LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — For the first time in 30 years, Louisville basketball has a Top-10 NBA Draft pick.
Mikel Brown Jr. was selected sixth overall by the Brooklyn Nets in Tuesday night's NBA Draft, becoming the Cardinals' highest draft pick since Felton Spencer went No. 6 overall in 1990 and Louisville's first Top-10 selection since Samaki Walker was drafted ninth in 1996.
The selection places Brown among the most accomplished NBA prospects in school history — seventh highest along with Spencer — and adds another milestone to Pat Kelsey's rebuilding effort at Louisville.
Brown spent only one season with the Cardinals, but his impact was undeniable.
The freshman guard averaged 18.0 points, 4.7 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game while earning Third Team All-ACC and ACC All-Rookie honors. He scored at least 20 points nine times and delivered one of the greatest individual performances in Louisville history when he poured in 45 points and tied a school record with 10 three-pointers against NC State in February.
His season ended prematurely because of a lingering back injury that limited him to 21 games and eventually sidelined him for the ACC and NCAA Tournaments. But Brown's talent was never in doubt.
At the NBA Draft Combine, Brown impressed scouts with his size, athleticism and offensive skill set. He measured 6-foot-3½ barefoot with a 6-foot-7½ wingspan and posted a 39.5-inch maximum vertical leap.
NBA evaluators have praised Brown's ability to create shots off the dribble, operate in pick-and-roll situations and make advanced reads as a playmaker. Despite shooting 41 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from three-point range during his freshman season, many scouts view him as one of the draft's highest-upside guards because of his combination of size, creativity and shooting potential.
Brown said at the combine that two months of rehabilitation following the season had left him feeling fully healthy.
"I feel amazing," Brown said. "I feel like how I was feeling before the season started last year."
His rise to the NBA has been years in the making.
The Orlando, Florida, native was one of the nation's top recruits coming out of DME Academy and chose Louisville over offers from Alabama, Providence, Ole Miss and UCF. Before arriving on campus, he helped Team USA win a gold medal at the FIBA U19 World Cup and was named USA Basketball's Male Athlete of the Year.
Brown wasted little time making an impression in Louisville.
He scored 29 points in a victory over Kentucky early in the season and quickly emerged as one of the ACC's most dynamic freshmen. His combination of scoring ability, court vision and flair for the dramatic made him one of the league's most entertaining players when healthy.
Now he becomes one of the highest-drafted players ever to wear a Louisville uniform.
Only six Cardinals have been selected higher than Brown: Pervis Ellison (No. 1 in 1989), Charlie Tyra (No. 2 in 1957), Wes Unseld (No. 2 in 1968), Darrell Griffith (No. 2 in 1980), George Hauptfuhrer (No. 3 in 1948) and Rodney McCray (No. 3 in 1983).
Brown also matches Felton Spencer, who was selected sixth overall in 1990, as the second-highest Louisville draft pick of the modern era.
For the Nets, Brown represents another major investment in a young roster as the franchise continues its rebuild.
For Louisville, his selection ends a 30-year wait.
Tuesday night, Brown became the Cardinals' first Top-10 pick since Walker, the highest-drafted Cardinal in nearly four decades and the latest Louisville player to hear his name called among the NBA's elite.
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