By Aidan Joly
As of Monday night, just over 48 hours remain until Wednesday night’s 11:59 p.m. deadline for potential NBA prospects to decide if they will stay in college or return to the pros.
Two key names dropped on Monday, with the news that Arkansas transfer Trevon Brazile and Florida’s Walter Clayton both will forego turning pro and will return to the college ranks for another season.
That being said, many big names still loom. Here are 14 of the most critical, listed in no particular order.
Johnny Furphy
Furphy has risen from low- to mid-major prospect to a potential one-and-done in the span of a year, a very impressive feat. He averaged 9.0 points per game for Kansas as a freshman while earning 19 starts and turned into one of the better wings in the country in the latter parts of the season. He is projected to go in the late first round, so it would be hard for him to turn down that money. Kansas still does have a scholarship open for him, but it is tough to see him returning to Lawrence.
Caleb Love
Love is the reigning (and final for now) Pac-12 player of the year after averaging 18.0 points per game for Arizona in 2023-24. He would likely be a preseason All-American if he does decide to come back to Arizona and would get a great NIL deal. On the flip side of that, he has done just about everything there is to do in college basketball and would likely end up getting picked should be opt to go pro. It’s an interesting call.
Mark Sears
If Sears does come back to Alabama for another season, it is fair to make an argument that the Crimson Tide could be the preseason No. 1 in the AP poll. He averaged 21.5 points per game and shot 43.6% from behind the three-point line. He missed most of the combine with an injury and is not on a ton of draft boards but could end up going in the second round. This is one that could really go either way in the next 48 hours.
Jaylen Wells
Wells was very solid in his first season of Division I basketball at Washington State, averaging 12.6 points per game and making 41.7% of his three-pointers. He also played well as an on-ball defender and has improved every season, something that he would be sure to do as a pro. He is currently projected as a second round pick. It would not be shocking to see him come back to school for another year to try to improve his draft stock.
JT Toppin
Toppin’s candidacy to be a draft pick is certainly interesting. He was the Mountain West freshman of the year out of New Mexico after averaging 12.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game but did so inefficiently at times, including only shooting 34.4% from three and only going 56.5% from the free throw line. He did do well in the combine, but it is clear that his game needs some fine-tuning to it. Perhaps a return to college ball would be wise.
Hunter Sallis
After two average seasons at Gonzaga, Sallis burst onto the scene with Wake Forest in 2023-24, averaging 18.0 points, 4.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. He also shot 40.5% from three. In doing all of this, he nearly willed Wake Forest to the NCAA tournament on his own, and a return to Winston-Salem feels like Wake’s best chance of making the tournament in 2025. He is currently projected as a late first or early second round pick. It feels very 50-50 whether he will stay in the draft or come back to Wake.
Alex Karaban
Karaban is now a tw0-time national champion at UConn in two seasons of college basketball. He took on a larger role in 2023-24, averaging 13.3 points and grabbing 5.1 rebounds per contest. He’s also one of the smarter players you’ll see in the college ranks, too. He is currently projected as a second round pick, and it does feel like it might be in his best interest to come back and try to improve on his draft stock to move up to the first round in a year.
Coleman Hawkins
This feels like one of the better bets as a guy who will stay in the draft, but you never know. Hawkins averaged 12.1 points and 6.1 rebounds per game at Illinois in 2023-24. The 6-foot-10 forward is a very physical player, but one of those types who also has a good offensive game. He is someone who could command major NIL dollars if he comes back to college, and compared to what a second round pick would make, that could very well be the difference.
Jaxson Robinson
Robinson is a solid 6-foot-7 winger who averaged 14.2 points per game at BYU this past season. A few mocks here and there have him pegged as a second round pick. It would likely make much more sense for him to stay in college, though, as he could get a very good NIL package if he ends up following Mark Pope to Kentucky and plays there in 2024-25. He has been linked to the Wildcats, for obvious reasons.
Jamir Watkins
Watkins had a fantastic season at Florida State after transferring in from VCU, averaging 15.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game for the Seminoles in 2023-24. He initially declared for the draft early but later entered the transfer portal, making it seem more likely that he will return to college basketball for another season, especially so that he has fallen down some boards in recent weeks. He is someone who will be in high demand should he return.
Jarin Stevenson
Stevenson had a solid freshman year at Alabama to get his collegiate career started, averaging 5.3 points per game while earning five starts along the way. However, this seems as much more of a “test the waters and get evaluated” type of deal for him, as he has an outside chance of being a second round pick and getting a call does not seem overly likely. Assuming he does return to college, he will be a major breakout candidate.
Payton Sandfort
By many accounts Sandfort struggled at the combine, but has a very good sample size to show for at Iowa. He averaged 16.4 points per game for the Hawkeyes and shot 37.9% from three in over seven attempts per game. Right now, signs seem to point to a return to Iowa, where he will likely end up being a big part of the Hawkeyes’ plans in 2024-25.
Arthur Kaluma
Kaluma had a solid season at Kansas State after transferring in from Creighton, averaging 14.4 points and 7.0 rebounds per game. He is definitely a player who it makes sense for him to return to college basketball and try to move up draft boards, since many of them are not super high on him. He should be able to make some decent NIL money.
Cam Christie
Christie had a great freshman season at Minnesota, averaging 11.3 points per game while shooting 39.1% from three. Right now, he probably ranks as something of an underrated prospect who right now is projected in the second round. He stands at 6-foot-6 and has made a quick ascent in the past year, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him officially turn pro. It does feel like one that could go either way.
AJ Hoops 