The 12 most impactful NBA draft withdrawal choices for college

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• =”40″/ > Jeff BorzelloMay 22, 2025, 09:00 AM ET Close Basketball recruiting insider.
• Signed up with ESPN in 2014.
• Graduate of University of Delaware.The final essential date of

the guys’s college basketball offseason is approaching, with the NCAA requiring players who got in the NBA draft to withdraw their names by 11:59 p.m. ET on Wednesday if they want to return to college.A handful of notable players already have actually announced their choices, headlined by Boogie Fland, who attended the NBA draft integrate for 2 days before withdrawing and moving to Florida. Former Texas Tech forward Darrion Williams also revealed his withdrawal, becoming the very best readily available transfer in the portal since this writing.( More on that listed below.)There are still at least a lots stay-or-go choices that will materially affect the 2025-26 college basketball season, which we’ll run through below.But before we dive in, 2 disclaimers: First, we aren’t consisting of players who were not invited to the combine; it’s considered a telltale sign that when players with NCAA eligibility do not

get an invitation, they must return to college for another season. Oregon’s Nate Bittle falls under this category.We’re also not consisting of global prospects such as Neoklis Avdalas and Ben Henshall, both of whom could end up in the NCAA needs to they withdraw from the draft. They have till June 15 to

make their decisions.There are others who have yet to reveal– Texas A&M’s Mackenzie Mgbako and Penn State’s Yanic Konan Niederhauser come to mind– but here are the 12 most impactful stay-or-go decisions in the last week before the due date.

When Uzan went into the NBA draft following the Cougars ‘run to the nationwide title game, he was thought about

a second-round choice and likely to keep his name in the draft. However he struggled at the integrate in Chicago, completing with 9 total points on 3-for-12 shooting in the 2 scrimmages. He wasn’t in ESPN’s post-combine mock draft.While Kelvin Sampson got ready for Uzan’s departure by signing top-25 recruit Kingston Flemings and Creighton transfer Pop

Isaacs, the Cougars would have 3 starters from a group that won 35 games and reached the national championship if Uzan returns, putting them squarely in the conversation for preseason No. 1. Milos Uzan’s choice to remain in or withdrawal from

the NBA draft might affect Houston’s outlook for 2025-26. John E. Moore III/Getty Images Lendeborg not did anything to injure his draft standing at the integrate, getting in with a late-first-round projection and exiting in a similar position. He measured at 6-foot-10 in shoes with a 7-foot-4 wingspan and had 13 points and nine rebounds in the very first scrimmage. The UAB transfer did say he wishes to be prepared inside the top 20, though it’s uncertain if that means he requires a top-20 warranty to stay in the draft.Should Lendeborg make it to Ann Arbor, Dusty Might’s team would have a case for a preseason top-five ranking. The Wolverines got ready for his possible NBA choice by bringing in transfers Morez Johnson Jr. (Illinois )and Aday Mara (UCLA), but Lendeborg would give them a tested frontcourt anchor.

After Boogie Fland dedicated to the Gators, all eyes in Gainesville turned toward Condon. Needs to Condon go back to Florida, the “repeat” talk could formally start; if he decides to remain in the draft, coach Todd Golden has the frontcourt depth to make it work.Still, a starting five of Fland, Condon, Xaivian Lee, Thomas Haugh and Rueben Chinyelu would be elite for the protecting national champions.Condon decided not to

take part in the 5-on-5 scrimmage part of the combine, so there wasn’t a substantial opportunity for his stock to move dramatically in one instructions or the other. The 6-foot-11 forward slotted in at No. 38 in ESPN’s most current mock draft, and most of the intel surrounding Condon suggests he is more likely to go back to college. After beginning just one game as a freshman at Auburn, Pettiford had a genuine possibility to move the needle at the integrate– and he took full advantage. He had impressive athletic screening and was the very best player on the floor in his team’s first scrimmage, ending up with 23 points and eight helps. The efficiency didn’t earn him a first-round forecast, however, increasing only from No. 39 to No. 37 in between ESPN’s pre-combine and post-combine mock drafts.Fantastic opening game from Auburn’s Tahaad Pettiford at the NBA draft combine w/ 23

points, 8 assists, 1 turnover and some strong minutes defensively revealing his impulses and peskiness generating turnovers. Skill-level, feel for the game and explosiveness were on complete display pic.twitter.com/rp2E8N9zoM!.?.!— Jonathan Givony(@DraftExpress )May 14, 2025 Bruce Pearl will hope Pettiford go back to Auburn. Pettiford could open the season as a preseason All-American

