Arizona guard Jaden Bradley made a slightly surprising appearance on the official NBA Draft early entry list Tuesday, indicating he will seek scouts' feedback before deciding whether or not to return for a junior season at Arizona.
Bradley has made no public announcement that he has entered the draft and is still expected to return to UA. But putting his name on the NBA's list means he is eligible to work out for teams and attend the G League Elite Camp or NBA Combine if he is invited.
Former UA wing Pelle Larsson made a similar move last spring, with his name included on the list before he turned down an invitation to the G League Elite Camp and withdrew from the draft.
Larsson is expected to leave for certain this spring, while UA guards Caleb Love and KJ Lewis — along with transferring forward Trey Townsend — have left open the option of returning.
People are also reading…
Larsson, Lewis and Townsend were named on the NBA early entry list (linked below this story). Love's name was not included on the early entry list, reportedly because of a clerical error.
Players have until May 29, or 10 days after the Combine is over, to withdraw if they wish to return to college under NCAA rules.
As a sophomore last season, Bradley averaged 20.2 minutes a game off the bench while playing both guard spots. Excelling especially toward the end of the season, Bradley averaged 7.0 points and 2.4 rebounds a game and drew praise for his defense, ballhandling and efficient shooting.
With point guard Kylan Boswell having transferred to Illinois, Bradley is expected to take over the Wildcats' starting point guard role next season.
Bruce Pascoe is a veteran Arizona Daily Star sports reporter covering University of Arizona basketball. He has traveled with the team all the way to Israel and has been reporting at the Star since the late 90’s. Bruce worked at the Las Vegas Review-Journal prior to the Star and he graduated from Northwestern University. David and Bruce talk about the highlights of covering basketball and sports in a college town, the difficulties of the beat, Bruce’s love for sports and where that came from and how his reporting impacts the community.
Contact sports reporter Bruce Pascoe at bpascoe@tucson.com. On X(Twitter): @brucepascoe
Bruce Pascoe
Reporter
