Mika declares for 2017 NBA Draft, maintains college eligibility

PROVO, Utah – BYU sophomore forward Eric Mika announced Wednesday that he will enter his name for the 2017 NBA Draft but will maintain his college eligibility by not hiring an agent.

“I’m excited to declare for the NBA Draft and I’m looking forward to the process,” Mika said. “I have every intention of pursuing this opportunity with the hope of impressing NBA teams. I will work hard over the next several weeks to put myself in a position to be drafted. I’m optimistic about my chances."

“I’m not hiring an agent because I believe it’s important to have options and I don’t want to rule out the possibility of returning to BYU next season.”

By declaring for the NBA Draft, Mika can be invited to workouts with NBA teams beginning April 25. Early-entry players who have not hired an agent are eligible to be invited to the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago (May 9-14). The deadline to withdraw from the NBA Draft while maintaining NCAA eligibility is May 24.

“We support Eric and will do whatever we can to help him through this process,” BYU head coach Dave Rose said. “Eric had an outstanding year for us. He worked incredibly hard coming off his mission to be ready for this past season and I expect he’ll demonstrate that same work ethic throughout this process.”

A 6-foot-10, 230-pound forward, Mika was a first-team All-West Coast Conference player and a second-team CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2016-17. He led the Cougars to 22 wins while averaging 20.3 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game. The USBWA District VIII Player of the Year scored in double figures in all 34 games, totaled 20-plus points 16 times and recorded 17 double-doubles.

Mika’s best game of the season came on the biggest stage when BYU played at No. 1 Gonzaga in the regular season finale. The Alpine, Utah, native led the Cougars to a 79-71 upset win over the Bulldogs while totaling 29 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. The performance earned Mika NCAA.com Player of the Week honors and a spot on the NCAA.com All-Week Team.

During the 2016-17 campaign, Mika made his mark on the BYU single season record book. He set the record for offensive rebounds (104), was fourth in blocks (63) and 12th in total rebounds (312). Mika also shot the second most free throws (295) and had the third most makes (225). His scoring average of 20.3 points per game ranks 16th all-time.

Mika reached 1,000 career points in 2016-17, becoming the 49th player in BYU history to reach the milestone. He joined Danny Ainge, Tyler Haws and Nick Emery as the only Cougars to reach 1,000 career points as sophomores.