OMAHA – Ryan Kalkbrenner’s life-changing gamble paid off.

A year ago, he bet on himself by forgoing the predraft process for a fifth and final season at Creighton. The 7-foot-1 center firmly believed another summer honing his game, and one last run as one of college basketball’s premier defenders, would catapult him to the next level.

And now it has.

Kalkbrenner was selected by the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday with the No. 34 overall pick in this year’s NBA draft.

Charlotte is getting one of the most decorated defenders in NCAA history with Kalkbrenner, who should have ample opportunity early. The Hornets traded rising center Mark Williams to Phoenix during Wednesday’s first round.

Kalkbrenner is a four-time Big East defensive player of the year, something only Patrick Ewing had done until this spring. Before the curtain closed, Kalkbrenner won the NABC and Naismith DPOYs and was recognized as the country’s top center with the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award.

He becomes the 33rd Bluejay drafted — the ninth since the NBA moved to two rounds in 1989, and the sixth of the Greg McDermott era.

An elite rim protector, Kalkbrenner joins an all-time list of CU greats drafted, including Doug McDermott (2014), Kyle Korver (2003), Benoit Benjamin (1985) and Paul Silas (1964).

Kalkbrenner’s farewell tour produced career highs in points (19.2), rebounds (8.7) and 3-point percentage (34.4%), the 23-year-old anchoring a team that won an NCAA tournament game for the fifth consecutive season.

His 2.7 blocks per game, short of his career-high 3.1 in 2023-24, were fourth nationally. He finished his Creighton career shooting 65.8% from the field, sixth all-time (minimum 400 attempts).

But it was never about the buckets, the blocks, the trophies, the records for Kalkbrenner, praised for his unwavering loyalty and authentic selflessness.

He wanted — wants — to win.

Over the past five years, Kalkbrenner did whatever was necessary to make that happen and, knowingly or not, gradually raised his draft stock season after season.

NBA feedback wasn’t what he wanted after his junior season, and he pulled out of the process early last summer. A lot’s changed since then.

Someday, Kalkbrenner will be immortalized at Creighton, his No. 11 jersey, along with everything it represents, destined for the rafters in Omaha.

In the meantime, he’s headed to Charlotte.