It appears as if there will be a third Villanova Wildcat player that will be heading to the NBA. Sophomore guard Donte DiVincenzo will forgo his remaining years of college eligibility and remain in the 2018 NBA Draft, according to Yahoo Sports’ Shams Charania.
DiVincenzo had an excellent season for the Wildcats, propelling them to their second national championship in three years. The 6-foot-5 guard out of Wilmington, Delaware averaged 13.4 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in 29.3 minutes per game this past season.
While he did not start in many games for Villanova, DiVincenzo was first guy called off the bench to provide instant offense and it helped him win Big East Conference’s Sixth Man of the Year award this past season.
It does not come as a surprise to see DiVincenzo staying in the draft. At the NBA Draft combine, Charania reported that teams believe DiVincenzo proved himself to be a first-round selection at that point in the draft process.
The question now is where does the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player land in draft? He will most likely be a late first round to early second round pick, which bodes well for a few teams, who have multiple picks in that range.
Here are three teams that could select DiVincenzo in next month’s draft.
1. Atlanta Hawks – The Hawks are one of the teams in this year’s draft that has three first round picks and specifically two outside of the lottery. At either pick 19 or 30, DiVincenzo would be a solid pick for a Hawks’ team who is rebuilding.
Currently, the Hawks’ shooting guard depth consists of Kent Bazemore, Antonius Cleveland, Jaylen Morris, and Tyler Dorsey. While he will not beat out Bazemore for the starting job, DiVicenzo could easily beat out the other three players for the backup spot.
The Hawks worked out DiVincenzo last week.
2. Brooklyn Nets – Brooklyn is another team to keep your eye out for when it comes to DiVincenzo. The Nets currently own the No. 29 pick in the first round and the No. 40 pick in the second round.
If the Nets really want the former Wildcat guard their best bet is to take him at No. 29. DiVincenzo would give head coach Kenny Atkinson a shooting guard to pair with point guard Spencer Dinwiddie off the bench. All signs point to both D’Angelo Russell and Jeremy Lin being the start backcourt next season.
DiVincenzo’s offense and three-point shooting (40.1 percent) goes right in line with a Nets team that shot 35.6 percent from distance this season.
3. Philadelphia 76ers – Finally, if the Sixers decide to keep both their first round picks, then why not take a chance on the local kid with the 26th pick. DiVincenzo would give the Sixers a scorer off the bench who can create his own shot and is an overall playmaker. Two qualities that the Sixers’ guards lacked in their playoff series against the Boston Celtics.
He is a tough player and will play defense, hence his 101.3 DRtg (defensive rating) and 13.9 defensive rebounding percentage this past season at Villanova. The Sixers also have two picks back-to-back in the second round to possibly use on DiVincenzo if he is still around.
