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Florida basketball's junior center Rueben Chinyelu was among the 73 names included on the 2026 NBA combine invitation list released by the league on Friday.
The 6-foot-10-inch, 265-pound reigning Defensive Player of the Year declared for the 2026 NBA draft in April as an early entrant, which allows him to preserve his remaining year of collegiate eligibility while evaluating his value in this summer's selection process. He has until Wednesday, May 27 — the deadline to withdraw from the NBA draft — to make his decision if he wants to return to Gainesville next fall.
According to ESPN's Jeremy Woo, who published his 2026 NBA draft big board rankings as well as a mock draft this week, the native of Nigeria finds himself buried among the pool of draft-eligible players. On Woo's big board, which represents the available player pool and offers insight into executives' and scouts' views, Chinyelu sits at No. 43 while projected to be selected by the Denver Nuggets at No. 49 in his mock.
During his junior year with the Gators, Chinyelu averaged 10.9 points and 11.2 rebounds per game with 36 blocked shots, 27 steals and 23 assists, while starting all 35 games at center. His total rebounds per game led the SEC and ranked fourth nationally, while his individual splits (3.9 offensive, 7.3 defensive) also led the SEC.
Chinyelu's 137 offensive rebounds last season set a new record at Florida, shattering the previous record of 114 by Dwayne Davis (1988-89), while his 393 total rebounds marked the third-best single-season total in UF history, trailing Gators legend Neal Walk's numbers during the 1967-68 (495) and 1968-69 (481) campaigns.
His 19 double-doubles set a new program high previously held by Bob Smyth at 18 (1975-76), and he also became the first Gator since that same season to average double-figure rebounds or a double-double, when Smyth posted 13.3 points and 12.7 boards per game.
Along with the Defensive Player of the Year honors, bestowed upon him by both the Naismith Awards committee and the National Association of Basketball Coaches, Chinyelu was also named a First-Team All-SEC selection by the Associated Press and Second-Team All-SEC by the coaches, as well as an AP All-America Honorable Mention.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida basketball's Rueben Chinyelu gets NBA combine invitation
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The 6-foot-10-inch, 265-pound reigning Defensive Player of the Year declared for the 2026 NBA draft in April as an early entrant, which allows him to preserve his remaining year of collegiate eligibility while evaluating his value in this summer's selection process. He has until Wednesday, May 27 — the deadline to withdraw from the NBA draft — to make his decision if he wants to return to Gainesville next fall.
According to ESPN's Jeremy Woo, who published his 2026 NBA draft big board rankings as well as a mock draft this week, the native of Nigeria finds himself buried among the pool of draft-eligible players. On Woo's big board, which represents the available player pool and offers insight into executives' and scouts' views, Chinyelu sits at No. 43 while projected to be selected by the Denver Nuggets at No. 49 in his mock.
During his junior year with the Gators, Chinyelu averaged 10.9 points and 11.2 rebounds per game with 36 blocked shots, 27 steals and 23 assists, while starting all 35 games at center. His total rebounds per game led the SEC and ranked fourth nationally, while his individual splits (3.9 offensive, 7.3 defensive) also led the SEC.
Chinyelu's 137 offensive rebounds last season set a new record at Florida, shattering the previous record of 114 by Dwayne Davis (1988-89), while his 393 total rebounds marked the third-best single-season total in UF history, trailing Gators legend Neal Walk's numbers during the 1967-68 (495) and 1968-69 (481) campaigns.
His 19 double-doubles set a new program high previously held by Bob Smyth at 18 (1975-76), and he also became the first Gator since that same season to average double-figure rebounds or a double-double, when Smyth posted 13.3 points and 12.7 boards per game.
Along with the Defensive Player of the Year honors, bestowed upon him by both the Naismith Awards committee and the National Association of Basketball Coaches, Chinyelu was also named a First-Team All-SEC selection by the Associated Press and Second-Team All-SEC by the coaches, as well as an AP All-America Honorable Mention.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida basketball's Rueben Chinyelu gets NBA combine invitation
Continue reading...
