When his name didnβt pop up on the final slots of the NBA Draft board on Thursday, Azuolas Tubelis didnβt feel a surge of disappointment, frustration or anguish.
Not the way UA coach Tommy Lloyd described it, at least. After sitting with Tubelis in Tucson during the draft on Thursday night, Lloyd said the Lithuanian forward basically celebrated the fact that he was instead able to agree to a two-way free agent contract with the Philadelphia 76ers.
βTrust me, there was zero disappointment in the room when his name didnβt get called because obviously he knew what opportunity he had,β Lloyd said. βHe was extremely grateful and extremely happy.β
The two-way contract could wind up paying Tubelis over $500,000 while giving the Sixers the right to shuttle him back and forth between the NBA and their G League affiliate in Delaware. It also might represent a significant opportunity for Tubelis to spend time in the NBA as a rookie, since the Sixers did not have a selection in Thursdayβs draft after trading away their first-round pick and losing their second-rounder as a penalty for tampering.
Instead of acquiring another pick somehow, the Sixers waited until the 58-player draft was over and signed Tubelis, N.C. State guard Terquavion Smith and Arkansas forward Ricky Council IV to two-way contracts, while also adding former ASU forward Marcus Bagley via a lower-tier Exhibit 10 deal.
In todayβs NBA Draft, signing a two-way deal with the club of a playerβs choice is often viewed as better than being picked in the second half of the second round, where players typically donβt get guaranteed contracts and are sometimes stashed overseas, with their NBA rights held by one team.
All that, plus the fact that second-round picks are separated by only two minutes, makes for a frenetic behind-the-scenes environment at the end of draft night.
βThe back half of that second round is crazy,β Lloyd said. βThey should probably do a β30 for 30,β or a documentary on it. (There are) agents calling players and asking them, βIf they draft you, would you be willing to be stashed?β And then agents are telling teams, `Donβt draft him here because we think we got a two-way.β
βItβs just a lot of moving parts. So with a bit of time to go in the draft, I think Zu knew he had that in his back pocket, and thatβs what he wanted to do. Thatβs what they pursued.β
News of the deal surfaced in the first 15 minutes after the draft, first when The Athleticβs Shams Charania cited unnamed sources saying Tubelis would sign a two-way deal. Tubelisβ agent, Greg Lawrence, later confirmed it to the Star.
The Sixers, however, did not announce Tubelisβ addition Friday and arenβt expected to officially until his contract is signed.
Having to go the free agent route as a more traditional big man, even one with well-regarded quickness and offensive efficiency, is another new feature in todayβs NBA Draft. ESPN draft analyst Jonathan Givony ranked Tubelis eighth among players not taken in the draft, while college basketball analyst Jay Biles noted how many of college basketballβs star big men β such as Kentuckyβs Oscar Tshiebwe, Gonzagaβs Drew Timme and Tubelis β were not drafted because of how the NBA now deploys post players.
βThe game has changed, and itβs more of a perimeter game,β Bilas said. βIf you canβt shoot it, itβs going to be a long night for you.β
But Lloyd said Tubelis still might have βanother jump in his gameβ that could allow him to make a career in the NBA.
βHe has a knack for getting stuff done, whether itβs in the paint, the basket, transition,β Lloyd said. βZu might not be the guy initiating everything or making all the highlights or making a bunch of jump shots, but heβs kind of the receiving end of a lot of those plays. He can just catch the ball and lay it up, and thereβs a value in that. Thatβs a lot harder to do than people think.
βAnd the way he runs the floor, I think he creates these opportunities for himself and his teammates.. But like a lot of these guys, now the real challenge is in front of you. Youβve got to go at that level with the best players in the world, and youβve got to make it happen. Iβm excited to see Zuβs journey.β
Although the Wildcats have not had a player taken in three of the past five NBA Drafts, they had three draftees each in 2020 and 2022. Josh Green (18), Zeke Nnaji (22) and Nico Mansion (48) went in 2020, while Bennedict Mathurin (6), Dalen Terry (18) and Christian Koloko (33) were taken last year.
UCLAβs Jaime Jaquez was the Pac-12βs only first-round pick in Thursdayβs draft, while the conference also had three second-round picks: Washington Stateβs Mouhamed Gueye (39th to Charlotte), UCLAβs Amari Bailey (41st to Charlotte) and UCLAβs Jaylen Clark (53rd to Minnesota).