PC's Alpha Diallo applying for NBA Draft
PROVIDENCE — It’s time for Alpha Diallo to see just where he sits in the eyes of NBA scouts.
The Providence College junior forward announced Tuesday that he will apply for the 2019 NBA Draft. Diallo will have the option of returning for his senior season if he withdraws his name from the NBA by a May 29 deadline.
“I am declaring for the NBA Draft,” Diallo said in a school release. “I am excited to go through the workout process. I will be staying in school this spring and finishing my junior year. I believe this process will help me grow as a player. I enjoy being at Providence College and playing for the Friars. The Friars have a strong group of players returning next season and I believe the team could compete for the conference championship.”
Under a new NCAA rule, early applicants can enter into a non-financial agreement with an NCAA-certified agent and still maintain eligibility. Diallo will look to be invited to the NBA Combine May 16-20 where he would receive a realistic scouting report on his ability and chances of getting drafted. If he’s targeted to be among the 60 selections, he would have a decision to make on whether to return to school.
Due to the new agent rules, waves of players are applying and testing the waters. With zero downside to declaring and working out for teams, Diallo is now the ninth Big East underclassman to begin the draft process. While St. John’s junior guard Shamorie Ponds has said he will sign with an agent and not return to school, others like Seton Hall’s Myles Powell and Xavier’s Naji Marshall, Quentin Goodin, Tyrique Jones and Paul Scruggs all hold limited draft possibilities and will likely return to school.
Diallo, a 6-foot-7 forward, led the Friars with 16 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game last season. The 8.1 rebounds were second in the Big East. Diallo, who was tied for first in the league in double-doubles with 10, was named second-team All-Big East. He improved his 3-point shooting (33 percent) but must show scouts NBA 3-point range and cut down on his turnovers (2.7 per game).
“We support Alpha and as he goes through this process,” PC coach Ed Cooley said. “This process will enable him to gain knowledge and experience about the potential for his future in professional basketball. Alpha has always had a goal of playing basketball at the highest level and this is one of the steps towards his goal.”
If Diallo returns, the Friars appear well-positioned to make a run at a return to the NCAA Tournament. After one of its weakest postseason showings in years, the Big East should be vastly improved with Villanova, Seton Hall, Xavier and Creighton already garnering some preseason Top 25 mention.
Cooley has already added a graduate transfer point guard (Luwane Pipkins of UMass) for next season and said he’d like to add two more recruits this spring, regardless of Diallo’s status. Diallo is a certain selection to the U.S. Pan-Am Games team that Cooley is slated to coach this summer if he decides to return to Providence.
—kmcnamar@providencejournal.com
On Twitter: @KevinMcNamara33