[Anton123Participant]

So I’ve been thinking that every year many American players who are older than the age of international automatic eligibility are drafted in the late first or in the second rounds. 

For example, this year Semi Ojeleye, Wesley Iwundu, Damyean Dotson, and Frank Mason are all projected to be drafted and were born in 1994; if they were international prospects, they would’ve automatically declared for last year’s draft and would’ve likely gone undrafted (or drafted much lower). Guys like Jaron Blossomgame and Chris Boucher would’ve been part of the 2015 draft and would’ve had no chance to hear their name called. 

I was wondering: if international players became auto-eligible a year or two later, would we see more non-NCAA players drafted in the mid to late second round? Some guys like Youssoufa Fall, Rolands Smith, Nedim Buza, Illmane Diop will probably not get drafted and might’ve had a better chance in 2018.

I know this is not a big deal, undrafted players are free to sign with whomever they want and might sometimes be even better off than those who were drafted in the late second round. International players are also easier to stash overseas, so teams are much more patient with them and draft for potential rather than immediate production. Still, I wanted to hear your thoughts on the matter. 

[OhCanada-Participant]

 I think the reason alot of international players dont get picked up is because of contract situations and not showing much desire to play in North America.

[Anton123Participant]

They often get signed at the age of 23-25 when their first long contracts expire (e.g. Nicolas Brussino or Patricio Garino who were both born in 1993 and could’ve been a draft pick in 2016 (Brussino) and 2017 (Garino) if they had been NCAA players). Giving international prospects more time would allow them to delcare once their contract is up.

[Author]

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