Georgia Tech guard Josh Okogie will attend the NBA draft combine in Chicago, a confirmation of his standing among NBA scouts.
Okogie was one of 69 players who have accepted invitations to the combine, which will take place May 16-20. Okogie declared for the draft after the season but has not hired an agent, which gives him the option of returning to Tech for his junior season.
Also, Okogie will work out for the Hawks on Monday. His will be the first predraft workout for the Hawks.
As the NBA’s two-round draft is a 60-player selection, a combine invitation is no guarantee that any invitee will be invited. But, given that Okogie was one of 181 collegiate players who made early-entry declarations for the draft, it’s an indication that scouts are taking his bid seriously.
The invitation was conditional on Okogie participating in every part of the combine, according to Evaristus Okogie, Josh’s eldest brother, who is guiding the family through the process. Some higher-profile prospects choose to skip parts of the combine, believing there is nothing to gain.
“The goal is to get there and maximize every opportunity given to him and make the best out of it,” Evaristus said. “It’s a privilege to get an invitation to come, and once you get it, you just go in there and do what you’ve got to do, and then after that, we’ll be able to make a more definitive decision on what to do.”
NBA scouts have projected Okogie as a possible second-round pick, but allowed that he was the sort of player who stands a chance of impressing scouts at the combine and improving his draft standing.
The invitation did not come as a surprise to Okogie, who scouts had said was likely to be included.
Okogie has been practicing both with and apart from the team since the season ended. In an interview last week with the AJC, Evaristus Okogie said that the decision on whether he stays in the draft or returns to Tech will be based on the feedback that they receive from NBA scouts.
With Tech’s semester over, Okogie also is free to travel to private workouts with NBA teams. Evaristus Okogie said last week that he was working with “a good number of NBA teams” to schedule workouts.
Okogie will have until May 30 to make his stay-or-go decision.
Staff writer Chris Vivlamore contributed to this article.
