So Baylor just added a 7-foot NBA Draft pick to its roster. That’s a real sentence.
James Nnaji, who went 31st overall in the 2023 NBA Draft, has committed to Scott Drew and the Bears. He was picked by the Hornets and then traded to the Celtics, but now he’s headed to Waco to play college basketball. This is the kind of thing that makes you double-check the date to make sure it’s not April Fools.
It’s not.
Nnaji is no mystery name. He played professionally for FC Barcelona, got drafted, and looked like a guy who was on the traditional overseas-to-NBA path. Then suddenly, he pops up in the Big 12. And not just anywhere in the Big 12, he’s joining one of the top programs in the league. Baylor already had size, length, and depth in the frontcourt, but now they’ve added a 7-footer with a 7-foot-5 wingspan who already has pro reps under his belt.
It’s hard to overstate how weird this is, though. A drafted player coming back to college? That used to be unthinkable. But with the way things are moving in the NIL world and with overseas contracts getting more flexible, this might not even be the last time it happens. Baylor just happens to be the first team to really pull it off at this level.
For Scott Drew, this is just another savvy pickup. Nnaji fits what they do, gives them more versatility defensively, and adds another big body for the Big 12 grind. It’s already the toughest league in the country, and now they’ve got a 7-footer who’s been in NBA systems out there running around.
College basketball is getting real weird. But if you’re Baylor, you’ve got to love it.
