Marquette Golden Eagles point guard Tyler Kolek announced on Wednesday on his Instagram that he will be declaring for the NBA Draft and will forgo his remaining year of eligibility. Earlier in the week, his former college teammate Oso Ighodaro also declared for the 2024 NBA Draft.
Kolek is 6’3″ and weighs 195 lbs. He was named to the All-Big East First Team the last two seasons. Tyler Kolek also won the Big East Player of the Year in 2022-2023. In 31 games this season for Marquette, he averaged 15.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 7.7 APG, 0.2 BPG, and 1.6 SPG. Kolek shot 49.6 percent from the field, 38.8 percent from the three-point line, and 85.1 percent from the free-throw line.
Some of the things that Tyler Kolek mentioned on his Instagram page about declaring for the NBA was as follows:
“While I may be moving on to the next chapter of my basketball career, I will always cherish the memories and lessons from my time in Milwaukee and take tremendous pride in representing this special basketball program at the highest level moving forward.”
He would also thank Marquette Golden Eagles head coach Shaka Smart along with his friends, family, teammates, and the fans at Marquette. It will be interesting to see which NBA team will take a chance on Kolek at the next level.
Marquette Golden Eagles Tyler Kolek Could Be Somewhere Between a First-Round Pick and a Second-Round Pick In the 2024 NBA Draft
Kolek could be somewhere between a late first-round pick and an early second-round pick in the 2024 NBA Draft. Some teams could use him as a potential backup point guard. In one of the latest NBA Mock Drafts on CBS Sports, they have him being selected 27th overall by the Utah Jazz.
A team that could maybe use Tyler Kolek as a backup point guard is the Milwaukee Bucks. They need someone to back up Damian Lillard as backup point guard has been an issue for them this season and Marquette plays home games at the same arena that the Bucks play home games as well.
If Kolek was not a first-round selection, there would be some lucky basketball team that would take a chance on him in the second round. It is all going to depend on what happens during the NBA Scouting Combine. Kolek is going to be more highly regarded for the next level than his teammate Oso Ighodaro will be.
