Should Carlik Jones Stay in the NBA Draft Process or Return to Louisville?

We weigh the pros and cons of his decision to either remain in the 2021 NBA Draft process, or come back for a final year with the Cardinals.

(Photo of Carlik Jones: Bob Donnan - USA TODAY Sports)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - In a decision that surprised no one, Louisville men's basketball graduate transfer guard Carlik Jones declared for the 2021 NBA Draft, but did not sign an agent, thus leaving open the possibility of a return to the Cardinals for the 2021-22 season.

The Cincinnati native has plenty of time to decide if he wants to come back to Louisville. The deadline to withdraw from this year's draft process is set for July 19 at 5:00 p.m. EST - or roughly three months away, and the draft itself takes place on July 29.

Despite a year in which he averaged 16.8 points, 4.9 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, was named a First Team All-ACC selection and tied for second in ACC Player of the Year voting, the 6-foot-1, 185-pound point guard has not been highly regarded among NBA draft experts and pundits.

Sites like Sports Illustrated, ESPN and NBC Sports have completely left him off of their most recent mock drafts, and The Athletic's Sam Vecenie recently listed Jones as just the No. 84 overall prospect on his 2021 NBA Draft Big Board.

None of these publications are the ones who will be evaluating and selecting from the draft pool at the end of the day, but it does raise a valid question. Should Carlik Jones remain in the draft process, or should he take advantage of the extra year and return to Louisville?

Of course, if you ask any Louisville fan this, and the overwhelming response is that he should come back. But for the sake of this piece, we will be weighing some of the pros and cons with each respective decision from his perspective.

We'll start with remaining in the draft process. First and foremost, the earnings from a contract are lucrative. If Jones signs a minimum salary contract, that is currently worth $898,310. Even if he isn't drafted any goes to the G-League, he would earn a minimum of $77,250, prorated.

However, none of that money would be guaranteed. In fact, it's not even a foregone conclusion that he would chance to crack a roster if the mock drafts are to be believed. He could play overseas, sure, but that money pales in comparison to the NBA.

But, as the old saying goes, all it takes is one team to fall in love with him. It's entirely conceivable that he could shoot up an individual organization's draft board from interviews and workouts, single-handedly earning himself a selection in the draft.

Now let's move to to why Jones could opt for another year at Louisville. He'll have the opportunity to hear vast amounts of feedback from NBA representatives, and more importantly, learn what he needs to do in order to improve his draft stock for next year.

Plus, Jones was denied an opportunity to play in the NCAA Tournament - where the spotlight shines the brightest and NBA organizations are out in full force to scout. Several prospects vastly improved their draft stock based on their performance in the Big Dance alone, such as Oral Roberts' Max Abmas.

But, that's not to say there aren't some drawbacks. Jones is already an older prospect at age 23, and coming back for another year would only add to that. Plus, he would run the risk of injury and derail his chances to get drafted altogether.

More importantly, Jones already proved that he could transition from the Big South and compete at a high level in the ACC. What more in his game does he have to expand upon to truly make a difference, besides maybe improving his shooting percentages?

At this point, it's hard take a definitive stance on if Jones should stay or go. You could make a case that he should bolt for the NBA, and you can make one that he needs another year at Louisville. The only definitive piece of information we can derive is that we have a while to go before he makes his final decision.

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