Iowa Center Luka Garza Declares for NBA Draft

Iowa center Luka Garza announced today that he has declared for the NBA draft.

While Garza declared for the draft, he won’t sign an agent and will retain his eligibility if he withdraws before the deadline. Garza has one year of eligibility remaining so it appears he’s testing the NBA waters to see where he could possibly end up in the 2020 Draft. And if things don’t pan out he’ll likely be back next fall.

Garza had a big junior season with 23.9 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. He ended up earning first-team All-American honors and came in second for the John R. Wooden Award while also earning Big Ten Player of the Year honors.

ESPN currently ranks Garza 86th (15th best center) in their ESPN Top 100 for the NBA Draft. While Garza has excelled in the Big Ten and has started to develop an outside shot, there are serious questions if his defense would translate to the NBA.

While the news that Garza might heading to the NBA isn’t a huge surprise, there’s also a decent chance he’ll return for his senior season at Iowa. Garza will have until the third of June to either withdraw or stay in the draft.