn from all of these great people on the team, veterans, and just being able to enjoy the process."

Overall Takeaways

Mar 12, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) shoots in the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Obviously, the narrative surrounding Veesaar is that he turned more than $5 million in NIL money, which looks like a major mistake. It is easy to think that, from my perspective, Veesaar was on the doorstep of fulfilling his dream of being drafted into the NBA.

However, the writing was on the wall that this was bound to happen. For one, this was one of the deepest and most talented draft classes in recent memory, which automatically pushed Veesaar farther down the board.

North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) shoots the ball past VCU Rams forward Lazar Djokovic (17) Thursday, March 19, 2026, during the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament first round game at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. | Alex Martin/Greenville News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The former Arizona and North Carolina center should have waited one more year before declaring for the draft, as he would be a lock to be a first-round pick in 2027, assuming he was capable of replicating his performance from last season. Nevertheless, Veesaar is a Hawk, and he will have his work cut out for him to earn sufficient minutes.

Veesaar's development and impact for Atlanta will be magnified because he rejected lucrative offers from multiple college programs to declare for the NBA draft. To make matters worse, the former North Carolina center's performance at the scouting combine last month was not inspiring. In fact, it lowered Veesaar's stock among league executives and scouts.

Slipping from a late first-round pick to a second-round prospect should have been a red flag for Veesaar's camp. His agents should have realized this and advised him to remove his name from consideration and revisit the offers on the table from several programs, including North Carolina. Instead, we all know what happened, and as a result, Veesaar lost a ton of money and will now have to work for his spot in the rotation.

All in all, this is a great example for college players moving forward: taking the guaranteed money is the right choice if they are not a lock to be a first-round pick.

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