2025 NBA Draft withdrawal deadline: Top late decisions for players considering returning to college basketball
The 2025 NBA Draft is less than a month away, and the deadline for players to keep their names in the draft or return to school for the 2025-26 college basketball season is on the horizon. Players have until Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. ET to withdraw from the draft and maintain college eligibility under the NCAA deadline.
Some players have already made their intentions known well ahead of Wednesday’s deadline. Washington State star Cedric Coward — a projected first-round pick in next month’s draft — will never play a game for Duke after committing to the program out of the transfer portal. Coward has seen his draft stock soar in recent weeks after a standout performance at the NBA Draft Combine and will stay in the draft.
One of the surprises of the deadline came Tuesday when former UAB star Yaxel Lendeborg elected to bypass the draft to return to college for another season, where he will suit up for Michigan. Lendeborg ranks as the No. 1 player in the 247Sports transfer portal rankings and will play for coach Dusty May in Ann Arbor after withdrawing from the draft process on Tuesday.
Here is the latest on who’s staying in college and who’s chasing their NBA dreams.
Notable NBA Draft decisions yet to be madeTahaad Pettiford, Auburn | Big Board ranking: 27
Adou Thiero, Arkansas | Big Board ranking: 40
Yanic Konan Niederhauser, Penn State | Big Board ranking: 42 Miles Byrd, San Diego State | Big Board ranking: 52Jamir Watkins, Florida State (transfer portal) | Big Board ranking: 68
RJ Luis Jr., St. John’s (transfer portal) | Big Board ranking: 71
Otega Oweh, Kentucky | Big Board ranking: NRNotable late NBA Draft decisions
Nate Bittle, OregonBig Board ranking: NR
Draft decision: Returning to Oregon
Bittle withdrew from the NBA Draft and will return to Oregon for his senior season. The 7-foot, 240-pound center is one of the elite stretch bigs in all of college basketball. He shot 40% from 3-point range in Big Ten play while notching the second-best block percentage in league play. Bittle was a Third Team All-Big Ten selection this past season.
The big man’s return gives Oregon one of the elite duos in all of college basketball. Purdue’s point guard-big man combination of Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn may be the only point guard-big man pairing that is better than Bittle and lead guard Jackson Shelstad. — Isaac Trotter
Yaxel Lendeborg, MichiganBig Board ranking: 43
Draft decision: Withdrawing from draft, transferring to Michigan
Lendeborg, a projected first-round pick in two recent mock drafts by CBS Sports, will headline one of the premier transfer portal classes in college basketball at Michigan, which ranks second behind St. John’s in the 247Sports recruiting rankings.
Lendeborg received a NIL package believed to be in the neighborhood of $3 million to return to school, sources indicated to CBS Sports. He led Division l in double-doubles at UAB last season. — Cameron Salerno
Projected first-round pick Yaxel Lendeborg to withdraw from 2025 NBA Draft, will transfer to Michigan
Shanna McCarriston
Alex Condon, FloridaBig Board ranking: 56
Draft decision: Returning to Florida
One of the biggest offseason wins for the reigning national champions came on the eve of the withdrawal deadline when Condon announced his return to Florida. Condon was Florida’s starting center last season but will benefit by returning to school for another season. He will enter next season as a projected first-round pick in the 2026 draft. — Salerno
Alex Condon returns to Florida: Gators may have top frontcourt after big man withdraws from 2025 NBA Draft
Austin Nivison
Cedric Coward, Washington State/DukeBig Board ranking: 18
Draft decision: Staying in the 2025 NBA Draft
One of the biggest winners of the NBA Draft Combine was Coward, so it’s not surprising that he will never play a game for Duke. Coward played in just seven games last season for Washington State and averaged 17.7 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists.
Coward began his career at the Division III level and had a two-year stint at Eastern Washington before transferring to WSU. Coward projected as a first-round pick in multiple mock drafts by CBS Sports. — Salerno
Cedric Coward to remain in NBA Draft: Duke roster rounds into shape as prized transfer elects to go pro
Carter Bahns
Milos Uzan, HoustonBig Board ranking: 45
Draft decision: Returning to Houston
Uzan took a significant step forward during his first year at Houston. He was the Cougars’ best 3-point shooter, connecting on 42.8% from beyond the arc. But outside of his performance against Purdue in the Sweet 16 — which saw him score a game-winning bucket to help the Cougars advance — he didn’t have his best showing in the NCAA Tournament.
Houston projects as a preseason top-three team heading into the 2025-26 campaign. Getting Uzan back helps the Cougars make the case for preseason No. 1 this fall. — Salerno
Karter Knox, ArkansasBig Board ranking: NR
Draft decision: Returning to Arkansas
Knox, the brother of former Kentucky star and lottery pick Kevin Knox ll, played for the same coach his brother did during his first season. Knox was previously committed to Kentucky before flipping to follow coach John Calipari to Arkansas.
Knox should be in line for a larger role in Year 2. He averaged 8.3 points and 3.3 rebounds in 36 games for the Razorbacks. — Salerno
Karter Knox withdraws from NBA Draft: Arkansas retains talented wing as John Calipari molds Year 2 roster
Carter Bahns
PJ Haggerty, Kansas StateBig Board ranking: 63
Draft decision: Returning to school, transferring to Kansas State
Haggerty will be at his fourth college in four years. After stops at TCU, Tulsa and, most recently, Memphis, Haggerty went through the draft process before withdrawing from the draft. Haggerty was one of the top-ranked players in the transfer portal available. He will join a Kansas State squad coming off a 16-17 showing.
Haggerty averaged 21.7 points and earned All-American honors from CBS Sports. — Salerno
No stranger to splash additions, is Kansas State’s roster ready to support blockbuster transfer PJ Haggerty?
Isaac Trotter
Darrion Williams, NC StateBig Board ranking: 44
Draft decision: Returning to school, transferring to NC State
Williams was one of the heroes of Texas Tech’s run to the Elite Eight this past spring. After declaring for the draft while simultaneously entering the transfer portal, Williams decided to remove his name from draft consideration and committed to NC State.
Williams’ commitment is part of a roster overhaul at NC State for first-year coach Will Wade. — Salerno
Darrion Williams commits to NC State: Wolfpack add March Madness star, continue to load up under Will Wade
Zachary Pereles
