Oscar Tshiebwe has officially declared for the 2023 NBA draft, after earning All-America honors for the second consecutive season with the Kentucky Wildcats. He will maintain his college eligibility.
College Career
Tshiebwe began his collegiate basketball career at West Virginia, where he was never at his best. Averaging 11.2 points per game (ppg) his freshman season, he followed that with 8.5 ppg as a sophomore. He’s always been a rebounding machine, averaging over 14 per game in his four years in college, but he struggled as a scorer until he got to Kentucky.
His first year in John Calipari’s program was extremely successful. He played over 30 minutes a game, while averaging 17.4 points and 15.2 rebounds per game. Kentucky was dominant all year, earning themselves a two seed in the NCAA tournament. They eventually lost in the first round to the historic 15-seed St. Peter’s. Despite that, Tshiebwe still had an incredible individual season, winning National Player of the year. He became the first Kentucky Wildcat to win the award since Anthony Davis in 2012.
What’s ahead for Oscar Tshiebwe
Tshiebwe didn’t get to experience phenomenal team success during his two years at Kentucky, as they lost in the round of 32 in this year’s tournament. Nonetheless, his eyes are set on playing in the NBA. Tshiebwe is not expected to be a hot commodity in the upcoming draft. Many draft experts expect him to get selected in the second round or go undrafted. Many expect that he won’t fit the mold of an NBA player, meaning he may have reason to stay in college for another season.
It has become common for college players to declare for the draft whilst maintaining their eligibility. This is partly due to the new NIL rules, but also is affected by the increased eligibility from COVID. With NIL deals growing larger, players that don’t have a high probability of a big first contract in the NBA sometimes benefit from staying in college longer. We now live in a world where some players will make more money in college than they could if they become professionals. Don’t be surprised if Tshiebwe is back in Lexington next year. Especially considering Kentucky has the best recruiting class in the country coming in next season.
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