While there has been chatter about Hunter Dickinson leaving the Kansas basketball program to go pro, the most likely departure for the NBA Draft is freshman wing Johnny Furphy. All-Big 12 First Team selection Kevin McCullar also garnered NBA attention with his breakout offensive season after deciding to pull his name out of the draft pool last year.
There was a time when Furphy and McCullar were projected near the lottery in most mock drafts. However, times have changed recently, with both of them falling closer to the second round in many recent mock drafts. Could these two Jayhawks hear their names called later than some initially expected?
Kevin McCullar, Johnny Furphy dropping in latest NBA Mock Drafts
There have been an array of recent mock drafts that have McCullar and Furphy in the late stages of the first round, or in some cases, even the second round. Here are some examples from mock drafts within the past week.
- Kevin McCullar: No. 26 overall pick to Milwaukee Bucks (NBA Draft Room)
- Johnny Furphy: No. 29 overall pick to Minnesota Timberwolves (Bleacher Report)
- Kevin McCullar: No. 29 overall pick to Minnesota Timberwolves (Kyle Boone, CBS Sports)
- Kevin McCullar: No. 29 overall pick to Utah Jazz (David Cobb, CBS Sports)
- Kevin McCullar: No. 32 overall pick to Minnesota Timberwolves (NBADraft.net)
- Johnny Furphy: No. 37 overall pick to Minnesota Timberwolves (The Ringer)
McCullar's draft stock falling might be correlated to the late-season knee injury he suffered that forced him to miss the Big 12 and NCAA Tournament. Meanwhile, Furphy's fall could be attributed to his shooting slump toward the end of conference play.
Of course, there are still some mock drafts with the two players being selected relatively high, as early as the top 20. But the consensus has certainly changed over the past few months.
McCullar already graduated and has run out of college eligibility. On the other hand, Furphy still has a decision to make to return to school or stay in the draft. These recent mock drafts could change the young Australian's mind if professional scouts are unsure about how he projects at the next level.