There's no hiding the fact that former Wake Forest forward Juke Harris is deciding between the 2026 NBA Draft and transferring to a new program, opting to stick around for at least one more season of college basketball.
As Harris has narrowed down his list of potential programs to transfer to (truly only including the Tennessee Volunteers and Michigan Wolverines, with UNC bowing out), NBA analysts have continued to release their mock drafts.
In Yahoo Sports' most recent NBA Mock Draft, Harris' projected draft position was actually really good news for the college teams pursuing him.
If Juke Harris is a 2nd-rounder, he should stay in college
Yahoo Sports' Kevin O'Connor listed Harris as the second pick in the second round, landing 32nd overall, in his NBA Mock Draft.
On average, players taken early in the second round sign a rookie contract of just over $1 million, which is a lot of money, but it's really not that much relative to the larger end of rookie contracts, or even the larger end of collegiate NIL deals.
In comparison, Harris could transfer to a program like Tennessee (because there's no better place than Knoxville) and lock in an NIL contract of around $3 million, which is reportedly the offer from both the Volunteers and the Wolverines.
In other words, when it comes to a cash grab, it is a much more lucrative option for Harris to stay in college for another season, instead of risking millions to take his talents to the NBA.
During his sophomore season with the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, Harris averaged a whopping 21.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.3 steals per game, leading the team in nearly every statistical category available.
So, it's no wonder that programs like Tennessee and even the National Championship-winning Wolverines are interested in bringing him into their program.
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