The announcement Missouri fans have expected for weeks finally came on Sunday. Senior forward Kobe Brown announced he would enter the NBA Draft on the final day for underclassmen to declare themselves eligible. Brown said he will maintain his eligibility and keep open the option of returning to Missouri for a fifth season.
Brown will now go through pre-draft workouts and interviews. He is expected to attend the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago from May 15-21. Head coach Dennis Gates said recently that no final decision would be made until after that event.
"Because he's not that lottery pick on paper, he has to go through this process and we won't know until that Chicago combine that the feedback is where it should be for him and his family," Gates said. "So I just give him space, give him peace, but also give him counsel when he comes to me with questions about the process, right? Because this is his first time; this is my 20th year coaching so we've had guys in the past."
Over four seasons at Missouri, Brown has averaged 10.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 123 career games. His first season under Gates was by far his best as a Tiger. Brown averaged 15.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game. All of those numbers except for the rebounds were career-highs and he was a first-team all-SEC selection while leading the Tigers to 25 wins, including their first in the NCAA Tournament since 2010. He also shot 45.5% from three-point range, more than 20% better than any other season in his career.
"Most kids won't be at an institution for four, let alone five, years to be in position to be able to make the impact that he has made," Gates said. "Most kids have tapped out their ceiling of improvement. Kobe Brown has consistently improved and made a big jump. I think ultimately what NBA teams look at sometimes is not where a kid is, but what they've done. Kobe Brown has improved unbelievable amounts."
Brown's younger brother, Kaleb Brown, entered the transfer portal earlier this week. While many have tried to connect dots between Kaleb's decision and what Kobe will ultimately do, a source told PowerMizzou.com earlier this week "Kaleb wants to play." Kaleb appeared in just 11 games and averaged 7.7 minutes for Mizzou this season.
While Missouri waits to see what Kobe will do, Gates and his staff are rebuilding the roster. In addition to incoming high school recruits Trent Pierce, Jordan Butler and Anthony Robinson, the Tigers have added junior college signee Curt Lewis and transfers John Tonje, Tamar Bates and Caleb Grill. They also recently hosted Virginia big man Kadin Shedrick and Florida State wing Matthew Cleveland. The Tigers are in the top three for both of those players.
"I assume in recruiting that no one's coming back and I assume in my relationships that everyone's coming back," Gates said. "Certain kids are qualifying for in-state tuition and some kids are now able to pay their own way so you can't operate and assume that rosters are capped at 13 kids because ultimately there's ingenuity into building rosters more than ever before and you can't count the way that we all have been counting previously.
"I would not just jump out and assume that each institution is operating under the maximum or minimum of 13 scholarships."
There is one certainty: If Kobe Brown wants to return to Missouri, the door will be open. But that decision won't be known for weeks. Brown is largely viewed as a second round pick in the June draft as he begins the process. The deadline for players to withdraw and return to college is 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on May 31.
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