Auburn center Dylan Cardwell withdraws from 2022 NBA Draft

Auburn center Dylan Cardwell has withdrawn from the 2022 NBA Draft, per CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. His decision comes just two days before the deadline to withdraw on June 1.

The move was somewhat expected, as Cardwell was not projected to be selected within the first two rounds. He also did not receive an invite to the NBA Combine this past month. Instead, he will take his experience back to school with him as he returns for his third season with the Tigers.

Cardwell will hope to carve out a bigger role in 2022-23, as he was mainly a bench player in his first two years. He finished this past season with averages of three points and three rebounds per game, while shooting 69% from the field. He also averaged 1.2 blocks per game despite playing only 11.5 minutes.

A Georgia native, Cardwell committed to the Tigers in 2020 as a three-star prospect and the No. 178 overall player in the class according to On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average. He chose Auburn over offers from Connecticut, Georgia, Tennessee and many others.

Dylan Cardwell was one of four Auburn players to declare for the NBA Draft, along with Allen Flanigan, Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler. Kessler and Smith were the only two Tigers listed in the latest edition of ESPN’s NBA mock draft, with Smith slated to be taken first overall. If Kessler — the starting center this past season — ultimately stays in the draft, it could open up a spot for Cardwell in the starting five.

Flanigan, who averaged 14.3 points per game in the 2020-21 season, has not yet announced his decision. He received an invite to the NBA’s G-League Elite camp from May 16-17. Given that he was not invited to the combine, it wouldn;t be surprising to see him join Cardwell in returning to Auburn.