Purdue center Zach Edey declares for 2023 NBA Draft, will maintain eligibility

The star of the Purdue Boilermakers, Zach Edey, has made his decision regarding what he’ll do with his immediate basketball future. The 7-foot-4 superstar is declaring for the 2023 NBA Draft and maintaining his eligibility, he announced Tuesday.

Edey has evolved into one of the best, and most recognizable, players in all of college basketball over his three seasons with Purdue. After being used sparingly his freshman season, Edey catapulted himself into a starting role his sophomore season, and became one of the top players in the sport over the 2022-2023 campaign.

His minutes rocketed up to 31.7 per game, and Edey made good use of his time on the floor to say the least, averaging 22.3 points and 12.9 rebounds per game for Purdue last season. It gained him various honors, including being named the Sporting News Player of the Year, Big Ten Player of the Year, Big Ten Tournament MVP and Consensus First-Team All-American status.

pic.twitter.com/oYtj8B13MU

— zach (@zach_edey) April 18, 2023

With his unique frame and abilities to go with it, the sky is the limit for Edey, even if he never had the NCAA Tournament success that he obviously wanted to deliver Purdue so desperately. Nevertheless, the future is bright for the superstar.

Zach Edey has given college basketball fans a couple seasons to remember, and depending on what he decides to do, he might not be done yet.

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.

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.