Texas Tech star Darrion Williams will declare for the NBA Draft, while also maintaining his college eligibility, according to his agent Aman Dhesi via Jonathan Givony of ESPN. Williams will also enter the transfer portal to maintain flexibility and assess the college landscape closer to the withdrawal deadline.
He stuffed the stat sheet with 23 points and five rebounds in their Elite Eight loss to the Florida Gators. It was certainly a special season for Texas Tech and it’s a testament to the job that Grant McCasland has done in Lubbock.
According to college basketball analytics expert Evan Miyakawa of EvanMiya.com, Williams instantly becomes the best player available in the transfer portal. If he stays in college, the superstar would be an instant difference maker for whatever team across the country he chooses to play for.
Williams was pivotal in carrying the Red Raiders to the Elite Eight, scoring twenty points or more in the Round of 32, Sweet 16, and the Elite Eight. In the first round against UNC Wilmington, Williams finished with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Against Arkansas in the Sweet 16, Williams could hardly make a shot for the first 30 minutes. But he found the right stuff when it mattered the most, leading the Red Raiders to an impressive comeback victory. He scored the go-ahead bucket with 7.3 seconds left in overtime after tying it up with a three-pointer in the closing seconds of regulation.
The Red Raiders trailed by 13 points with less than five minutes remaining against the 10th-seeded Razorbacks. And Texas Tech won in heart-stopping fashion, 85-83 in OT. The Red Raiders trailed by as many as 16 points but managed to survive.
Williams earned first team All-Big 12 honors this year, while averaging 21.0 points per game in NCAA Tournament play. He poured in a season-high 28 points in a win over the Drake Bulldogs in the second round. The junior from Sacramento, California has played 100 games in his career, totaling 1,140 points, 674 rebounds, 295 assists, and 128 steals.
As a sophomore, Williams led the Red Raiders with nine double-doubles and 7.5 rebounds per game. He averaged 11.4 points, 2.5 assists, and 1.2 steals per outing. He started all 18 Big 12 games, finishing with 13.1 points and 8.1 rebounds in Big 12 play. Williams erupted for a career-high 30 points in a 79-50 win over No. 6 Kansas, finishing 52.3% from three-point range.
His freshman season with the Nevada Wolfpack, he was named the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year in 2022-2023. He averaged 7.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.4 steals per game in his freshman year.
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