NBA Draft 2014: Kristaps Porzingis withdraws from draft
There are many who believe Latvian power forward Kristaps Porzingis has a promise to be selected in the first round.
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In early June, a report surfaced that it was the Oklahoma City Thunder who told Porzingis they would be selecting him with one of their two first round picks, either the 21st-overall or 29th-overall selection.
Perhaps that rumor was not true.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports, Porzingis has withdrawn from the draft.
"In somewhat of a surprise, 7-foot Kristaps Porzingis has pulled out of this month’s NBA draft and will return to Europe for the next year, his agent Andy Miller told Yahoo Sports on Sunday night.Porzingis, 18, had a chance to be a top-20 pick in the draft, but believes he can move even higher in the 2015 draft. He’s a versatile and offensively gifted forward."
It was a bit of a surprise when Porzingis decided to enter the draft because he will only be turning 19 next month and although he is talented, he is a very raw prospect, which is why many believed Porzingis would be better served playing in Europe for another year or two.
Although the Thunder could have used one of their picks on Porzingis and stashed him in Europe for a year or two – and they still may do that with another foreign prospect – they are a team legitimately contending for a title and will likely look for an instant contribution from at least one of their picks.
Last season, Porzingis averaged 6.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.0 blocks in 14.5 minutes per game this season for Cajasol Banca Civica this season.