Onyeka Okongu (left) was State Freshman of Year for 2016 while Chino Hills teammate LaMelo Ball was State Sophomore of Year for 2017. Photos: Willie Eashman & James Escarcega.
At some point there will be an NBA Draft this summer and there’s growing consensus that two of the very top choices will be former Chino Hills High teammates Onyeka Okongwu and LaMelo Ball. As a prelude to that draft and to match a list we did a few weeks ago that featured every first-round pick in the Major League Baseball Draft, here is similar list for NBA. Schools with most all-time 1st-round picks are Verbum Dei, Inglewood & San Joaquin Memorial of Fresno.
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After a 2019 NBA Draft in which no one from a California high school was selected in the first round, the upcoming 2020 NBA Draft will be a lot more normal.
The NBA Draft this year, like the rest of the league’s likely return to some sort of conclusion for the 2020 season, is in flux due to the Coronavirus pandemic. It likely will happen, but no dates have been set and the draft order hasn’t been determined yet, either.
Of the NBA mock drafts that have been issued by various national media outlets, they have all picked them out with the Golden State Warriors going first since they will have the worst record. Most of them have three from California going in the first round — LaMelo Ball (Chino Hills), Onyeka Okongwu (Chino Hills) and Cassius Stanley (Sierra Canyon).
