Source: Top recruit Maker petitions for ’20 draft
Jay Williams and Jalen Rose disagree on the NBA expanding the draft, with Williams saying teams should be able to draft players and hold their rights while they’re in college. (1:40)
Makur Maker has submitted paperwork exploring his eligibility for the 2020 NBA draft, a source told ESPN.
“The NBA Players Association is helping Makur get eligible,” the source said, adding that Makur has submitted all of his transcripts and is waiting to hear back from the league office. “The NBPA thinks he will receive it. More than likely he will be in this draft class.”
Maker, the No. 10 recruit in the 2020 high school class according to the ESPN 100, believes he is eligible for the 2020 draft because he will turn 19 in November, is in his fifth year of high school at Pacific Academy in Irvine, California, and is one year removed from his original graduating class.
The 6-foot-11 big man enrolled for his freshman year of high school in the fall of 2015 at Chaminade College Preparatory in West Hills, California, and was slated to graduate with his original high school class in 2019. Because Maker was two credits short of receiving a high school diploma from Orange (Calif.) Lutheran High School, where he was enrolled during the 2018-19 season, he needs to petition the NBA for inclusion by submitting high school transcripts to the league office.
The NBA’s collective bargaining agreement says “a player shall be eligible for selection” as long as he “(A) is or will be at least nineteen (19) years of age during the calendar year in which the Draft is held, and (B) at least one (1) NBA Season has elapsed since the player’s graduation from high school (or, if the player did not graduate from high school, since the graduation of the class with which the player would have graduated had he graduated from high school).”
Because he is a year removed from his original high school graduating class and turns 19 in the calendar year of the draft, Maker appears to have a strong case for inclusion. He will need to wait for an official decision before submitting his name for inclusion on the NBA early-entry list, the deadline for which is April 26.
A number of NBA scouts have told ESPN they are planning to evaluate Maker at Pacific Academy if it is authorized by the league office.
Maker was born in Kenya to South Sudanese parents, emigrated to Perth, Australia, in 2001 and moved to California in 2015. He joined his cousins Thon and Matur Maker in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and was home-schooled from 2016-2018, playing at the Tech Academy and attending showcases in the United States, including the Pangos All-American Camp and Adidas Nations in August 2017, where he first caught the eyes of NBA scouts. He moved back to California in the fall of 2018, attending Orange Lutheran before moving to Pacific Academy this summer.
He rocketed up recruiting rankings with his play at Orange Lutheran last season before continuing his ascent on the Adidas AAU circuit this spring and summer with Dream Vision, averaging 14.7 points, 7.9 rebounds and 1.0 block in 26 minutes per game. He shot 73% from 2-point range, 30% from 3 and 61% from the free throw line. His advanced skill level, including his ballhandling in the open floor and ability to create his own shot from the perimeter and make jumpers off the dribble and with his feet set, is attractive considering he stands 6-11. He is currently projected as the No. 21 prospect in ESPN’s 2021 mock draft.
Maker will continue to maintain his NCAA eligibility as he explores his NBA options, having taken an official visit to Howard over the weekend. If deemed eligible to enter the 2020 NBA draft, he will have the option to evaluate his draft stock and withdraw his name by the early-entry deadline of June 15.