In the not so shocking news of the day, Kentucky head coach John Calipari said Monday that several of his players will likely declare for the NBA draft.
Calipari discussed the futures of some of the players from this season’s team that went 38-1 and lost in the national semifinals to Wisconsin.
Calipari told reporters that junior forward and first-team AP All-American Willie Cauley-Stein (8.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.7 blocks), Karl-Anthony Towns, the Harrison Twins and freshman forward Trey Lyles (8.7 ppt, 5.2 rebounds) are likely to forego their final seasons of college eligibility and enter the draft, which will be June 25 in New York City.
“There’s not going to be any brainwashing, forcing, pushing either in or out. I want each kid to make a decision for themselves,” Calipari said. “I did tell a couple of the kids that it’s a man’s league; it’s not a child’s league. If you’re not ready for a man’s league, you need to come back.”
Calipari also said that sophomore Dakari Johnson and freshman guard Devin Booker are also considering the jump.