Big East Flexes Muscles With Four NBA Draft Picks
NEW YORK – If you’re looking for an example of the current strength of this new Big East, consider the first 18 picks of Thursday evening’s NBA Draft.
Providence point guard Kris Dunn, the two-time Big East Player of the Year, was chosen fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves. Later in the evening, Marquette freshman forward Henry Ellenson was viewed by many as a steal after he sat in the Green Room longer than expected, eventually getting scooped up by the Detroit Pistons. He is the Big East’s first one-and-done since Pitt’s Steven Adams in 2013.
Two of the league’s stars getting picked early Thursday can only help the league’s profile, but then consider that Seton Hall’s Isaiah Whitehead was chosen 42nd by his hometown Brooklyn Nets, and Dunn’s teammate, Ben Bentil, went 51st to the Boston Celtics.