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Michigan State guard Jaden Akins declares for 2023 NBA Draft, maintains eligibility

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•04/21/23
Jaden Akins, Michigan State Spartans guard
Michigan State guard Jaden Akins gets into a defensive stance during an NCAA Tournament game against Kansas State on March 23, 2023. (Jamie Schwaberow / Getty Images)

Michigan State guard Jaden Akins announced that he will declare for the 2023 NBA Draft while maintaining his collegiate eligibility. He put the news out on his Instagram in a post on Friday afternoon.

Akins managed to average 9.8 points and 4.0 rebounds for the Spartans as a sophomore during the 202-23 season. That was a significant improvement from his contributions as a freshman.

In his first season at Michigan State, Akins averaged only 3.4 points and 2.4 rebounds per game.

At 6 foot 4, 190 pounds, Akins has decent size for a guard.

As a recruit, Akins was ranked as a four-star prospect in the 2021 recruiting class. He was ranked as the No. 53 overall player in the class in the On3 Industry Rankings. Meanwhile, he checked in as the No. 8 point guard in the class and the No. 3 overall player in the state of Michigan in his recruiting cycle.

Akins hailed from Ypsilanti (MI) Ypsi Prep Academy.

More on the 2023 NBA Draft

The 2023 NBA Draft is set to take place on Thursday, June 22, 2023, in Brooklyn at Barclays Center. Round 1 of the draft will be announced by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, while Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum is expected to handle the second round of picks.

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To be eligible for the NBA Draft, players must be at least 19 years in age during the calendar year that the draft is held and at least one NBA season from their high school graduation date, or the date that would have been if they are not graduated. It is not required that player spend that one year playing college basketball, though. Players can play in either college, abroad, or the G League Ignite if they choose so.

While this is a significant change from what the rules once were, players are eligible to enter their names into the NBA Draft pool and explore their options by hiring an agent to go through the process, while still keeping their college eligibility. The deadline to make that move is on April 23 beginning at 11:59 p.m. ET. Players have until June 12 at 5 p.m. ET to withdraw their name from the pool and return to college.

The NBA Draft Lottery will be held on May 16, which is also the start of the NBA Conference Finals.