Serbian-Croatian forward
Misko Raznatovic tells Jonathan Givony of ESPN (Twitter link).
Nakic, who will turn 20 next month, has spent the 2020/21 season playing for BC Oostende in Belgium. According to Givony, the 6’8″ wing has averaged 10 points in 18 minutes per contest, while knocking down an impressive 58% of his three-point attempts. Nakic, who will have until July 19 to decide whether to remain in the draft or withdraw, is ranked 84th overall on ESPN’s big board for 2021.
Here are a few more draft-related notes:
Another Raznatovic client is declaring for the draft, according to Givony, who tweets that 6’9″ Croatian wing
Boris Tisma has entered the draft pool. Tisma, 19, played for Real Betis in the Spanish League this season, though he saw limited action.
Kofi Cockburn staying in NBA Draft
It doesn’t look like the Illini will get their second team All-American back for another season.
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According to multiple reports, Kofi Cockburn will not be returning for another year in Champaign.
The Illini big man declared for the NBA Draft on April 18, but signed with a NCAA-approved agent and maintained his amateur status. After testing the waters, sources said Cockburn decided to stick in the draft.
Sources indicate that All-Big Ten Kofi Cockburn @kxng alpha will not be returning to Illinois. Cockburn, the consensus 2nd-team All-American C, will remain in the 2021 NBA Draft. #Illinihttps://t.co/rQojpqfxki ℯ ℯ (@Andrew Slater) May 27, 2021
The Illinois Fighting Illini have a huge hole in production to fill with the departure of Kofi Cockburn heading into next season. Illini fans as a result should be happy to see UMass transfer Tre.
Offseason evaluation: Julius Marble II brought the physicality but struggled with fouls
Today 6:01 AM
Michigan State forward Julius Marble II (34) celebrates with forward Gabe Brown (44) after Bryn made a 3-pointer in the second half of their college basketball game against Detroit Mercy at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, on Friday, December 4, 2020. Michigan State won the game, 83-76. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.com
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EAST LANSING – Michigan State’s topsy-turvy season can be encapsulated, in a way, by looking at Julius Marble’s season.
The Spartans forward had a breakout game in early December on the team’s biggest stage of the non-conference season and looked poised for a strong year. Then, his play lagged toward the middle portion of the season, when his team was struggling as well. But he picked it up toward the end of the season, when he earned a starting role and helped the Spartans get to the NCAA Tournament.
Representation of overall theme: Illinois’ best football season in the last 50 years ended with a 44-9 loss to an unranked team.
Fans of the Illinois Fighting Illini will tell you that it’s hard to hate Illinois given how bad they are at football. This is nonsense. Hating Illinois is very easy for three reasons:
Every time Illinois is the class of the B1G in a major sport, it is a sure sign that the conference sucks and Illinois is about to get eviscerated.
Every time Illinois tries out the “don’t sleep on us, we’re a darkhorse ready to make some noise” shtick, you can be sure there’s a 2x4 ready to make rapid contact with their forehead.