The buzz is beginning to pick up.
Duane Washington Jr.'s strong few days at the G League Elite Camp earned him an invitation to the NBA Combine, per ESPN's Jonathan Givony.
Source: Ohio State's Duane Washington received an invite to the NBA Combine after a productive two days at the G League Elite Camp.
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) June 22, 2021
Initially, Washington wasn't on the NBA's list of combine participants. Instead, he – along with Ohio State teammate E.J. Liddell – was among the 40 draft hopefuls to take part in the G League's event in Chicago the past few days.
Washington put forth an exceptional performance in front of a packed arena of NBA executives and scouts, scoring 31 points in 41 minutes across two games on Sunday and Monday. His three-level scoring prowess was on display, shooting 12-for-25 from the field – even though he was only 4-for-15 from 3 and 3-for-7 from the line.
Both Washington and Liddell have to make final decisions about whether to stay in the NBA draft pool or to remain at Ohio State by July 7.
Prior to this week, Washington hadn't appeared on any NBA draft boards published by prominent draft media members or in any mock drafts, but that could change. He gave them, along with all the personnel evaluators in attendance, a lot to think about. Now, he'll try to do it again at the Chicago-based 70-plus-player NBA Combine, which runs from Monday to Saturday.
