The Georgia Tech basketball program saw sophomore shooting guard Josh Okogie selected 20th overall on Thursday night by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Georgia Tech basketball’s Josh Okogie has found his new home on Thursday night as he was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 20th overall pick on Thursday night in the 2018 NBA Draft. The Timberwolves of course have past history with Georgia Tech players as Marcus Georges-Hunt played for the franchise this past season.
A former three-star prospect out of Snellville, Okogie committed to the Yellow Jackets over Kansas State and Tennessee in 2015. However, once Okogie arrived on campus, he immediately started outliving his three-star rating and was dynamite for a rebuilding Tech program.
Under Josh Pastner, Okogie was the Jackets premier scoring option and was one of the best scorers in the ACC. During his freshman season, Okogie averaged 16.1 points per game while shooting .453 from the floor and .747 from the line. His freshman season earned him All-ACC Freshman team honors.
This past season, Okogie missed the first month of the season due to a suspension as well as a thumb injury but once he returned Okogie showed his development. In 24 games, Okogie averaged 18.2 points per game and shot .416 from the floor. He was named to the All-ACC third team for his efforts.
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Despite missing a month of the season and having his shooting numbers drop overall, Okogie saw his draft stock rise throughout the season thanks to his great size (6-foot-4 , 207-pounds) as well as a stellar combine performance. With his strong combine performance, Okogie was considered a likely first round pick and was expected to go in the second half of the first round.
When it came down to it, Minnesota was the franchise willing to take Okogie and see what the shooting guard could provide for a team that’s looking to go to the next level. He will join a Timberwolves team that features star players Karl Anthony-Towns and Jimmy Butler as the franchise looks to take a step another forward in the hard-fought Western Conference.
Okogie is the first player from Tech drafted into the NBA since 2013 when Glen Rice was drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers. He’s the first, first-round pick for the Yellow Jackets since Iman Shumpert was selected 17th overall in in 2011 by the New York Knicks. Fellow Yellow Jackets, Ben Lammers and Tadric Jackson are also eligible to be selected on Thursday night but are not expected to be selected.