The Big Ten conference produced six invitees for the 2024 NBA draft combine, set to take place from May 12-19.
Those players: Purdue’s Zach Edey, Minnesota’s Cam Christie, Indiana’s Kel’el Ware, Iowa’s Payton Sandfort and Illinois’ Coleman Hawkins and Terrance Shannon Jr.
Wisconsin unsurprisingly did not see any players invited. NBA hopefuls A.J. Storr and Chucky Hepburn elected to enter the transfer portal instead of testing the NBA waters.
Badgers fans hope some players earn future invitations, including rising star John Blackwell, top 2024 point guard Daniel Freitag and transfer forward Xavier Amos.
The invited athletes will perform several on-court skill drills and compete in games during the seven-day event before a crowd well-stocked with scouts and coaches. It will take place at the Wintrust Arena and the Marriott Marquis in Chicago, Illinois. Strength, power, speed, agility and body size are specifically measured in events such as the bench press, lane agility drills, vertical jump and reactive sprints.
Per the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement, all selected players are required to attend and engage in the draft combine.
From the 14 Big Ten teams in 2023-24, six athletes received invites.
The list for the 2024 NBA Draft Combine. pic.twitter.com/cjxi8Ku6L2
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) May 3, 2024
From UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington, the four Big Ten newcomers in 2024-25, four athletes received invites, including Bronny James.