2 former IMG Academy basketball players taken in the 1st round of the NBA Draft
Two March Madness stars with ties to Bradenton’s IMG Academy were picked in the first round of the 2024 NBA Draft.
Purdue’s Zach Edey and Illinois’ Terrence Shannon Jr. were the selected players. Edey was chosen by the Memphis Grizzlies with the ninth pick, while the Minnesota Timberwolves took Shannon Jr. with the 27th pick.
Edey, a 7-foot-4 center from Toronto, Canada, led the Boilermakers to the NCAA championship game, where they lost to UConn. He played his senior high school season at IMG Academy and averaged 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.2 blocks, and 2.0 assists per game in his senior year. Edey scored the third-most points in NCAA Tournament history, compiling 177 points, and was awarded the 2023-2024 men’s Wooden Award, given annually to the best college basketball player.
ESPN's pre-draft analysis of Edey noted, “He plays with the mean streak to take advantage of his rare physical tools. What kind of answers he can find defending in pick-and-roll will dictate just how smooth his transition will be to the NBA.”
Shannon Jr., a fifth-year senior, led the Illini to the Elite Eight, where they also lost to eventual national champion UConn. The 6-foot-6 shooting guard from Chicago played one year of prep school at IMG Academy. Shannon was picked shortly after being found not guilty of felony rape and aggravated assault by a Kansas jury, stemming from an alleged September 2023 incident in Lawrence, Kansas.
Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly told ESPN, “The off-court reputation is sterling. Talk to the coaches at Texas Tech. Talk to the coaches at Illinois. They don’t say good things. They say amazing things. Obviously, he was on the wrong end of a really unfortunate situation, and his ability to play through that and play winning basketball for a great coach in Brad Underwood, we just think he brings toughness.”
Shannon Jr. averaged 23.0 points per game, scoring 26 or more points in three NCAA Tournament wins before being held to eight points in the loss to UConn.
The NBA Draft’s second round began Thursday at 4 p.m.