Maten left off of NBA combine invite list
Georgia forward Yante Maten did not receive an invitation to this year's NBA combine, according to a league release sent Friday.
A total of 67 players were included to participate. While Maten's name was left off, it doesn't necessarily mean he will return for his senior season just yet. There will still be other factors to weigh before making a decision before the May 24 deadline.
A long list of names that didn't include Maten's was reported a week ago by ESPN's Jeff Goodman. Friday's list is a finalized version released by the NBA itself.
Maten previously declared for the NBA draft but did not sign with an agent. Therefore, he still has the opportunity to return to Georgia for his final year of college basketball eligibility.
Maten, at 6-foot-8 and 240 pounds, averaged 18.2 points and 6.8 rebounds during the 2016-17 season. But Maten injured his knee during a Feb. 18 game against Kentucky that forced him to miss the final four games of the regular season. While he played in the SEC Tournament against Tennessee and Kentucky, he sat out Georgia's NIT-opening loss to Belmont.
During an appearance on 680 The Fan Friday morning, Georgia head coach Mark Fox said Maten was back to basketball activities without a brace on his knee. He also said that Maten has yet to make a final decision on whether to return or not.
“There’s a target that he would like to hit and if he hits it, I think he would stay in the draft and if he doesn’t than he will come back,” Fox said.
Seven players from SEC schools were invited to the NBA combine -- Bam Adebayo (Kentucky), Isaiah Briscoe (Kentucky), Hamidou Diallo (Kentucky), PJ Dozier (South Carolina), De'Aaron Fox (Kentucky), Devin Robinson (Florida) and Sindarius Thornwell (South Carolina).
2017 NBA combine invite list
Bam Adebayo, Kentucky
Rawle Alkins, Arizona
Jarrett Allen, Texas
Kadeem Allen, Arizona
Ike Anigbogu, UCLA
OG Anunoby, Indiana
Jamel Artis, Pittsburgh
Dwayne Bacon, Florida State
V.J. Beachem, Notre Dame
Jordan Bell, Oregon
Jaron Blossomgame, Clemson
Chris Boucher, Oregon
Tony Bradley, North Carolina
Isaiah Briscoe, Kentucky
Dillon Brooks, Oregon
Thomas Bryant, Indiana
John Collins, Wake Forest
Zach Collins, Gonzaga
Hamidou Diallo, Kentucky
Tyler Dorsey, Oregon
Damyean Dotson, Houston
PJ Dozier, South Carolina
Jawun Evans, Oklahoma State
Terrance Ferguson, Adelaide (Australia)
De'Aaron Fox, Kentucky
Markelle Fultz, Washington
Harry Giles, Duke
Josh Hart, Villanova
Nigel Hayes, Wisconsin
Isaiah Hicks, North Carolina
Wesley Iwundu, Kansas State
Frank Jackson, Duke
Justin Jackson, North Carolina
Justin Jackson, Maryland
Jonathan Jeanne, Nancy (France)
Peter Jok, Iowa
Andrew Jones, Texas
Luke Kennard, Duke
Kyle Kuzma, Utah
TJ Leaf, UCLA
Tyler Lydon, Syracuse
Frank Mason III, Kansas
Kennedy Meeks, North Carolina
Eric Mika, BYU
Donovan Mitchell, Louisville
Monte Morris, Iowa State
Johnathan Motley, Baylor
Svi Mykhailiuk, Kansas
Semi Ojeleye, SMU
Cameron Oliver, Nevada
Justin Patton, Creighton
Alec Peters, Valparaiso
Ivan Rabb, California
Davon Reed, Miami (Fla.)
Devin Robinson, Florida
Kobi Simmons, Arizona
Edmond Sumner, Xavier
Caleb Swanigan, Purdue
Sindarius Thornwell, South Carolina
Melo Trimble, Maryland
Mortiz Wagner, Michigan
Derrick Walton Jr., Michigan
Thomas Welsh, UCLA
Derrick White, Colorado
Nigel Williams-Goss, Gonzaga
D.J. Wilson, Michigan
Omer Yurtseven, N.C. State
This story was originally published May 5, 2017 at 4:23 PM with the headline "Maten left off of NBA combine invite list."