Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Report: Stanford’s KZ Okpala staying in 2019 NBA Draft

Darius McNeill, KZ Okpala

Stanford’s KZ Okpala, right, looks to shoot against California’s Darius McNeill in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Sunday, Feb. 3, 2019, in Berkeley, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

AP

The NCAA’s deadline for players to withdraw from the 2019 NBA draft and retain college eligibility passed last night. So, though the NBA allows more time, effectively every American-college player has made his decision.

That includes Stanford sophomore KZ Okpala.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports:

It’s tough to read Okpala draft range. I wouldn’t be surprised if he sneaks into the lottery. I wouldn’t be surprised if he goes late in the first round. I wouldn’t even be totally shocked if he slips into the second round.

Okpala is a versatile forward. He’s 6-foot-10 with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, and he moves well. That’s the rough outline of a player every team wants.

He’s also inconsistent. And I don’t mean inconsistent as a euphemism for bad. I mean inconsistent. At times, he looks very good as a shooter, as a ball-handler, as a passer, as a defender. At other times, he underwhelms in each of those skills.

There are plenty of avenues for Okpala to become a productive NBA player – maybe even a star in the unlikely event he puts everything together. But there’s also a chance he doesn’t find a niche to stick in the league.