Gonzaga's Anton Watson, Washington State's Isaac Jones and Jaylen Wells invited to G League Elite Camp
May 4—Three local college standouts will try to improve their NBA draft stock next week at the G League Elite Camp in Chicago.
Gonzaga's Anton Watson and Washington State's Isaac Jones and Jaylen Wells were among the 44 players who received invitations to the camp, held for NBA hopefuls over two days (May 11-12 Saturday and next Sunday) more than a month before the draft.
Watson returns to the camp after participating last year before electing to return to school for a fifth and final year of eligibility. Fresh off leading WSU to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2008, Jones and Wells received invitations to the camp for the first time.
Jones, who played three junior college seasons before transferring to Idaho, moved across the Palouse to spend his final season of eligibility at WSU in 2023-24. Wells could return for another college season, but the All-Pac-12 honorable mention guard might not spend it at WSU after recently entering the transfer portal.
Wells later clarified he entered the transfer portal in order "to keep all my options open" but also said he is "100% committed to achieving my dreams and becoming a 2024 NBA draft selection."
Santa Clara's Adama Bal was the only other West Coast Conference player invited to the G League Elite Camp. Along with Jones and Wells, other Pac-12 players invited were Arizona's Caleb Love and KJ Lewis, Washington's Keion Brooks Jr. and Utah's Branden Carlson.
After two days of scrimmages at the G League Elite Camp, six standouts are chosen to participate in the more prominent NBA draft combine, which takes place May 12-19 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.
Gonzaga wing Michael Ajayi, who recently signed with the Bulldogs after transferring from Pepperdine, was the only local standout invited to the NBA draft combine.
Watson averaged a career-high 14.5 points in his final season at Gonzaga and made 41% of his 3-point shots — a significant improvement from the year prior, when the Gonzaga Prep product made 33% of his shots from behind the arc. Watson, who played a career-high 31.4 minutes per game, also set career highs in rebounds (7.1) and assists per game (2.6).
In his lone season at the high-major level, Jones led WSU in scoring (15.3 ppg) and rebounding (7.6 rpg) while making 57% of his shots from the field. Jones and Wells were two of the three Cougars to earn postseason All-Pac-12 recognition, along with first-team guard Myles Rice.
Jones was recently one of the top performers at the Portsmouth (Virginia) Invitational, a college all-star tournament for upperclassmen. The 6-foot-9 forward from Spanaway, Washington, was the event's third-leading scorer, averaging 18.4 points per game, and he ranked seventh in rebounding at 7.3 boards per game.
Wells, who transferred to WSU from Division II Sonoma (California) State, averaged 12.6 points to go with 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists. The 6-foot-8 wing from Sacramento, California, led the Cougars in 3-point percentage (41.7%) and free-throw percentage (81.4%).
