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It seemed a bit unusual that we made it all the way to May without any kind of sign as to what Michigan basketball forward Franz Wagner intended to do regarding his future, but on May 4, it became crystal clear.
Having penned a long letter — a goodbye — to Michigan fans in The Player’s Tribune, Wagner announced that he is departing for the NBA draft. According to a release by the school, Wagner will hire an agent, thus making him ineligible to return to Ann Arbor and continue his career.
Wagner has been widely mocked as a mid-first-round pick in the upcoming NBA draft.
Full release:
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — University of Michigan men’s basketball sophomore guard/forward Franz Wagner announced today (Tuesday, May 4) he will forgo his final two years of eligibility and submit the necessary paperwork to declare for early entry into the 2021 National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft. Wagner intends to hire an agent.
Berlin, Germany native Wagner becomes the first U-M underclassman to declare for the NBA Draft since Jordan Poole (1st round, 28th overall pick to Golden State) and Ignas Brazdeikis (2nd round, 47th to New York) left early following the 2018-19 season.
Wagner is the second in his family to leave the Wolverines after his sophomore season. Wagner’s brother, Moritz, helped U-M reach the 2018 Final Four and national title game before leaving early for the NBA Draft. In the 2018 NBA Draft, the elder Wagner was selected in the first round by the Los Angeles Lakers (25th pick) and has had stops with the Lakers, Washington Wizards and Boston Celtics before his current spot on the Orlando Magic.
In his two seasons with the Wolverines, Wagner started 55 consecutive games after missing the first four games of his career due to a wrist injury. He finishes with 661 points (12.0 ppg), 334 rebounds (6.1 rpg), 33 double-figure scoring games (six 20+) and four double-doubles. Despite the 2019-20 postseason getting canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Wagner closes with a 42-17 career record.
In 2020-21, Wagner helped the Maize and Blue to a 23-5 record and the program’s 15th Big Ten regular-season title with a 14-3 record. The All-Big Ten second teamer had a career season as he averaged 12.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists, led U-M with 35 steals, and was second with 29 blocks. U-M earned the No. 1 seed for the Big Ten Tournament for the first in seven years and second all-time and was a No. 1 seed (East Region) in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 28 years and third all-time.
As a freshman, Wagner became the 10th Wolverine to earn a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman team and was awarded Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors three times. He averaged 11.6 points and 5.6 rebounds, as he produced 17 double-figure scoring games with two 20+ including a career-high 22 at Purdue (Jan. 22). He led U-M with 34 steals and was second with 41 three-pointers.
2021 NBA Draft Key Dates
• NBA Draft: Thursday, July 29, beginning at 8 p.m.The first round will be televised by ESPN and ABC, and the second round will air on ESPN.
• NBA Early Entry Application and Withdrawal Deadlines: The deadline for an early entry player to apply is Sunday, May 30, at 11:59 p.m., and the deadline for an early entry player to withdraw is Monday, July 19, at 5 p.m.
• NBA Draft Combine: Monday through Sunday, June 21-27. ESPN will televise with coverage featuring five-on-five games and strength and agility testing.
• NBA Draft Lottery: Tuesday, June 22, airing on ESPN at 8:30 p.m.
Michigan NBA Draft Notes
• Michigan has had 61 total players selected in the NBA Draft.
• Michigan has had 28 total first-round selections, with 19 since 1988.
• Michigan has six top-five selections, including two No. 1 picks: Cazzie Russell (1966, No. 1 by New York Knicks) and Chris Webber (1993, No. 1 by Orlando Magic)
• Michigan has 11 NBA draft selections since 2011.
• Michigan has eight NBA first-round selections since 2013:
- Trey Burke, 2013: Minnesota Timberwolves (1st, No. 9)
- Tim Hardaway Jr., 2013: New York Knicks (1st, No. 24)
- Nik Stauskas, 2014: Sacramento Kings (1st, No. 8)
- Mitch McGary, 2014: Oklahoma City Thunder (1st, No. 21)
- Caris LeVert, 2016: Brooklyn Nets (1st, No. 20)
- D.J. Wilson, 2017: Milwaukee Bucks (1st, No. 17)
- Moritz Wagner, 2018: Los Angeles Lakers (1st, No. 25)
- Jordan Poole, 2019: Golden State Warriors (1st, No. 28)