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Bazley to forgo G League, taking year to prepare for NBA Draft

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

In a surprise twist, former Syracuse recruit Darius Bazley has decided to forgo the G League to prepare for the 2019 NBA Draft on his own.

Bazley is currently slotted in at No. 13 in ESPN's Top 100 recruits for 2018. The five-star forward withdrew his commitment to Syracuse in March to enter the NBA G League before backpedaling on those plans as well.

"Talking about it over with my group, we felt confidently that the G League wasn't going to be needed and now I can use this time to work on my craft," Bazley told The Athletic's Shams Charania. "It's mainly me talking to Rich (Paul), he knows so much, and whenever he speaks my ears perk up. When Miles (Bridges) was in Cleveland for his predraft workouts, whenever he got a chance to work out in front of NBA teams, I was working out in the gym, too. So that played a part in it."

The initial reaction when Bazley decided to spurn Syracuse in favor of joining the G League was mostly positive, with hopes that more college athletes would take that route to help develop their game within an NBA focused atmosphere. However, to remove his name from all competitive basketball is a risky proposition, and will more than likely weaken his draft stock ahead of the NBA draft.

Although it could benefit Bazley to work against professional competition, the 6-foot-9 forward perceives the NBA's developmental league as a more individually focused league, with few aiming for victory as its athletes hope to prove themselves to make it to the next level.

"I take pride in my decision. There are no regrets at all. At the end of the day, people are going to do what they want to do. Whether it's going to college, whether it's skipping college to go to the NBA, whether it's quitting basketball altogether - people will make their choices. This decision is what I wanted to do, and I embrace that. It's my life, my decision, my path and my journey."

Bazley's route is similar to 2018 second-round draftee Mitchell Robinson, who elected to leave Western Kentucky to hone his skills individually before being selected No. 36 overall by the New York Knicks. Despite his drop in draft status, Mitchell's excellent play for the Knicks over the summer earned high praise - something that could benefit Bazley moving forward.

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