Early Entrants List Complete After NBA Draft Withdrawals Announced

Monday's deadline for players to withdraw from the 2009 NBA Draft came and went with few big names electing to return to school. Among the most recognizable players deciding to return were bruising Notre Dame forward Luke Harangody, athletic shot-blocker extraordinaire Jarvis Varnado of Mississippi State, and forward Damion James of Texas.

Particularly interesting was the withdrawal of several quality point guard prospects who undoubtedly did not want to try their luck in a draft already abundant with playmakers. Included in that list was Devan Downey of South Carolina, Scottie Reynolds of Villanova, Greivis Vasquez of Maryland, and Nic Wise of Arizona.

The two programs perhaps most elated with the withdrawals are Mississippi State and Villanova, as both schools now could be poised for a deep run due to the talented recruiting classes arriving on their campuses next fall.

For Mississippi State, that means Varnado will be paired with freshman big man Renardo Sidney down low in the paint. That combination will surely terrorize the rest of the SEC, as few teams can boast of such imposing frontcourt talent.

Meanwhile, for Villanova coach Jay Wright, the rich get richer. Fresh off a Final Four appearance, the Wildcats' guard corps now gets a dual boost from the return of Reynolds, and the addition of McDonald's All-American perimeter players Maalik Wayns and Dominic Cheek.

NCAA Early Entrants List

DeJuan Blair, PF Pittsburgh
Derrick Brown, SF Xavier
Chase Budinger, SF Arizona
Nick Calathes, PG Florida
Earl Clark, SF Louisville
Kareem Cooper, UTEP
Brandon Costner, SF North Carolina State
Stephen Curry, PG Davidson
Austin Daye, SF Gonzaga
Demar DeRozan, SG USC
Eric Devendorf, Syracuse
Wayne Ellington,SG UNC
Chinemelu Elonu, PF Texas A&M
Tyreke Evans, SG Memphis
Jonny Flynn, PG Syracuse
Taj Gibson, PF USC
Blake Griffin, PF Oklahoma
D’mond Grismore Huston-Tillotson (TX)
Rogér Guignard, Texas-Arlington
Daniel Hackett, PG USC
James Harden, SG Arizona St.
Paul Harris, SF Syracuse
Gerald Henderson, SG Duke
Jordan Hill, PF Arizona
Jrue Holiday, PG UCLA
James Johnson, SF Wake Forest
Ty Lawson, PG UNC
James Lewis, Fresno Pacific
Darnell Lindsay, Tennessee Tech
Jodie Meeks, SG Kentucky
Nate Miles, Southern Idaho
Patrick Mills, PG St. Mary's
BJ Mullens, C Ohio St.
Ronald Ogoke, Paul Quinn College
Terrence Roderick, Alabama-Birmingham
DaJuan Summers, SF Georgetown
Shawn Taggart, PF Memphis
Jeff Teague, PG Wake Forest
Hasheem Thabeet, C Connecticut
Dar Tucker, SG DePaul

Other Early Entrants

Rodrigue Beaubois, PG France
Omri Casspi, SF Israel
Victor Claver, SF Spain
Christian Eyenga, Spain
Vitor Faverani, PF Brazil
Sergii Gladyr, SG Ukraine
Baris Hersek, PF Turkey
Martin Kolikoli, Tanzania
Ricky Rubio, PG Spain
Ibrahim Yildirim, Turkey
Thomas Abercrombie, Australia (Washington State)
Patrick Beverley, (Arkansas) Ukraine
Keith Clark, Oklahoma/Tulsa (D-League)
Ra'Sean Dickey, (Georgia Tech) Ukraine
Jeremy Fears, Austria
Sam Haanpaa, (Valparaiso) France
David Huertas, Puerto Rico
Leon Jacob, Germany
Brandon Jennings, PG Oak Hill Academy/Lottomatica Roma
Eric Maddox, N.J. Lightning (EBA)
Laurynas Mikalauskas, Greece
Tyrone Nelson, Houston (TPBL)
Juan Pablo Silveira, Uruguay
Brandon Smith, Bellingham (IBL)
Ramar Smith, (Tennessee) Germany
Joonas Suotamo, Finland

By Mike Elliott
Staff Editor for TheDailySportsHerald.com