RJ Luis Jr. NBA Draft: Top 5 landing spots for St. John guard if he forgoes eligibility ft. Phoenix

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament Second Round-Arkansas at St. Johns - Source: Imagn

St. John's Red Storm guard RJ Luis Jr. declared after the Red Storm's elimination from March Madness that he is entering the transfer portal. The decision came after a controversial decision to bench him in the final minutes of St. John's loss to Arkansas.

While Luis Jr. is in the transfer portal, he also has the option to declare for the NBA draft. He has completed three college basketball seasons and is thus eligible to enter the draft. He must declare 60 days before the draft to be eligible. The 2025 NBA draft is scheduled for June 25. These are the top five landing spots for him in the NBA if he foregoes his last year of NCAA eligibility.

Top five landing spots for RJ Luis Jr. in the NBA if he declares for the draft

#1 Phoenix Suns

If RJ Luis Jr. declares for the NBA draft, he won't be a first-round pick. Although he is a strong scorer in college, his shaky shooting and decision-making have made scouts question whether he can be an effective scorer in the NBA. However, his strong defensive play should ensure he gets drafted in the second round.

The Phoenix Suns would be a good fit for Luis Jr. They are in an interesting spot as Kevin Durant's status is up in the air for future seasons. If he leaves and the Suns start a rebuild, adding a dynamic defender with speed could make sense for the Suns.

#2 Washington Wizards

The Washington Wizards are a perennially rebuilding team. One of their problems is defensive play. Although they can put up points, they struggle to get stops. Adding Luis Jr. in the second round would make sense.

#3 Sacramento Kings

With the departure of De'Aaron Fox, the Kings lost a lot of speed. As a result, they could look to add a speedster in the NBA draft. Luis Jr. would be an effective option and help build their defensive foundation for the future.

#4 Indiana Pacers

The Indiana Pacers are a middle-of-the-road defensive team, which stops them from reaching the next level. Adding a versatile defender in the draft like RJ Luis Jr. could be what they need to take the next step.

#5 Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz have been one of the worst teams in the NBA this season, but the defense has stood out as especially horrible. If the Jazz add a star scorer with the second pick, they can add a versatile defender like RJ Luis Jr. in the second round.

About the author

Alexander O'Reilly is a journalist at Sportskeeda from Kingston, Ontario with over seven years in the field at companies including SenShot, RVBlogger, Monarch Media, WordAgents, GSeC LLC, and IGC.

His favorite college team is Duke, and his favorite sporting memory was Duke winning March Madness in 2010. JJ Redick was Alex's favorite college player when he was young but more recently, Caleb Williams gets the nod. As the Chicago Bears are Alex's favorite NFL team, this was a perfect match.

Alex's proudest moment came when he was interviewed by a radio station in Ottawa on his opinion on recent moves by the Ottawa Senators, which gave him a confidence boost and the knowledge that he could succeed as a writer.

Aside from sports, Alex likes to spend his time playing games. He is also very passionate about running and strives to improve at the half and full marathon distances.

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Edited by Abhimanyu Gupta