Oscar Tshiebwe (Vicky Graff Photo)
With the NBA Draft approaching on June 23, Kentucky All-American Oscar Tshiebwe might still be wondering if he made the right decision to not keep his name in the draft after the spectacular junior season he had.
However, Rivals/Yahoo basketball writer Krysten Peek thinks he made the right choice and should not look back.
“He is probably the smartest player that didn’t drink the Kool-Aid and get into the NBA Draft,” Peek said. “He saw the writing on the wall that at best he would be an early second round pick.”
“I think he just realized how much he could make at Kentucky (off NIL deals) and also how much fun he would have competing for the school again. I hope we see more players do what he has done and stay in school. I have incredible respect for him.”
Peek thinks another year at Kentucky can help Tshiebwe change the mindset NBA personnel have about him.
“West Virginia was not a good fit for him and he came to Kentucky and just annihilated the boards,” Peek said. “Give him another year under his belt at Kentucky to show the NBA guys there is still more to his bag can only help him move up in next year’s draft.”
4 Responses
Oscar is a great college basketball player.
I hope Calipari does not ruin him as a college player.
I think Oscar would have been awesome on the right NBA team. Bam didn’t have near the success that Oscar did, but he went to the right kind of team. Oscar was the Player of the Year and everyone says he could not make it as a pro? That makes no sense at all.
Professor, you are right in worrying about Calipari ruining Oscar. KY guards are way too ball hoggish. They want to shoot instead of pass.
Bam has been sensational in the NBA
Oscar realizes he can still earn substantial NIL revenue, even considering its limited nature due to him being a citizen of Congo. The NBA is very picky regarding who they “believe” has the right game composition to be successful and effective in the league. What the NBA does have is a metric to measure heart. I’m a true blue KY fan, and if I believed Oscar would get a fair look in the league, I’d have a very different opinion. Couldn’t agree more with Krysten; Oscar will show the nation why he is not only the best college player in the nation, but why the NBA “smart guys” made a big mistake not projecting him in the first round. I know what your thinking, he doesn’t have the best handles and he can’t shoot threes. What most don’t know and can’t see because they don’t follow KY basketball closely enough is the Oscar is a really good person, a really hard worker and has proven he hasn’t found his ceiling yet. NBA got it wrong, thank goodness!