Top facts about MSU head basketball coach Tom Izzo
Discover key facts about Tom Izzo, the legendary head basketball coach at Michigan State University, his contributions, achievements, and impact on the sport.
- Michigan’s Danny Wolf and 23 other prospects received invitations to the NBA Draft green room.
- Wolf averaged 13.2 points and a Big Ten-leading 9.7 rebounds per game last season.
- Michigan State’s Jase Richardson was not invited, despite being projected as a potential top pick.
The 2025 NBA Draft will kick off on Wednesday, June 25, with one big Michigan basketball player getting a front-row seat to the event.
However, Michigan State basketball’s biggest entry into the draft got left off the invite list.
As first reported by ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, the NBA released its list of 24 players invited to the NBA draft green room, typically a sign that these players are expected to be drafted on the earlier side. The list includes Duke star Cooper Flagg, the presumptive No. 1 overall pick, and Rutgers stars Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey.
The final name on the list is one U-M fans would recognize: center Danny Wolf, who declared for the draft on April 16 after spending one season with the Wolverines as a transfer from Yale.
As a junior with U-M, Wolf played in all 37 games while averaging 13.2 points per game and leading the Big Ten with 9.7 rebounds per game. He and center Vlad Goldin helped lead the Wolverines to a win in the Big Ten tournament and a Sweet 16 appearance, only to fall to the No. 1 seed Auburn Tigers.
The latest ESPN mock draft has Wolf going No. 22 overall to the Atlanta Hawks.
MSU’s Jase Richardson snubbed from NBA draft invite list
Another name college basketball fans might recognize is Jase Richardson, who as a freshman helped lead Michigan State to the program’s first 30-win season since 2018-19.
Richardson, who is the son of former NBA star and MSU legend Jason Richardson, declared for the draft on April 8 and is projected by many draft experts to be a top selection. ESPN’s latest mock draft, for example, has Richardson going No. 16 overall to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Though many experts consider Richardson a better NBA draft prospect than Wolf, Richardson did not get the invite to the green room.
At this point, it’s unclear why the NBA chose to invite Wolf while snubbing Richardson, with many fans commenting on Givony’s post wondering why Richardson didn’t get the invitation.
Richardson played in 36 games and finished second on the team with 12.1 points per game, helping the Spartans to a regular-season Big Ten title and a No. 2 seed in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Much like the Wolverines’ run, however, the Spartans’ season was ended by Auburn in the Elite Eight.
The 2025 NBA Draft will take place from June 25-26, airing on ABC and ESPN at 8 p.m. ET.
You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com
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