Past high Pac-12 picks in the NBA Draft have included NBA All-stars and Champions like Russell Westbrook, Kevin Love, Jason Terry, Mike Bibby and James Harden. How did this year’s draft compare?
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Only 16 players from the Pac-12 had been chosen in the first round of the draft since 2009, and six of the 16 were in the 2014 NBA draft. The tide seemed to be turning but this year the Pac-12 added only 4 more to the list making 20. The four distinguished Pac-12 players include Arizona’s Stanley Johnson at No. 8, Utah’s Delon Wright at No. 20, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson at No. 23 and UCLA’s Kevon Looney at No. 30.
Two of the four are Arizona Wildcats which shows what a great job Coach Sean Miller has done. A total of 40 Arizona Wildcats have had their names called in the draft since 1988 according to ArizonaWildcats.com, “The Wildcats’ 40 selections rank third nationally over that span, trailing only Kentucky (44) and Duke (41). Kansas and UCLA each have 36 selections to round out the top five nationally since 1988.”
Jun 25, 2015; Brooklyn, NY, USA; Stanley Johnson (Arizona) greets NBA commissioner Adam Silver after being selected as the number eight overall pick to the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
In total, nine Pac-12 players were drafted in 2014. This year that total dropped by two to seven total Pac-12 players drafted. The remaining three players drafted in the second round in order are as follows: No 34 Stanford’s Anthony Brown, No 43, Oregon’s Joseph Young the Pac-12 Player of the Year in 2015 going after both Stanley and Rondae, neither voted Pac-12 player of the year, and lastly No 46. UCLA’s Norman Powell.
In addition, as earlier reported, Arizona’s T.J. McConnell and Brandon Ashley both received NBA Summer League invitations as well. BREAKING NEWS: We just heard that Brandon has decided to play on the Atlanta Hawks Summer League team instead of the Lakers, must be because the Lakers Summer League team is stacked!
Will the one-and-done mentality continue with the new class of Pac-12 freshman? It’s too early to tell, but you would assume with all the hype around Cal’s Ivan Rabb, Ivan may be a one-and-done along with possibly Arizona’s Allonzo Trier depending on how their 2016 relative season’s go.
Let’s take a trip around Twitter to see what folks were tweeting about the NBA Draft. But first, let’s listen in as Stanley tells TMZ Sports what he is going to buy first with his new NBA paycheck.
And here are the Tweets.
Last 3 NBA Drafts:
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) June 27, 2015
2013: @solohill and Grant Jerrett
2014: @Double0AG and @iRocket3
2015: @iAmSJ and @RondaeHJ23 pic.twitter.com/08PvqRYaRU
Stanley Johnson - the sixth #APlayersProgram draft selection under @UACoachMiller! pic.twitter.com/OyGZY2iUbM
— Arizona Basketball (@ArizonaMBB) June 26, 2015
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson on when he heard about the trade: "I thought they were joking ... then they told me to take off the hat."
— Tim Bontemps (@TimBontemps) June 26, 2015
NEW: @RondaeHJ23 is easily the best-dressed at the 2015 #NBAdraft.
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) June 25, 2015
Story: http://t.co/MB2pYD6N1D pic.twitter.com/70Iablk7z9
2015 NBA Draft: Grading the Trades http://t.co/AevPjbMrCi pic.twitter.com/T7ra9AVH0c
— The Rotation (@TheRotationFS) June 26, 2015
Man it is truly an honor to be apart of the @BrooklynNets. I enjoyed myself every moment being there... #TimeToWork #BrooklynLetsDoIt #CHAP
— R.HollisJefferson (@IAmCHAP24) June 27, 2015
Shout out to @UofA alum, @iAmSJ, on getting drafted 8th to the @DetroitPistons! #BearDown
— Lance Briggs (@LanceBriggs) June 26, 2015
Arizona's @RondaeHJ23 having fun w/ the cameras at #NBADraft portrait photos! https://t.co/jx0D5LYDsl
— NBA Draft (@NBADraft) June 24, 2015
Arizona's @iAmSJ gets his #NBADraft portraits taken! #NBAStyle https://t.co/tmBoIHhVAj
— NBA Draft (@NBADraft) June 24, 2015
Okay Wildcats, go out there and show the world what you got!
BEARDOWN WILDCATS!
Next: Brandon Ashley and T.J. McConnell Land jobs in the NBA