Potential lottery pick **Karim Lopez** has declared for this year’s draft, [Jeremy Woo and Shams Charania of ESPN](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/48288669/mexican-prospect-karim-lopez-declares-nba-draft) report.
Lopex is ranked No. 11 on ESPN’s big board. The Mexican native has spent the past two seasons with the New Zealand Breakers in the Australian NBL.
He’s the top-ranked international prospect on ESPN’s draft rankings and could become the first player born in Mexico to be selected in the first round.
_“It’s been my dream and my goal my whole life to play in the NBA,”_ Lopez said. _“Honestly, since I can remember. I was probably like 5 years old, making drawings of myself playing in the NBA. … It’s pretty special, you know, to be in this position right now.”_
Lopez, 19, averaged 11.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 49% shooting from the field this season in 25.6 minutes per game. A 6’9” forward set several records for draft-eligible NBL Next Stars, including the single-season points record with 358 in his 30 starts.
Lopez took a step forward in his second NBL season, including a 32-point game in a Jan. 30 win over Melbourne. NBA scouts have been drawn to Lopez’s combination of positional size, 7’1” wingspan, ball skills, playmaking flashes and toughness, according to the ESPN duo.
_“I want to show NBA teams who I am,”_ Lopez said. _“Playing in a grown man league, it’s not easy. But there’s things I feel like people haven’t seen yet.”_