Nebraska basketball: Two Huskers make appearance in 2019 mock draft
Sounds like the Nebraska basketball team is gonna have some entries in the NBA next year.
Isaiah Roby, James Palmer Jr. and Isaac Copeland are all looking at the 2018 NBA Draft. By most accounts, the Nebraska basketball players aren’t getting drafted this year.
When it comes to next season, it appears at least two players have a real shot of making the pros. ESPN released an early 2019 NBA mock draft and not one, but two Nebrasketball stars are included.
Interestingly enough, the mock draft has Roby listed as a hotter prospect than Palmer. Roby, who just finished his sophomore season is projected to go 35th overall to the Orlando Magic.
Palmer, on the other hand, is said to be going to the Sacramento Kings and 10 picks later. Even more interesting that these two players are going relatively early in the draft, is that it is the first time in the modern era that two Cornhuskers have gone in the same draft.
The mock is quite the statement on the improvement in talent the Huskers have had the last few years. If Tim Miles wants to keep his job moving forward, he’s going to need to keep bringing that kind of talent into town.
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When assistant coach Kenya Hunter left, the ability to bring that talent took a bit of a hit. The best recruit the Huskers have hauled in over the last few years in Xavier Johnson has already decided he wants to look around.
While Johnson has said he’s still going to consider the Huskers, it seems unlikely that’s a union that is going to be fixed anytime soon. That mock draft also, of course, relies heavily on Roby and Palmer returning next season.
There’s certainly no guarantee that is going to happen. The last time two Huskers’ players looked at the draft, they departed even though they weren’t headed to the NBA.
There’s a possibility that they’re looking into the draft because they’re ready to be done with college basketball. On the other hand, both Isaiah Roby and James Palmer Jr seeing their prospects for next season could encourage them to return to the Nebraska basketball team for one more year.