Jaden Bradley is heading to the Six.
The Arizona point guard was selected 50th overall in the 2026 NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday night. Bradley will play only a couple hours from where he grew up in Rochester, New York.
The 6-foot-3 Bradley capped off a prolific collegiate career with a senior season for the ages. He earned Big 12 Player of the Year honors, averaging 13.3 points, 4.4 assists and 3.4 rebounds. Bradley was a Big 12 All Defensive Team selection and a Third Team All-American
(NABC, USBWA, The Sporting News).
Bradley led Arizona to Big 12 regular season and conference tournament championships. He was named the Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player. Bradley played a standout role in Arizona advancing to its first Final Four in 25 years.
Bradley joins a Raptors franchise coming off a fifth-place finish in the Eastern Conference. Toronto’s point guards include Immanuel Quickley and Jamal Shead.
Bradley was the third Arizona player selected in the 2026 NBA Draft, joining Brayden Burries (10th overall to the Milwaukee Bucks) and Koa Peat (30th overall to the Phoenix Suns).
Arizona’s three draft picks are the program’s most since 2022, when Bennedict Mathurin, Dalen Terry and Christian Koloko were selected.
Veesaar slides, Awaka goes undrafted
The bigger surprise of the draft was the fall of former Arizona big man Henri Veesaar, who had to wait until pick 52 to hear his name called. The North Carolina product turned down a reported $5 million NIL deal to remain in the draft with the hopes of being selected in the first round.
Veesaar instead slid to the late second round, when the Atlanta Hawks traded with the Los Angeles Clippers to draft him. Veesaar’s fall will serve as a cautionary tale for college players with remaining eligibility who face the choice of returning to school for a large payday or chasing their professional dreams.
Arizona forward Tobe Awaka went undrafted after averaging 9.3 points and 9.1 rebounds as a senior. The 6-foot-8 Awaka will most likely sign on with a team as an undrafted free agent.
ESPN draft analyst Jeremy Woo ranked Awaka as his top undrafted player.
It’s only a matter of time before Awaka, the Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year, finds a spot in the league.
