2017 NBA Draft
– Thursday, June 22
– 6 p.m. CT
– ESPN / WatchESPN

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Three Kansas men’s basketball players will be looking to have their name called Thursday, June 22, at the 2017 NBA Draft.

The event will be held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., and televised on ESPN beginning at 6 p.m. (Central). KU’s Josh Jackson, Frank Mason III and Landen Lucas will be with family and friends watching closely. Jackson and KU head coach Bill Self will be on hand at Barclays Center.

Jackson is expected to be one of the first players chosen as he will soon become the 17th Jayhawk to be a lottery pick in the NBA Draft.

Since the NBA adopted a two-round draft in 1989, Kansas ranks fourth in first-round selections with 23 and has had 35 chosen. Since the NBA Lottery began in 1985, KU has had 16 players selected in the top 14 names called draft night, including 10 in the Self era.

In his lone season at Kansas, Jackson became one of the most decorated freshman school history. The Detroit native became only the fourth KU freshman to be named first-team all-conference. A Wooden All-America selection and named to numerous All-America teams, Jackson averaged 16.3 points and 7.4 rebounds in 2016-17. The 2017 Big 12 Freshman of the Year set three KU frosh records, including rebounds (258), double-doubles (13) and field goals made (220). He also set the school career record for conference weekly honors with nine — seven newcomer of the week and two player of the week — in 2016-17.

Mason became the most distinguished player in Kansas basketball history following his senior season. The Petersburg, Virginia, native was named the 2016-17 national player of the year by 10 different entities: Wooden, Naismith, NABC, Associated Press, USBWA Oscar Robertson, Sporting News, CBS Sports, USA TODAY, Bleacher Report and NBC Sports. He was the first Jayhawk to be named Associated Press Player of the Year and the first KU recipient of both the Oscar Robertson Trophy presented by the USBWA and the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award.

Kansas’ 29th Consensus All-America First Team selection, Mason became the first player in KU and Big 12 history to average more than 20 points (20.9) and five assists (5.2) in a single season in 2016-17. The 2017 Big 12 Player of the Year ranked first in the league in scoring (20.9), including a 21.0 average in conference play.

Lucas was a two-year starter who became only the 17th player in KU history to pull down 700 career rebounds, ending with 702 boards. A two-time All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, the Portland, Oregon, center was named to the Sports Illustrated All-Glue team following his senior year where he was fourth in the league with 8.3 rebounds per game. An Academic All-Big 12 First Team selection his senior year, Lucas averaged 8.0 points per game and his 63.1 field goal percentage in 2016-17 ranks fourth on the KU single-season list.

KANSAS NBA DRAFT HISTORY

Year – Name (Round/Overall Selection)
1948 – Otto Schnellbacher (Providence region)
1952 – Clyde Lovellette (1/10)
1953 – Dean Kelley (8/56), Gil Reich (11/32)
1954 – B.H. Born (3/22), Alan Kelley (7/56)
1957 – Maurice King (6/48)
1958 – Wilt Chamberlain (Territorial selection)
1959 – Ron Loneski (10/134)
1961 – Wayne Hightower (1/5), Bill Bridges (3/32)
1963 – Nolen Ellison (4/29)
1966 – Walt Wesley (1/6), Al Lopes (13/106)
1967 – Ron Franz (4/33)
1968 – Roger Bohnenstiel (9/120)
1969 – Jo Jo White (1/9), Dave Nash (4/48), Bruce Sloan (11/153)
1971 – Dave Robisch (3/44), Roger Brown (4/64), Pierre Russell (13/207)
1972 – Bud Stallworth (1/7)
1975 – Rick Suttle (7/110), Roger Morningstar (8/144)
1976 – Norm Cook (1/16)
1977 – Herb Nobles (6/124)
1978 – Ken Koenigs (5/99), John Douglas (6/118)
1979 – Paul Mokeski (2/42),
1981 – Darnell Valentine (1/16), Art Housey (3/47), John Crawford (7/160), Randolph Carroll (10/220)
1982 – Tony Guy (2/46), David Magley (2/28)
1984 – Carl Henry (4/80), Brian Martin (9/185)
1986 – Greg Drieling (2/26), Ron Kellogg (2/42), Calvin Thompson (4/71)
1988 – Danny Manning (1/1), Archie Marshall (3/75)
1990 – Kevin Pritchard (2/34)
1991 – Mark Randall (1/26)
1993 – Rex Walters (1/16), Adonis Jordan (2/42)
1994 – Darrin Hancock (2/38)
1995 – Greg Ostertag (1/28)
1997 – Scot Pollard (1/19), Jacque Vaughn (1/27)
1998 – Raef LaFrentz (1/3), Paul Pierce (1/10)
1999 – Ryan Robertson (2/45)
2001 – Eric Chenowith (2/42)
2002 – Drew Gooden (1/4)
2003 – Kirk Hinrich (1/7), Nick Collison (1/12)
2005 – Wayne Simien (1/29)
2007 – Julian Wright (1/13)
2008 – Brandon Rush (1/13), Darrell Arthur (1/27), Mario Chalmers (2/34), Darnell Jackson (2/52), Sasha Kaun (2/56)
2010 – Xavier Henry (1/12), Cole Aldrich (1/11)
2011 – Marcus Morris (1/13), Markieff Morris (1/14), Josh Selby (2/49)
2012 – Thomas Robinson (1/5), Tyshawn Taylor (2/41)
2013 – Ben McLemore (1/7), Jeff Withey (2/39)
2014 – Andrew Wiggins (1/1), Joel Embiid (1/3)
2015 – Kelly Oubre Jr. (1/15)
2016 – Cheick Diallo (2/33)

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