The Washington Post is reporting that Pops Mensah-Bonsu will return to GW for his senior season, while GWSports.com lists a 2 PM press conference today in which Pops will announce his draft plans.
With Mike Hall’s earlier withdrawal from the 2005 NBA Draft and now the apparent return of Mensah-Bonsu as well, George Washington will be the favorite to repeat as A-10 champs. Looking forward to our matchups with the Colonials in 05-06!
do you think we can stop George washing when they get both of their star players back? since they did beat us here in 2003, but that was without lil ben aka cdub. But George Washington is a talented program this year because they came in with a really decent recruitin class.
Steve Smith is staying for his senior year at LaSalle. That will be the difference between a possible .500 season for the Explorers and the basement of the A-10.
Curt is going to have not only plenty of competition for the 2006 A-10 POY, but just making First Team will be no mean feat.
BTW, Saint Joe’s Dwayne Jones will announce at 4:30 PM whether he’s staying in the draft or heading back to Hawk Hill.
Interesting twist on Jones – says he won’t sign with an agent, so if he doesn’t get drafted next week, then he’ll return to St. Joe’s. Quite a gamble, IMHO.
Apparently he really agonized over his decision, telling Coach Martelli at one point yesterday he was returning to SJU, then deciding to stay in the draft. The 2005 A-10 Defensive Player of the Year could have really used 2005-06 to work on his offense and increased his chances in the 2006 draft. Hmmm…
[b]Interesting twist on Jones -- says he won't sign with an agent, so if he doesn't get drafted next week, then he'll return to St. Joe's. Quite a gamble, IMHO.[/b]
Is this an option? I thought once you stayed in the draft, you’re amateur days are over.
[i]Originally posted by NinerLoudNProud[/i]@Jun 22 2005, 01:48 PM
[b]
[b]Interesting twist on Jones -- says he won't sign with an agent, so if he doesn't get drafted next week, then he'll return to St. Joe's. Quite a gamble, IMHO.[/b]
Is this an option? I thought once you stayed in the draft, you’re amateur days are over.[/b]
[b][b]12.2.4.2.1 Exception – Professional Basketball Draft – Four-Year College Student-Athlete[/b]
An enrolled student-athlete in the sport of basketball may enter a professional league's draft one time during his or her collegiate career without jeopardizing eligibility in that sport, provided the student-athlete is not drafted by any team in that league and the student-athlete declares his or her intention to resume intercollegiate participation within 30 days after the draft. The student-athlete's declaration of intent shall be in writing to the institution's director of athletics. (Adopted: 1/11/94, Revised: 1/10/95, 1/14/97 effective 4/16/97, 4/24/03 effective 8/1/03; for student-athletes entering a collegiate institution on or after 8/1/03)
ESPN.com translation: A four-year college player has one chance to test the NBA draft process and still go back to school, provided that player is not selected by an NBA team. It does not matter if that occurs because the player withdraws from the draft (by one week prior to the draft, per NBA rules) and is not available to be selected or if the player stays in the draft and goes unselected. The player must notify the school within 30 days after the draft to have his eligibility restored.[/b]
[b]Yet (Dwayne) Jones also left open the possibility that he will return to St. Joe's. "If I don't get drafted, I'll come back," he said. "I'm not going to hire an agent before the draft." If Jones signs with an agent before the draft, he'll lose his final season of eligibility.[/b]
Link: [url=http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/sports/colleges/11951672.htm]St. Joe's Jones finally opts for the draft[/url] [NOTE: site registration required -- same e-mail/password as Charlotte.com]
Atlantic 10-related observations by Gregg Doyel about NBA age limit:
[b][b]Made money[/b]: Without high school seniors and 18-year-old internationals, the 2006 NBA Draft just saw at least 10 first-round slots become available. That will mean a guaranteed, two-year contract for borderline 2005 first-round picks who withdrew from this draft to return to school. The top two are from the Atlantic 10: Steven Smith of La Salle and Pops Mensah-Bonsu of George Washington. Well done, young men.
Lost money: Any borderline first-round pick who stayed in this draft is an idiot. First-round money was waiting in 2006, so why are they gambling in 2005? If I’m Saint Joseph’s center Dwayne Jones, Kentucky’s Morris or high school guards Louis Williams and Monta Ellis, I’m taking a hard look at my agent – and then I’m firing him.[/b]
