Report: Thomas Bryant To Declare For NBA Draft, Won't Hire Agent
Jordan Wells / TheHoosier.com
According to a report from ESPN's Jeff Goodman, IU sophomore center Thomas Bryant will declare for the NBA Draft but won't hire an agent. Going through the process allows Bryant to retain his NCAA eligibility and return to school if he chooses.
Indiana sophomore big man Thomas Bryant will declare for the NBA Draft, but will NOT hire an agent, source told... https://t.co/iCRgozq7Ix
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) April 11, 2017
A 6-foot-10, 255-pound center, Bryant averaged 12.6 points and a team-high 6.6 rebounds in 28.1 minutes per game while starting in all 34 of IU's games this season. In addition to increased his scoring average by 0.7 points and rebounding average by 0.8 boards, he also blocked a team-high 52 shots while finishing with 26 steals en route to Third Team All-Big Ten honors.
Bryant also opted to test the NBA Draft waters after last season before ultimately choosing to return to school, but the decision to comeback appears to have had an adverse affect on his draft stock.
DraftExpress.com ranks Bryant the No. 43 overall prospect in this year's draft class, projecting him to get selected in the second round (No. 41 overall) by the Charlotte Hornets as of April 10. Projected as a Top 10 pick after his freshman season, Bryant is trending toward a late second round pick according to the website's historical projections.
NBADraft.net analyst Aran Smith slots Bryant as the No. 84 overall prospect, 31 spots lower than his previous ranking, as of April 5. The outlet doesn't expect Bryant to be chosen in this year's draft.
ESPN's Chad Ford pegged Bryant 57th in his Top 100 player rankings ($) for this summer's draft as of April 4. Ford's mock draft only projects the first round.
Since Bryant has reportedly chosen not to hire an agent, he has until May 23 to withdraw his name from consideration and return to school.
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