The 58th NBA pick from the University of Cincinnati is expected to happen this week at the league’s yearly festivities. This year’s picks will be announced at the NBA Draft at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center June 23-24.
No UC Bearcats have been selected since 2022, when Tari Eason was picked in the first round by the Houston Rockets. Technically, Eason had transferred from John Brannen’s Bearcats to LSU by that point, so no UC Bearcats that last played here have been chosen since 2018, when Jacob Evans III went in the first round to the Golden State Warriors.
Evans left after his junior year with Mick Cronin’s Bearcats.
One former Cincinnati Bearcat who had Senior Day here will be picked in NBA Draft
Baba Miller played one year for the Cincinnati Bearcats after one season at Florida Atlantic and two at Florida State. The 6-foot-11 forward from Mallorca, Spain, had his best college basketball campaign at UC, averaging a double-double of 13 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.
Miller was second in the Big 12 with 13 double-doubles and was the first UC player since Naismith Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson to lead the team in scoring, rebounds and assists (3.7 per game).
Miller’s highs were 26 points against Alabama State, 21 rebounds vs. Lipscomb and he dished out eight assists against both Kansas and Oklahoma State in the Big 12. In UC’s 84-68 win in Allen Fieldhouse over No. 8 Kansas, Miller had 18 points, seven rebounds and eight assists against the Jayhawks, who featured Darryn Peterson, expected to be one of the top picks in the opening round this week.
Plenty of Big 12 players will be picked in NBA Draft
The Big 12 is projected to break its conference record of seven first-round selections set in the 2010 NBA Draft. In 2008 and 2019, the Big 12 had 10 overall selections in the two allotted rounds.
Baba Miller played against many of these players, including (based on ESPN rankings) projected top pick AJ Dybantsa of BYU, Darryn Peterson of Kansas, Kingston Flemings of Houston, Brayden Burries of Arizona, Christian Anderson of Texas Tech, Cameron Carr of Baylor, Chris Cernac Jr, of Houston, Koa Peat of Arizona, Joshua Jefferson of Iowa State, Richie Saunders of BYU, Emanuel Sharp of Houston, Jaden Bradley of Arizona and Milos Usan of Houston.
In exhibitions or non-conference, Miller faced Darius Acuff of Arkansas, Yaxel Lendeborg of Michigan (Aday Mara and Morez Johnson Jr. did not play vs. UC), Meleek Thomas and Kevin Brazile of Arkansas and Louisville’s Mikel Brown Jr. and Ryan Conwell.
UC Bearcats general manager Corey Evans had this to say about Baba Miller’s NBA potential:
“He’s still relatively young for an NBA prospect and his wealth of experience in FIBA, international and college shows just how valuable he really is,” Evans said. “That all interchanges with his intangible set and who he is as a person and the type of teammate he is. The daily habits he possesses, and the unselfish approach are just a few of the reasons why, as long as he finds the right entryway into the NBA, he can stick and play for a prolonged period of time.”
Evans came to UC from the Oklahoma City Thunder and has remained on staff with new coach Jerrod Calhoun.
Where is UC’s Baba Miller projected to be drafted?
A nice showing in the NBA Combine reportedly boosted Miller’s stock. He has worked out for at least nine NBA teams.
ESPN’s Jeremy Woo has Miller going in the second round with the 34th pick overall to the Sacramento Kings. If you’re looking for a local connection, after the Rochester Royals moved to Cincinnati, where they played at the now-demolished Cincinnati Gardens, they moved to Kansas City-Omaha to become the Kings and eventually made it to Northern California.
Yahoo Sports sends Miller to the Los Angeles Clippers in the second round with the 36th pick, and USA Today has Miller lasting until the 39th overall pick in the second round, going to the Houston Rockets.
There’s actually one more UC Bearcat who should get an NBA chance
In the transfer portal era, players are playing with multiple teams, as UC was Miller’s third tour of duty. So, we make mention of Dillon Mitchell, who played here in 2024-25. Mitchell played two years at Texas, one year for Wes Miller at UC, then transferred to St. John’s for his senior year with Rick Pitino.
After averaging 9.9 points and 6.9 rebounds for the Bearcats, Mitchell averaged 8.3 points and seven rebounds for the Red Storm.
Like Miller, the 6-foot-8 Mitchell is projected to be a second-round pick. ESPN has Mitchell going with the 36th pick to the Clippers, Yahoo Sports says 37th pick to Oklahoma City and USA Today pegs him at No. 44 going to Denver.
Where to watch where UC’s Miller gets picked.
The first round is Tuesday, June 23. Both Miller and Mitchell are expected to go the next day on June 24. The festivities begin at 8 p.m. both nights. The first round is on both ABC and ESPN. The second night, when you would likely hear Baba Miller’s name called, is exclusively on ESPN.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Baba Miller should be UC Bearcats basketball’s next NBA draft pick
Reporting by Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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By Scott Springer, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
