The Minnesota Gophers basketball team has had a total of 43 NBA draft picks since 1957 with 19 of those picks in the top 2 rounds. Now players are gearing up for next month’s draft and are fighting to increase their value for the scouts and teams every day. Despite a good history of NBA picks, recent years have seen no action on the NBA front for the Gophers, so for the U, there is an added hope to have Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams drafted.
There has not been a single Gopher drafted since Kris Humphries was chosen as number 14 in the first round of the 2004 NBA draft. Former Gophers head coach Dan Monson had 3 players picked in the NBA draft during his time, with Humphries, Joel Przybilla and Rick Rickert all making the cut. Now that Monson has moved on and can spend more time relaxing and playing other types of games, such as those found at top casino site HandyCasino.de. Departed head coach Tubby Smith hopes to have his first two Gopher players drafted during next months draft.
Forwards Rodney Williams Jr and Trevor Mbakwe are Gophers who played for Smith and both are projected as potential second round draft picks. If both are selected out of Minnesota they will be the first Gophers duo drafted in over 15 years. In 1997 both Bobby Jackson and John Thomas went in the first round and made Gophers history. Both players graded out well at the recent workouts and combine, but both also bring question marks to prospective teams.
Regardless of where they get selected, both will absolutely get long looks from teams in Summer League.