Arizona Forward Koa Peat Keeps Name in NBA Draft

Arizona forward Koa Peat, a projected first-round pick, is keeping his name in the NBA draft, sources told ESPN on Wednesday. Peat had left open the possibility of returning to Tucson but focused on the draft process for the past two months before closing that option on Wednesday.

6 assists during the regular season and helped Arizona win the Big 12 regular-season and conference titles. He earned third-team All-Big 12 honors. 6 rebounds, including 21 points against Arkansas, 20 against Purdue in the Elite Eight and 16 points with 11 rebounds in the Final Four loss to Michigan.

5-inch standing vertical leap, sixth-best among participants. He made 6 of 25 shots in the spot-up drill and 7 of 25 in the 3-point star drill. Peat told ESPN at the combine he was working on shooting consistency and eliminating side-to-side misses while noting other aspects of his game.

Arizona lost starting backcourt players Brayden Burries and Jaden Bradley to the draft. Incoming transfers Derek Dixon from North Carolina and JJ Mandaquit from Washington, plus recruit Caleb Holt, have been added. Starters Ivan Kharchenkov and Motiejus Krivas are returning. The program is monitoring Iowa State transfer Milan Momcilovic as a possible replacement starter.