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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Javon Small is one day closer to determining his immediate professional basketball future.
According to NBA Draft experts, West Virginia University's All-Big 12 guard likely won't go in the first round of this year's draft beginning Wednesday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, but he could hear his name called on Thursday before the second round is completed.
Small is coming off a breakout season at West Virginia in 2025 that saw him average 18.6 points, 5.6 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 steals during his lone year with the Mountaineers.
His season-high 31 points were crucial in WVU's overtime victory over Gonzaga in the Bahamas. He also scored West Virginia's final seven points in a 62-61 upset victory at Kansas – the Mountaineers' first-ever win in Allen Fieldhouse - and he was dominant in a 64-57 victory over second-ranked Iowa State by scoring a game-high 27 points.
Small, listed at 6-foot-3 but measuring 6-feet-1 barefoot at this year's NBA Draft Combine, played two years at East Carolina and one at Oklahoma State, where he averaged 15.1 points per game for the Cowboys in 2024.
In 97 career college games, the South Bend, Indiana, resident scored 1,380 points, handed out 424 assists and grabbed 374 rebounds.
Draft experts noted his strong performance in agility and shooting drills at this year's NBA Draft Combine held this spring in Chicago, which should offset some concerns about his lack of height and long-range shooting consistency.
On3's James Fletcher has Small ranked No. 47 overall on his latest draft board, which puts him in the middle of the second round.
ESPN.com NBA draft analyst Jonathan Givony has Small pegged at No. 48, while Draft Digest has him rated 50th on its draft board.
Yahoo! Sports draft analyst Kevin O'Connor compares Small to Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, writing: "Small is an undersized guard who plays bigger than his body thanks to his excellent athleticism and gritty nature. He's a knockdown shooter off the catch and a solid lead guard, though his lack of size puts a natural cap on his upside."
Wednesday's first round begins at 8 p.m. and will be televised on ABC and ESPN. The second round on Thursday will also begin at 8 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN.
There will be 59 total selections in this year's draft.
The last West Virginia University player taken in the draft was guard Deuce McBride, who went 36th overall in the second round to the New York Knicks in 2021.
Five Mountaineers players have been taken in the draft since forward Joe Alexander went No. 8 overall to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2008.
Forwards Da'Sean Butler and Devin Ebanks were taken consecutively at No. 42 by the Miami Heat and No. 43 by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round in 2010, and guard Jevon Carter was the 32nd overall choice by the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2018 draft.
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