Get ready to see plenty of Zion Williamson at the NBA draft
As just about everyone in the basketball world was expecting, Zion Williamson — as well as eight other top prospects — has been invited to the green room of the 2019 NBA draft, according to ESPN.
If the 2019 draft lottery was any evidence, that means we should be ready for a draft broadcast in which Williamson is the beginning and end of any discussion and ESPN has a camera trained on the Duke power forward at all times.
This is the second exciting invitation Williamson has picked up this week, as he also reportedly scored a prestigious invite to Team USA’s camp for the FIBA World Cup in China.
Joining Williamson in the green room will be two of his Duke teammates in R.J. Barrett and Cam Reddish, as well as at least one rival in North Carolina’s Coby White. Here’s the full list of players, via ESPN:
Zion Williamson, Duke
Ja Morant, Murray State
RJ Barrett, Duke
Darius Garland, Vanderbilt
De'Andre Hunter, Virginia
Jarrett Culver, Texas Tech
Coby White, North Carolina
Cam Reddish, Duke
Jaxson Hayes, Texas
If you’re wondering at all why those nine players were selected, look no further than Yahoo Sports’ most recent NBA mock draft. All nine players are projected to be selected in the top 10, along with Kentucky’s P.J. Washington at No. 9.
These green-room invitations are reportedly made after consulting with several teams’ general managers to gauge each player’s draft stock, as no one wants to see a player squirming on camera into the second round. Therefore, you can imagine the buzz among teams around those nine players is similar to the mock drafts.
The NBA is reportedly hoping for 20 players in the green room, and plans to send out 11 more invitations in the near future depending on who accepts the first nine invitations. ESPN reports that French forward Sekou Doumbouya, who has also received top-10 buzz, is among those expected to receive an invitation.
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