acquitted himself well<\/a> in the 5-on-5 scrimmages and was considered among those players who improved their draft stock.<\/p>\nHe spent the past week working out for the Boston Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Phoenix Suns and Charlotte Hornets, who own a combined eight picks between 26 and 36 in the two-round draft next month. He faced an 8:59 p.m. PDT deadline Wednesday to return to college or stay in the draft permanently and, just as he predicted, took his decision to the final day.<\/p>\n
Byrd was hoping to be projected for the first round, when all rookie contracts are guaranteed, or that a team with a second-round pick would promise him a guaranteed, multiyear deal.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s just waiting on feedback,\u201d Dutcher told boosters at an athletic department event Tuesday night. \u201cSomeone is going to have to tell him that we\u2019re going to take you with this pick. And if he doesn\u2019t get that kind of guarantee, then my thought would be he would come back.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ll decide what pick they\u2019re going to make, and if they really want Miles, they\u2019ll try to encourage him to stay in. \u2026 If they\u2019re still undecided, they\u2019ll tell him that. They\u2019ll tell him there\u2019s a chance we\u2019ll take you but we\u2019re not promising anything, and then he\u2019ll have a choice to make.\u201d<\/p>\n
The alternative was being selected in the second round and offered a two-way contract allowing movement between the NBA club and its G League affiliate, which can pay up to $636,000 next season but is not guaranteed. The risk was getting waived and wallowing in the G League with sparse crowds, commercial travel between remote locales and a dog-eat-dog team culture for as little as $40,500.<\/p>\n
A safer option, armed with NBA feedback, is continuing his development at a place he knows and trusts, moving closer to a college degree, playing in a regularly sold-out 12,414-seat area and receiving a six-figure NIL check that amounts to a guaranteed contract.<\/p>\n
NBADraft.net projected Byrd to go No. 33 overall, the third pick of the second round, to Charlotte. Sports Illustrated\u2019s mock draft had him at No. 38 to San Antonio, Yahoo at No. 39 to Houston, ESPN at No. 43 to Utah, Tankathon at No. 45 to Chicago.<\/p>\n
The Ringer\u2019s comprehensive draft prospectus ranked him No. 33 on its Big Board, noting that since 2007-08 he is one of only 13 college players with steal and block analytics above 4% but that he curiously shot better when guarded than wide open.<\/p>\n
Wrote J. Kyle Mann in his assessment of the wiry 20-year-old: \u201cAll in all, Byrd is like a basketball version of an oddly flavored aperitif: Some will blanch at his odd game, assuming he\u2019s a scorer but getting notes of a more defensive-leaning wing; others will appreciate the uniqueness and see what he could be with the right pairing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Byrd likely would have been worth more on the open market had he entered the transfer portal before provisionally declaring for the NBA draft. But he made it clear in March that if he didn\u2019t turn pro, he would return to SDSU for his junior season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to prove myself that I\u2019m an NBA guy this year, right now,\u201d Byrd, who spent the past two months training in Glendale with other players from the Wasserman agency, told the Union-Tribune<\/a> earlier this month. \u201cAt the same time, it\u2019s in the back of my mind that it\u2019s no rush. Obviously, I wouldn\u2019t be opposed to coming back to San Diego State if I\u2019m not hearing the feedback that I want to hear.<\/p>\n\u201cI know I\u2019d be coming back to a good situation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Besides being the second leading scorer (12.3 points) last season behind the departed Nick Boyd, Byrd was the only player to rank in the top eight of the Mountain West in both average steals (2.1) and blocks (1.1), a rare double. Perhaps even more important, he is the only scholarship player on the roster in his fourth year with the program \u2013 the kind of veteran leadership that has defined SDSU\u2019s most successful teams.<\/p>\n
And playing alongside the 6-6 Waters, a lethal scorer from the 3-point arc and midrange, should take some offensive pressure off Byrd, who became the focus of opposing defenses at midseason and watched his numbers plummet. It also should help to have a pass-first point guard in Louisiana Tech transfer Sean Newman Jr., who averaged 7.9 assists last season, third best in Division I.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the sky\u2019s the limit,\u201d Byrd said earlier this month about SDSU\u2019s potential next season. \u201cWe\u2019ve all just played with each other for a season. There will definitely be a lot more chemistry, a lot more maturity. We were a few games and a few injuries from being a Final Four-type team last year, and that\u2019s without any maturity or experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can only think, if you get us all out there together, what it will look like.\u201d<\/p>\n
Originally Published: May 28, 2025 at 2:23 PM PDT<\/p>\n