Bruce Thornton participated in the recent NBA combine, and is still hoping to hear his name called in the NBA draft in late June.
At the combine, the all-time leading scorer at Ohio State measured at 6-0, 223 pounds, with a wingspan of 6-5 and a standing reach of 8 feet.
In the combine shooting drills, Thornton performed well. Shooting off the dribble, Thornton made 20 of 30 attempts, and he knocked down 17 of 25 shots in the three-point star drill, in which the player shoots from five different spots on the floor. His 17 makes were tied for fourth best of 73 prospects at the event.
Thornton made 15 of 27 attempts in the three-point side drill, which evaluates a player’s ability to shoot off the catch. He made just 10 of 25 shots in the spot-up drill, however.
Certainly, Thornton’s body of work at Ohio State will have more of an impact on his draft stock. He finished his four-year college career with 15.9 points per game, 4.0 assists and 3.7 rebounds. Those numbers were helped by a senior season of 19.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game.
On May 10, the first day of the combine, ESPN published a full two-round mock draft that had Thornton being selected with the 55th overall pick by the New York Knicks. After the combine, ESPN’s full mock draft had Thornton being chosen 59th overall, the penultimate pick of the draft, by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Many mock drafts have Thornton going the entire 60 picks unselected.
“I’m an everyday guy, a team-first guy,” Thornton said when asked at the combine what an NBA team would be getting from him. “I understand the common goal we have for that year. I play this game to win the whole thing, so that’s just my goal every time I step on the court.”
