Early Withdrawals: Winners and Losers

2009 Early Entry List/Including Withdrawals


Pardon me for sounding like Dick Vitale, but the June 15th deadline to withdraw from the NBA Draft was a great day for college basketball, baby!

I'm excited enough to reenact Rodney Dangerfield's triple lindy from the movie Back to School.

Most players who were on the fence opted to return to school, and only a few genuinely made the mistake of declaring for the draft without being ready. Here’s a breakdown of the deadline decisions – both good and bad:

Who Got It Right

Jodie Meeks, Kentucky – Stayed in Draft

It’s not often that a projected second-round pick makes the correct decision by remaining in the draft, but Meeks’ situation is unique. Meeks averaged 23.7 points per game, connected on 90.2 percent of his free throw attempts and scored the fifth-most points in college basketball last season. Realistically, Meeks’ draft stock can’t get much higher. If he returned to Kentucky for his senior season, there’s a good chance he would have taken a backseat to John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and the rest of the Wildcats’ dynamite freshman class. Sure, Meeks would have competed for a National Championship, but from an individual standpoint, especially considering this draft is significantly weaker than the projected 2010 NBA Draft, he made the right decision. Despite his lack of size (6-foot-4), you can’t argue with his production. Meeks has a shot to get into the second round, but may ultimately wind up in Europe.

Damion James, Texas – Returned to school

Athletically, the 6-foot-7, 222-pound James is more than ready for the NBA. But his offensive skills could certainly use some polishing. Now that leading scorer A.J. Abrams (16.3 points per game) has graduated, James will become the Longhorns No. 1 option, which should increase his stock in 2010.

	Gani Lawal

Gani Lawal, Georgia Tech – Returned to school

Lawal had a breakout year as a sophomore as he more-than-doubled his scoring average and nearly tripled his rebounding numbers. That still didn’t guarantee him a spot in the first round, however. Returning for one (or maybe two) years will pay off in the longrun for Lawal.

Jeff Teague, Wake Forest – Stayed in draft

The 6-foot-2 Teague is seen by many as a lock for the lottery and a potential top ten pick. Even if he came back to Wake Forest for another season, Teague’s draft stock wouldn’t have significantly improved. This one was a no brainer for him.

Greivis Vasquez, Maryland – Returned to school

Vasquez, a 6-foot-6 point guard who averaged 17.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and five assists per game, certainly has NBA potential. His combination of size and play-making ability gives him a dimension that most college point guards don’t have. Vasquez was unable to secure a first-round promise, however, so pulling out of the draft was the correct decision. If he has another productive season at Maryland, Vasquez has a good chance to improve his stock next year.

Luke Harangody, Notre Dame – Returned to school

Harangody received some positive feedback after going through the pre-draft process. He excelled at the NBA Draft combine and shot the ball well during workouts, but ultimately, Harangody was still a second-round pick. Another year at Notre Dame gives him the chance to break some Big East records, graduate and continue to defy the physics of the game of basketball.

Ater Majok, UConn – Returned to school

Majok, the No. 13 recruit in 2008 (according to Rivals.com), made his name available despite not playing a single game for the Huskies last season due to eligibility issues. The 6-foot-10 forward is a talented face-up scorer, but was likely to go undrafted. Majok was implicated in the late-March recruiting scandal that involved former UConn guard Nate Miles, so he may go overseas instead of returning to college. Either way, he was not ready for the NBA and was wise to withdraw his name.

Austin Daye, Gonzaga – Stayed in draft

Many would likely have him on the other side of the fence, but Daye may never be the player some still envision him becoming. His window of opportunity is closing quickly, so this may be his one chance to get into the first round. If Daye stayed at Gonzaga, he would have been playing 35 minutes per game and handling the bulk of the offensive load for the Zags. If he struggled to step into the role of team leader, it would have knocked him out of first round consideration. Daye will be lucky to get 35 minutes all season in the NBA next year. The team that drafts him – likely somewhere in late first, early second round – will immediately send him to the weight room, where he will remain for at least two years. But if he lands in the first round, he'll have the last laugh.

Who Got It Wrong

Patrick Patterson, Kentucky – Returned to school

It's tough to fault a kid for returning to school. And Patterson obviously has work left to do on his game, particularly adding range to his j. He goes back to a great situation with John Wall running the team and a potential national championship within reach. However, an insurance policy only covers a player if their career ends. For an undersized power forward, Patterson might have been best advised to take the money and run with a weak class of power forwards (after Blake and Hill) in this year's draft. Patterson dominated Hansbrough when the two squared off and likely would have gone above him.

Chinemelu Elonu, Texas A&M – Stayed in draft

This was perhaps the biggest shocker of the June 15 withdrawal deadline. Elonu, an athletic 6-foot-10 center, is not nearly skilled enough for the NBA. Would one more year at A&M have changed that? Probably not, but it would have given him the opportunity to improve his game and earn a college degree for free. Elonu, who averaged 9.8 points and 7.3 rebounds last season, probably has a future overseas. Maybe he gets drafted, but an additional year for this late bloomer could have made all the difference in a potential NBA career.

Shawn Taggart, Memphis – Stayed in draft

Taggart decided to jump ship amid all the turmoil and NCAA investigations surrounding the Memphis program. Without John Calipari, Tyreke Evans, Robert Dozier, Antonio Anderson and most of their recruits, the Tigers weren’t looking at a successful 2009-2010 campaign. Taggart will be lucky to be a late-second round pick if he’s drafted at all. Returning to Memphis would have given him another year to work on his game and body and increase his draft chances.

Dar Tucker, DePaul – Stayed in draft

Tucker is a bigtime athlete who regularly makes highlight worthy dunks. Unfortunately his game is still too raw to contribute at the NBA level. He's not polished enough to be seen as a guy that can overcome his size disadvantage and would have benefitted by continuing to progress at the college level. But as they say, college isn't for everyone. And this way, Tucker can start to get paid to play the game he loves - likely in Europe.