Keyonte George Selected No. 16 By Utah in 2023 NBA Draft
Baylor Bears guard Keyonte George was selected No. 16 overall by the Utah Jazz in the first round of the 2023 NBA Draft on Thursday night.
The selection gave the Bears a first-round pick for the third straight draft and for the ninth time in program history.
He was the top recruit of Baylor’s 2022 Class and was named the Big 12 Freshman of the Year, he averaged 15.3 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists, but his play suffered after a late February foot injury. There simply wasn’t enough time for him to properly recover.
When he declared, he surrendered his remaining eligibility, as many projected him as a lottery pick.
George declared for the NBA Draft after one season with Baylor, giving the program a one-and-done player for the second straight season. Jeremy Sochan and Kendall Brown were drafted after one season last summer. Sochan was a lottery pick, selected No. 9 overall by San Antonio. Brown was selected in the second round.
In 2021 guard Davion Mitchell was taken No. 9 overall by the Sacramento Kings. He helped the Kings end their long playoff drought this past season.
Other previous first-round picks for the Bears are Taurean Prince (2016), Perry Jones (2012), Ekpe Udoh (2010), Brian Skinner (1998), Terry Teagle (1982) and Vinnie Johnson (1979).
San Antonio selected France’s Victor Wembanyama No. 1 overall. At No. 2, Charlotte selected Alabama’s Brandon Walker. At No. 3, Portland selected the G League Ignite’s Scoot Henderson. At No. 4, Houston selected the Overtime Elite’s Amen Thompson. At No. 5, Detroit selected the Overtime Elite’s Ausar Thompson. Amen and Ausar are twin brothers.
At No. 6, the Orlando Magic took Arkansas’ Anthony Black. At No. 7, the Indiana Pacers selected Bilal Coulibaly of France. At No. 8 the Washington Wizards selected Houston’s Jarace Walker. At No. 9 the Utah Jazz selected UCF’s Taylor Hendricks. At No. 10 the Dallas Mavericks selected Kentucky’s Cason Wallace (who was selected for Oklahoma City as part of a trade).
At No. 11, Orlando selected Michigan’s Jett Howard. At No. 12, Oklahoma City selected Duke’s Dereck Lively II (who was selected for Dallas as part of a trade). At No. 13, Toronto selected Kansas’ Gradey Dick. At No. 14, New Orleans selected UConn’s Jordan Hawkins. At No. 15, Atlanta selected Michigan’s Kobe Bufkin.
