- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,171,186
- Reaction score
- 59
There are two dozen players that will be hitting the green room for the 2026 NBA Draft, and Kentucky Wildcats center Jayden Quaintance isn't among them. The draft, which is held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, is slated to start on June 23 and will be a two-day event.
Of course, some of the biggest names in the draft were invited. Just a few of those names are Caleb Wilson, Cameron Boozer, Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa, the projected top four picks in the event. After the obvious lottery selections, it is difficult to predict who would be next up, and those in power don't seem to have much confidence in Quaintance, who missed the bulk of the season with a recurring knee injury. Quaintance tore his ACL in February of 2025 and struggled throughout much of the season because of swelling and then was shut down with several weeks still to go.
That said, here's the entire list of the players that'll be at the event.
Quaintance was expected to be healthy enough to compete for the bulk of the 2025-26 season, and he was a 2024-2025 Big 12 All-Defensive team member. The expectations were lofty in Lexington, and having played in just four games, they certainly weren't met. He averaged 5.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, shooting 57.1% from the field and not attempting a single three-point shot.
It was a rough year for Quaintance, and he dampened his stock by sitting out, although the jury still seems out on whether he had to miss that time or was just doing it out of an abundance of caution. Regardless, he's expected to drop in the draft, so some team could find him in the late first round or early second round. That would be a steal for the athletic 6-foot-9 center, especially considering the upside if he can stay healthy.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky Wildcats C Jayden Quaintance snubbed green room invite
Continue reading...
Of course, some of the biggest names in the draft were invited. Just a few of those names are Caleb Wilson, Cameron Boozer, Darryn Peterson and AJ Dybantsa, the projected top four picks in the event. After the obvious lottery selections, it is difficult to predict who would be next up, and those in power don't seem to have much confidence in Quaintance, who missed the bulk of the season with a recurring knee injury. Quaintance tore his ACL in February of 2025 and struggled throughout much of the season because of swelling and then was shut down with several weeks still to go.
That said, here's the entire list of the players that'll be at the event.
Quaintance was expected to be healthy enough to compete for the bulk of the 2025-26 season, and he was a 2024-2025 Big 12 All-Defensive team member. The expectations were lofty in Lexington, and having played in just four games, they certainly weren't met. He averaged 5.0 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, shooting 57.1% from the field and not attempting a single three-point shot.
It was a rough year for Quaintance, and he dampened his stock by sitting out, although the jury still seems out on whether he had to miss that time or was just doing it out of an abundance of caution. Regardless, he's expected to drop in the draft, so some team could find him in the late first round or early second round. That would be a steal for the athletic 6-foot-9 center, especially considering the upside if he can stay healthy.
This article originally appeared on UK Wildcats Wire: Kentucky Wildcats C Jayden Quaintance snubbed green room invite
Continue reading...