, and he will be the main playmaker for a group with intriguing transfer additions Elyjah Freeman, Keyshawn Hall and Abdul Bashir on the wings. If Pettiford leaves, Auburn won’t have anybody from last season’s team and might be forced to depend on freshman Kaden Magwood to run the point. We’ve been under the impression that Oweh eventually would go back to Lexington, however he scored in double figures in each of the combine skirmishes and said he was”going through the procedure as if I’m all-in.” With that stated,

he still isn’t predicted to be picked in spite of the strong showing in Chicago.Mark Pope and Kentucky have included 10 brand-new players this offseason, but restoring a second-team All-SEC entertainer such as Oweh possibly would push the Wildcats into the preseason leading 10. Without him, Pope will have to rely more heavily on newcomers in first-class freshman

Jasper Johnson and transfers Denzel Aberdeen (Florida )and Kam Williams (Tulane). Initially, it appeared John Calipari and Arkansas were just waiting on Knox. When Calipari launched a social media video with a breakdown of the Razorbacks’ 2025-26 roster, he referenced Knox checking the NBA draft waters– and there was no mention of Thiero, who had actually gotten in the draft however showed no indication of a possible return.

While Knox was unsurprisingly 50-50 when inquired about his stay-or-go decision at the integrate, Thiero raised some eyebrows by stating”the door is not entirely shut “on a return.Thiero is No. 34 in ESPN’s mock draft, while Knox isn’t predicted to be drafted. Both returning to Fayetteville would offer Calipari amazing lineup versatility, and even just among them returning would likely be enough to put Arkansas in the preseason top 10. Editor’s Picks 1 Related Coward’s commitment to Duke pressed the Blue Devils comfortably inside the most current version of the Way-Too-Early Top 25, but that boost seems

as if it will be temporary. Regardless of playing in simply six games at Washington State after transferring from Eastern Washington, Coward’s stock has actually escalated over the past couple of weeks.At the integrate, he was determined with a 7-foot-2 1/4 wingspan and shot 72 %during the drills, connected for 6th best. He is ranked No. 30 in ESPN’s mock draft, and some NBA workers have actually suggested he may not even last that long. Coward said at the combine that”the info is definitely leaning towards remaining in the draft.

“Coach Jon Scheyer has actually pivoted quickly, nevertheless, with the Blue Devils emerging as the favorite to land FC Barcelona wing Dame Sarr. (Editor’s note: Dame Sarr committed to Duke shortly after this story was published.)With Boogie Fland and Darrion Williams withdrawing, there are now just 3 portalers who participated in the combine and have yet to reveal their

stay-or-go intents: Luis, Haggerty and Watkins.Luis and Haggerty are the leading two players in ESPN’s transfer rankings, with both gathering All-America honors last season. Watkins is the fourth-best offered transfer, however he was

the very best of the trio at the combine. Luis was inconsistent shooting the ball, while Haggerty had turnover and finishing issues despite the fact that his counting stats were impressive.Watkins had 23 points and 5 takes in the 2nd scrimmage, showing elite defensive capability. Following the integrate, Watkins is the only one forecasted to be drafted, rising all the way to No. 44 in ESPN’s most current mock.Should any of these three return to college, expect a top-level recruitment with programs fighting it out to land what could be the missing out on player for a deep run in the 2026 NCAA competition. Byrd certainly enhanced his stock at the integrate. One of the best defensive wings in college basketball last season, he checked in with a 6-foot-10 wingspan and shot the ball well, going 5-for-11 from 3 in the two skirmishes while acquiring steals and blocks at the other end of the flooring. He stated he was 50-50 on his stay-or-go decision at the combine, though, and he is ranked No. 43 in ESPN’s mock draft.Byrd’s return likely would solidify San Diego State as a preseason top-25 team and the Mountain West favorite. Brian Dutcher generates 3 transfers in addition to ESPN 100 freshman Reese Waters, who redshirted last season after balancing 9.6 points in 2023-24 and will be the team’s most tested offending player.